From Vineyard to Bottle: BevZero's Essential Tools for Winemakers

With winemakers the world over grappling with surplus stock due to a drop in global consumption, dealcoholisation specialist BevZero is on hand to help turn excess wine into on-trend no and low-alcohol line extensions that will grab the attention of a new generation of consumers. We caught up with business development director, Irem Eren, to find out more…

Growing in tandem with the wellness movement, the ‘no and low’ alcohol category is big business now, with everyone from Moët Hennessy and Diageo to Kylie Minogue and Lewis Hamilton having skin in the game. According to the IWSR, the global ‘nolo’ market is worth over US$13billion, with no- and low-alcohol consumption across the world’s 10 leading markets growing by 5% in 2023. “The emergence of celebrities in the nolo space has really helped to boost it, drawing attention to and validating the category, making it more of a mainstream movement,” says BevZero’s business development director, Irem Eren.

While demand for zero ABV drinks is on the rise, wine consumption is falling around the world, leaving key winemaking nations, from Spain and France to Australia and the US, sitting on surplus stock. For those keen to find a savvy solution to their oversupply issues, dealcoholisation specialist BevZero is on hand to help. With 33 years of experience in the no and low sector, BevZero is a world leader in providing its clients with high quality low and no-alcohol products from brainstorm to bottle. “We offer a 360-degree service,” says Eren. “It’s a turnkey solution for our clients. We look after everything, reverse engineering the wine and spending a lot of time on the product development.”

Such a service provides struggling wineries with a golden opportunity to repurpose their oversupply and still get a premium for it, while introducing their brand to a new audience in the process. The California-based firm has offices in Spain and South Africa, allowing it to serve as a one-stop shop for drinks brands of all sizes seeking to bottle their big idea. BevZero uses low temperature vacuum distillation technology, which allows for the gentle removal of alcohol while preserving and reusing nearly 100% of the aromas and flavours that can be added back to the de-alcoholised fraction to retain the original characteristics of the wine in the finished product. Working at scale, BevZero can dealcoholise up to 40,000 litres of wine a day at a cost of 10-16 cents per litre, with a minimum of 4,000 litres per client required.

“We have new clients coming to us every week wanting this service. Uprooting their vines for other crops is disruptive, while turning their surplus stock into a nolo product broadens their brand to younger consumers who don’t drink wine,” says Eren. “A lot of big wineries in Spain are creating 0.0% versions of their wines or new brand extensions. We’ve increased our Spanish clients by 20% as it’s a great way to deal with surplus stock.” For those starting from scratch, BevZero’s white label programme is a fast-track service that sees the firm take control of the whole process, from sourcing the base wine and conceptualising the product to the dealcoholisation and bottling. Covering all bases, BevZero’s white label wines include a range of alcohol-free reds, whites, rosés and sparklers, which can be bottled or canned.

The firm also works with clients on bespoke private label products, which are ideal for wineries that need to hit the ground running with a customised alcohol-free brand. “We’re improving the flavour profile of our alcohol-free wines every year, building up body and tannins in our reds and decreasing sugar levels,” says Eren. “Creating balanced alcohol-free wines without relying on sugar is challenging. The base wine is really important, and you have to pay a lot of attention to the different parameters, from acidity to pH.” No one-trick pony, BevZero also specialises in alcohol adjustment, which is becoming an increasingly popular service due to the effects of global warming, with wineries everywhere from La Mancha to Stellenbosch seeking to rein in their alcohol levels to bring their wines back into balance.

Able to take a highly targeted approach specific to each client’s needs, to ensure the correct alcohol level is achieved, BevZero offers ‘Sweet Spot’ consultations during which the client tastes through a series of wines starting with the original product and moving on through increments of adjusted alcohol levels to determine the desired final product. “We’re seeing more low alcohol products being made for the UK market, with estates producing lower ABV versions of their wines for the UK to save money on taxes,” says Eren.

The firm distributes equipment to help combat higher temperatures, from BevClad tank insulation to Vinfoil tank mixers, which allow wineries to maintain optimal fermentation temperatures, ensuring consistent and controlled production while decreasing energy consumption. BevZero is also the exclusive distributor of next generation dealcoholisation tech ClearAlc, created by Tomsa Destil, which uses a patented single pass vacuum distillation process capable of separating different volatile aromatic compounds (heads, hearts and tails) in an energy efficient way that reduces product loss and requires minimal water use.

BevZero has enjoyed a surge in demand for its services around the world recently, with interest peaking in the traditional winemaking hubs of Australia, France, Germany, Spain, South Africa and the US. “The nolo category is growing and we’re extremely busy in all locations. We increased our budget in Spain by 35% this year, and all areas of our business, from our equipment sales to our white and private label wines, are in growth,” Eren reports. The future of the nolo category looks bright, and Erem believes brand owners risk getting left behind if they don’t dive into it. “One day, every big wine brand will have an alcohol-free expression in their portfolios,” she says. “They will have to for the sustainability of their business. It’s more essential than ever to include these options in your line-up if you want to remain relevant to today’s consumers. It’s a lifestyle choice now.”

Watch our recent webinar celebrating 10 Years of Low & No, in partnership with BevZero: