Non-alcoholic wine: enemy or saviour of the sector?

Producers of dealcoholized wine are seeking legitimacy in a sector traditionally tied to the consumption of alcoholic beverages. At the recent International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV) congress, held in Dijon from October 14 to 18, this issue sparked intense technical and conceptual debates. Representatives from the dealcoholized wine industry, such as California-based company BevZero, argued that they are not an enemy of the sector but rather an opportunity to adapt to new consumer demands, especially among younger generations.

BevZero, originally founded as ConeTech in the heart of California's Sonoma wine region, started its journey by adjusting alcohol levels in wines, a need that arose due to rising temperatures linked to climate change. Over its 30 years of existence, the company has evolved into producing low-alcohol or completely dealcoholized wines, which contain less than 0.5% alcohol. According to its director of development, Irem Eren, the growing demand for these products is driven by health, religious, and social factors, as seen in movements like "Dry January" or "Shake up your October."

During her presentation at the congress, Eren emphasized that dealcoholized wines are not a threat to the traditional wine industry but a response to emerging consumption trends. This view is partially shared by some sectors, although there are still reservations. From her perspective, dealcoholized wine can coexist with traditional wine without diminishing its value or essence. However, producers like Zafer Chaoui from the renowned Lebanese vineyard Château Ksara maintain that the current balance in alcoholic wines is ideal, labeling promoters of these new products as "vanguardists."

One of the challenges dealcoholized wine faces is public and expert perception, as they are often compared to traditional wines like Chablis or Sancerre, Eren explained. However, the process of removing alcohol alters the original characteristics of the wine, requiring the addition of aromas, tannins, and other elements to compensate for the loss of alcohol and its impact on flavor and texture. Despite these difficulties, sommeliers like Paz Levinson, who works at Anne-Sophie Pic's restaurants, are already offering a limited selection of dealcoholized wines, particularly from specialized vineyards in Germany.

Interest in these products has attracted major groups, such as LVMH, which recently invested in the production of non-alcoholic sparkling wines. This growing supply and demand has led the OIV to project an increase in the market share of low or no-alcohol wines, which currently represent only 0.5% of global production but could reach 4 or 5% in the coming years.

The OIV has long been working on a regulatory framework to govern the production and commercialization of these wines. According to the definition established in the 1920s, wine is a product derived from the alcoholic fermentation of grape must, which raises issues when categorizing dealcoholized wines. Some techniques, such as microfiltration or vacuum distillation, have already been approved, but it remains to be precisely defined what constitutes a "dealcoholized wine" versus a "wine-based dealcoholized beverage." The European Union has begun to accept the use of the term "wine" for these products, and now the 50 member states of the OIV must agree on the rules regarding the treatments allowed for these products to be considered authentic wines.

The debate surrounding dealcoholized wines is not just about oenological techniques but also about the cultural acceptance of these products, which challenge the traditional perception of wine as a beverage inherently linked to alcohol. Despite resistance, the expansion of the No-Low category (wines with low or no alcohol) is seen as inevitable, and this segment is expected to grow both in volume and relevance in the global wine industry in the coming years.