the dealcoholization of wine is established in France

The non-alcoholic drinks market is booming in France (around 15% of the population does not consume alcohol). More and more established brands are offering 0% vintages, brands entirely dedicated to alcohol-free products and wine merchants where ethanol is not allowed are growing like mushrooms. There are several ways to produce a drink with very little or no alcohol: non-alcoholic fermentation, non-alcoholic distillation, infusion, maceration… and dealcoholization. It is the latter which is developing the most in the grape juice sector. This is in fact a legal imperative, because the wine appellation is not a recognized category, unlike “de-alcoholized wine”.

Three dealcoholization techniques

To make dealcoholized wine, you must first make wine. Initially, therefore, the process is very similar to the production of real wine. Harvest (often from under-ripe grapes), alcoholic fermentation, racking… and sometimes even aging. Once the wine is obtained, the producer must dealcoholize it, that is to say remove 100% of the alcohol it contains. Three dealcoholization technologies allowing large volumes to be produced are mainly used: reverse osmosis, rotating cone column and vacuum evaporation (or distillation). “We chose vacuum distillation because it gave better aromatic results, and it was more efficient, explains Sébastien Thomas, one of the founders of the dealcoholized wine brand Moderato. Our partner Vivadour, who has experience in the distillation ofarmagnac supported us in this choice.” With this method, the wine is distilled under vacuum, which allows the alcohol (which evaporates to a lower degree than water) to volatilize at 35 or 40° instead of 78°. This saves energy, but also reduces the hassle of the product. In a few hours the alcohol concentrated at 75 or 80% is recovered on one side, while the wine is dealcoholized to 0.0% on the other. This method also allows rectification, that is to say the reinjection of an aromatic alcohol fraction.

There is another industrial dealcoholization technique which also uses vacuum distillation, but using a specific machine: the rotating or centrifugal cone column. This is, for example, the solution chosen by the Pierre Chavin brand for its Pierre Zéro vintage. The reverse osmosis technique consists of passing the wine through a series of filter membranes. To simplify, with each pass a little alcohol is removed from the wine (also called nanofiltration), and in the end there is none left at all. It has the advantage of being less industrial and of being able to move from area to area, but it consumes more water and energy. Basically, it is used by winegrowers who wish to lower the alcoholic strength of their wine by a few degrees. A growing practice in times of global warming.

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In all three cases, however, there is a loss of substance and aromas for the dealcoholized wine. Characteristics that producers will strive to reintroduce through various techniques… but that's another story.

Wine dealcoholization units in France

Dealcoholization is a heavy operation, which requires equipment that most areas do not have. However, until recently, there were no dealcoholization units in France. “The wines were sent either to Belgium and Germany (this was our case), or to Spainexplains Sébastien Thomas. This posed an ecological problem, because they had to make a lot of journeys. This is still the case for some operators, but it is changing. So last March, Bordeaux Families and B&S Tech opened a dealcoholization unit in Sauveterre-de-Guyenne (near Bordeaux). And in the coming weeks Moderato and the Gascon wine cooperative, Vivadour, will launch Chai Sobre, based in Vic-Fezensac. Both sites use the vacuum distillation (or evaporation) technique, and will also provide wine dealcoholization services for third parties.