However, it is important not to rush during the launch because this type of product requires specific support to ensure its success. Indeed, by removing alcohol from wine, we end up with a product that will integrate the much wider universe of non-alcoholic (or low-alcohol) drinks for adults: non-alcoholic beers, fermented drinks, drinks with a wine profile, etc...

 This is what Juliette Bory, co-founder of the George agency, explained during the last B&S Tech webinar on the no/low trend: 

"If we want to have a coherent approach, we have to look at consumer demand. It requires a global approach to the world of beverages in general because wine and spirits is a category that historically has always been looked at and thought about a little apart and outside of drinks"...

These elements are often mentioned by alcohol-free wine merchants who have understood that consumers are first and foremost looking for a drinking experience and not just an alcohol-free version of their usual drink.

For producers, this is a crucial point to consider in the communication and marketing of their dealcoholized or partially dealcoholized wine, which must not remain frozen in the usual codes of wine but must take into account a wider competitive universe.

To quote Juliette Bory again: "(...) I think that today, if we really want to take up this subject, it requires having a more macro vision and looking at what consumers are really looking for at the end of the day because I think that what they are looking for is not only the absence of alcohol but also in the customer experience."

The non-alcoholic adult offer (no/low) therefore includes products of a very different nature: dealcoholized products, low fermentation, juice, infusion, etc. which therefore requires education for the consumer.

A point also mentioned in an article in Vitisphère/La Vigne by the CEO of B&S Tech, Stéphane Brière: "demand is moving towards fully dealcoholised wines because these products are easy to explain to the consumer".

It is indeed easier to explain that there is no longer alcohol in a product than to say that some of it has been removed!

In conclusion, it is therefore important to be accompanied by market experts when you want to launch a dealcoholized or partially dealcoholized wine to prevent the experience from being short-lived!

Are you wondering about it? Contact us!

    First of all, the Degré Zéro trade show, the first trade show entirely dedicated to dealcoholized beverages. At the initiative of the company Break Events, which specializes in the organization of professional events for the promotion of wines and spirits, this first event was already looking promising as the show was already sold out more than a week before its opening. 

Taking up residence at the Musée du Vin (Paris 16th) on the eve of the start of Wine Paris, the timing was perfect for both exhibitors and visitors. 

    And the announced success was confirmed! 30min of queuing outside, aisles full of visitors and difficulty to move around! B&S Tech was of course present at this event to present its offer and the latest launches of its customers, but also as a founding member of the No/Low wine collective, partner of the event and which BREAK EVENTS joined in January.

    A success that put all the No/Low players in very good conditions to start Wine Paris the next day! 

    Indeed, Monday, February 12 was the opening of the Vinexpo-Wine Paris 2024 trade show at the Porte de Versailles Exhibition Center, which is now the unmissable event for the wine trade. Bringing together more than 4000 French and international exhibitors this year, the show is a key moment to observe new market trends and the latest innovations. And if last year the presence of No/Low products was still very shy, this year, it was impossible to miss it! Between a dedicated space within the Be Spirit Pavilion, six masterclasses/round tables that addressed the subject over the three days, nearly forty exhibitors/producers offering a range of dealcoholized wines, and above all the front page of Les Echos Spécial Vin at the opening of the show which headlined: "Wine is taking the wave of alcohol-free", it is no longer possible to ignore this trend!

    Present in the Wine Tech Pavilion, the B&S Tech booth was full for 3 days welcoming producers, buyers, merchants, distributors curious to know more about this trend and especially to taste our latest innovations which prove that alcohol-free wine is no longer a low-end product. 

    This is a strong message that our CEO Stéphane Brière wanted to convey during the round table organized on Wednesday 14 February by the no/low wine collective (of which B&S Tech is a founding member): "Alcohol-free wine is not a by-product of wine". It has been said over and over again, dealcoholized wine brings diversification to the winemakers’ offer to meet consumer expectations and enhance the market. 

A message that seems to be better and better received and understood by the various actors, despite the last detractors. 

    In the end, an extremely positive assessment of these 2 shows for B&S Tech which confirms the potential of the No/Low market in which we have believed for nearly 5 years now. Now it's time to turn the contacts made into new projects and future successes! The year has only just begun, and we are sure that it will be promising for this beautiful No/Low category. 

This new consumer expectation is manifesting itself at different speeds around the world, and by 2022 will already represent a global market of 11 billion dollars, with projected growth of 7 to 10% a year over the next 10 years.

The challenge for the beer, wine and spirits industries is to develop innovative know-how to create the quality products that will meet these expectations. 

This is the mission of B&S TECH, which in the space of 4 years has become the leading technical solutions platform for the development and industrialization of No/Low beverages.

In this context, it was important for VIVELYS to launch its new range, BOISE ABSOLU, the fruit of 10 years of in-house research and 3 years of intensive development, thus introducing a revolutionary instant technique to the world of No/Low beverages.

Both pioneers in their field, B&S TECH and VIVELYS have naturally joined forces to bring their respective skills to bear on this market, now seen as a real opportunity for the beer, wine and spirits industries. 

"The growth prospects for No/Low beverages are based on a move upmarket and an increase in consumption frequency. From a sensory point of view, dealcoholization involves major technical challenges, and innovation is now at the heart of this market's development", explains Stéphane BRIERE, Managing Director of B&S Tech.

"It was important for us to invent a new Boisé concept, rooted in our DNA in order to meet the technical challenges of this market, and we have succeeded," confirms Karine HERREWYN, Vivelys Managing Director. 

"BOISE ABSOLU is a 100% natural oak extract of exceptional quality, incredibly concentrated and endowed with a striking aromatic intensity. As such, it's a true breakthrough innovation," she continues.

This collaboration with B&S Tech helped Vivelys to characterize the contribution of its oenological woods throughout the dealcoholization process. 

For his part, Stéphane Brière considers that for B&S Tech "this experimentation plan carried out over several months with Vivelys has enabled us to refine our practices and wood selection. The results of these trials open up new perspectives for us to support our customers in their quest for quality products".

Boisé Absolu is composed of 4 natural extracts from the iconic Boisé France references. Each of these extracts brings complexity and aromatic intensity, from fresh oak notes to vanilla, toasted, spicy or smoky notes, and increases sweetness and length in the mouth.

B&S TECH and Vivelys are members of the No/Low wine collective.

The number of points of sale is also increasing, with the opening of several cellars dedicated to soft drinks in recent years. For example, Le Paon qui boit, a Parisian wine cellar, now has more than 450 references in its shop! An offer that is exploding and constantly diversifying. In fact, according to a study conducted by the IWSR, the global market grew by 9% in 2022.

The most dynamic categories would then be non-alcoholic spirits and non-alcoholic beers, driven by the launch of the Tourtel Twist brand.

 For alcohol-free wines, "the evolution is constant and sales have exploded over the year 2022" as Mathilde Boulachin, director of the Chavin house and Camille Huarté-lesaint, director of the Cordier brand, explain in the newspaper L'Express. These wines are not just grape juices. These wines are dealcoholized thanks to vacuum evaporation technology allowing the wines to keep their expression and organoleptic qualities. 

As quoted by Hortense Brière, director of business development at B&S Tech in the L'Express article "Non-alcoholic beverages : an investigation into an 'exponential' business": "Reverse osmosis is also used to dealcoholize wine or other alcoholic beverages through membrane filtration. These technologies are expensive but necessary to meet growing consumer demand. On the market trend, she completes by explaining: "The unblocking is happening at all levels: the consumer is demanding quality products, the giants of the sector and small producers have the technologies to respond to it, alcohol-free is becoming part of the customs. We are at the very beginning of a market that can only develop,"

These products were becoming more and more qualitative and were found on the tables of great Parisian restaurants and other establishments renowned for their range of premium drinks.

In France, non-drinkers and "flexi-drinkers" (moderation of their alcohol consumption) are more and more numerous and less and less stigmatized. Indeed, according to INSEE, alcohol consumption in France per capita has fallen by more than 50% since 1960 to today. Consumption habits such as a glass of wine at lunch tend to be lost, giving way to a new market, that of no/low alcohol.

The first heat arrives, the terraces fill up at the exit of the offices and comes the eternal question: what am I going to drink tonight? Not always easy to find happiness when you are around 30 degrees and alcohol will go to your head in a few seconds! And yet, the weather is ideal for a nice Spritz or a refreshing rosé!

So don't hesitate any longer and try your favorite cocktails in alcohol-free version! Thanks to dealcoholized wines, you can now reproduce your favorite cocktails without alcohol! Kir, Spritz, Saint Germain, everything is possible!

Here are some ideas that we have concocted with the latest products developed with our customers : 

    In this new breakthrough category, it seems more and more obvious that pedagogy and tasting are key both to remove preconceptions and to understand consumer expectations. Indeed, we can never say it enough but this no/low trend is above all an expectation of consumers who have been reducing their alcohol consumption for several years and are looking for qualitative alternatives for adults. The SOWINE/DYNATA 2023 barometer that has just been published announces that 15% of French people place a no/low drink in the top 3 of their favorite alcoholic beverages, it is far from negligible!

The fairs are therefore magnificent playgrounds for this. Prowein understood this by setting up this year a space dedicated to zero with a tasting area that met with some success.

These fairs have therefore allowed us to initiate projects and discussions with new customers who all want to meet the challenge of producing a quality dealcoholized wine. A great challenge for B&S Tech that we are ready to take up!

    In parallel, we are also accelerating training and pedagogy on this category with speeches in different forms:

-The launch of a series of webinars on Le Zéro de Rochefort, (replay available here: https://youtu.be/6bXslRiWMJ4). In a 30min online format, a good way to explain the category to those who have questions. 

- Interviews in the media: https://www.meiningers-international.com/wine/inside/french-wine-declines-nolo-category-rises. Other articles are coming during May-June, we can't wait to share them with you!

- Finally, Wine Paris gave us the opportunity to organize the first round table on no/low in wine. (replay available here:  https://youtu.be/ZCa5ixkp5p8)

The success met makes us think about the importance of speaking on this subject with other key players in the market, we hope to tell you more soon... Stay tuned!

The 1st quarter ends with many exciting prospects, full of promise for the coming months!