Following the launch of Giesen 0% in February last year, New Zealand wine company Giesen is further committing to the non-alcoholic wine category by investing over one million dollars in specialised spinning cone technology.
The investment will enable Giesen to further refine its non-alcoholic wine range, improving the quality of its existing 0% Sauvignon Blanc, as well as new Pinot Gris and Rosé blends set for release in Australia this September.
Giesen Group Chief Winemaker, Duncan Shouler says: “To ensure we create the best zero per cent wines in market, we go through the entire winemaking process just as we would for a full-strength wine – from growing grapes for a year in the vineyard, to picking and processing the wine in the winery. So to say that it is ‘not really wine’ is untrue in every sense.
“To make 0% we include the additional process of putting our full-strength wine through spinning cone distillation to gently remove the alcohol component. Making zero per cent alcohol is actually more expensive to produce compared to its full-strength counterpart and it is our absolute goal to produce zero per cent wines that actually taste like wine and not like grape juice, and with as low calories as possible.”
The significant investment is in response to the growing demand for the category, with research showing that Australians have a higher intent to purchase low and no alcohol products compared to the UK, USA and Canada. Younger consumers are also more likely to purchase a non-alcoholic wine with 3 out of 10 consumers aged between 18 to 34 basing their purchase on health and wellbeing.
Shouler added: “Having our own spinning cone allows us to increase production levels and really help drive quality. Firstly, we can be experimental and continually improve our 0% alcohol wine offerings, to meet consumer taste profiles. I would say that now we are seeing better and better alcohol-removed wines every time we produce them.
“Another key element to our 0% wines is ensuring they’re made fresh, blended fresh and bottled fresh. Having our own unit means we can operate on a very tight timeline, which lets us capture aroma in the bottle and produce wines with more varietal character.”
The Giesen Group also said it is exploring ways to utilise the alcohol spun out of Sauvignon Blanc wine, and expects to launch the revolutionary, first-of-its-kind product later this year.