The recipe for successful wine dealcoholization

Dealcoholizing wine is the subtle art of preserving the pleasure of the senses, without alcohol. As a lover of fine wines, you are probably wondering: how can wine, such a powerful, sometimes delicate and even mellow product, remain an invitation to pleasure if it is dealcoholized? Embark with us on this taste adventure and discover the recipe for obtaining an alcohol-free wine . It's technical. It's captivating. It's intoxicating (or almost).

Why dealcoholize wine?

The dealcoholization of wine responds to several contemporary challenges. On the one hand, consumers are increasingly attentive to their health and are looking for alternatives to traditional alcoholic beverages . On the other hand, wine producers are seeking to adapt to new market trends by diversifying their offer.

The “no low” drinks market is booming. Alcohol-free drinks, and in particular dealcoholized wines, are perfectly in line with this trend.

Dealcoholized wine, what regulations?

In France, the regulations surrounding dealcoholized wine are strictly regulated in order to guarantee the quality of the products, but also to correctly inform consumers.

Legal definition of dealcoholized wine

A dealcoholized wine must have an alcoholic strength by volume of less than 1.2% vol. Beyond that, the product can no longer be considered alcohol-free.
All Nooh by La Coste drinks have a rate of 0%

Labelling and consumer information

The labelling of dealcoholised wines must be clear and precise. The words "dealcoholised wine" or "alcohol-free wine" must appear on the label, accompanied by the exact alcoholic strength by volume. This transparency must allow consumers to make an informed choice.

The main methods of dealcoholization

To understand this sensory experience, it is necessary to understand the process used by winemakers after vinification. European regulations govern the processes authorized for dealcoholizing wines . There are two main families:

- Either vacuum evaporation and distillation ,

The physical principle: it involves separating the ethanol (alcohol) from the wine by passing it into a gaseous state. The ethanol vapor is recovered.

- Either membrane techniques ,

The physical principle: it involves molecular filtration to recover components of the wine: water and alcohol in particular.

There are three methods for dealcoholizing wines. La Coste chose the first, namely vacuum evaporation, which allows the most aromas to be preserved.

1. Vacuum evaporation and distillation

In vacuum evaporation , there is… vacuum. This process, also called reduced distillation under reduced pressure (it’s technical) aims to apply a vacuum during the distillation phase, which allows one essential thing: lowering the boiling point of the alcohol. We can then extract the ethanol from a wine at a low temperature. And yes, if we did it at atmospheric pressure, we would have to heat the wine to high temperatures (between 60 and 85°C), which could alter its aromas and flavors. By lowering the boiling point, we can respect the organoleptic qualities of the products.
Ethanol, once recovered in gaseous form (vapors), is collected in liquid form using a condenser. On one side, we obtain the distillate. In this distillate, there is: alcohol, what we were trying to extract, water and the aromatic fraction. Which clearly shows that it is a real oenological challenge because dealcoholizing a wine also partly extracts the aroma.
On the other side, we then obtain dealcoholized wine.

Discover Nooh by La Coste products to enjoy the flavors of wine without the alcohol.

2. Membrane techniques

The principle is the same: the winemaker and the oenologist seek to reduce the alcohol content of alcoholic beverages. These techniques are considered more invasive and less respectful of the environment.

The rotating cone column (RCC)

This is a method based on filtration . It is also called "Spinning Cone Column" technology. In concrete terms, it is a turbine that contains several stacked cones. Half of these cones are mobile and the other half are static. How does it work?
During a first pass, the wine is injected through the top of the turbine and goes down to the bottom of the column. During this first treatment, the highly volatile compounds (notably the aromas) are extracted.
A second pass removes the alcohol from the wine fraction devoid of aromas. The aromatic extract is then reincorporated into this dealcoholized fraction.
This part, de-alcoholized and re-aromatized (with the extract from the first pass) is reintegrated into the total volume of wine to be dealcoholized.

Reverse osmosis

When you say osmosis, you say osmosis machine . This machine has a series of pipes through which the wine is passed as if through a sieve. Only the smallest molecules are recovered: those of water and those of alcohol. The alcoholic fraction that has passed through the membrane is then treated to reduce its alcohol content, generally by evaporation or vacuum distillation. Once the alcohol is eliminated, the water and other volatile compounds are reintegrated into the initially harvested wine.