FORGET Dry January. This year it's all been about Veganuary.

You've heard about it, right? Vegan-January... Veganuary. It's the latest trend for folk looking to start the year with a major detox, but this time cutting out meat and dairy as opposed to alcohol.

Supermarkets have apparently had a big increase in demand for meat-free and dairy-free food, with the number of people publicly committing to eating a vegan diet this month having risen from 1,500 in 2014 to 52,000 in 2018.

In fact, Veganuary has become so big a 'thing' that there's even Vegganuary (with two g's). This is for people who want to go vegan but while still eating eggs. (Geddit? Veggan, not vegan.)

Anyway. Whatever your take on Veganuary, it means that, unlike Dry January, you're still allowed to drink alcohol, as long as those drinks are vegan.

And luckily for Veganuarians (whether that word exists or not) there are quite a few wines these days that are classed as such.

Of course, you may wonder how wine could not be vegan. In other words, since when did grapes become meat?! But here's why such labelling is now sometimes used.

Most winemakers, before bottling their wines, stabilise them using a practice called fining - a process that makes a wine look clear and lowers the risk of unwanted flavours and aromas getting in before the bottle is opened.

And it's the products used in fining that create the vegan issue. Bull's blood, a traditional fining agent, was banned by the EU after the BSE crisis but some other animal-derived products are still permitted, such as gelatin, isinglass (fish bladders), casein (milk protein) and albumen (egg white).

Now, there are no laws yet that oblige winemakers to say if they've used such products - presumably because they are so negligible, imperceptible or trivial. But it could still be a moral issue for staunch vegans, which is why an increasing number of makers and sellers now explicitly state on labels their drink is suitable for them.

The Co-op are one supermarket seemingly well in on the growing trend, having reported an 84 per cent increase in mentions of vegan produce year on year. It also now boasts 77 vegan wines in its range, having worked for some time with winemakers globally to pioneer the use of vegan-friendly wine additives.

One such wine we tried for Veganuary is the Baron de Ley Rioja Reserva, priced £10.99.

Aged in American oak for 20 months and then a further 24 in the bottle before being released, this is a lovely Rioja with intense blended fruits and notes of coconut, toffee and subtle spice on the nose, and a powerful palate and long fruity finish.

Another is the Co-op branded Truly Irresistible Gavi (£7.99), an award-winning white made by the Broglia family based on an Italian estate which has been producing wine for over 1,000 years.

Made with 100 per cent Cortese grapes, it is a delicate and alluring wine, with white peach and crisp apple aromas, a little almond and a good depth on the finish. Rated by many as a good alternative to Chardonnay, it is a preferred option for others.