Technology advances, the wine world is calling for changes to no- and low-alcohol wine regulations

The No-lo products are a small niche, but they are growing. They are currently worth 2.4 billion US Dollars worldwide, and are aiming to reach 3.3 billion USDollars by 2028. This trend is driven also by changing consumption habits, about which heated debates and discussions are the topic of the day. Besides prospects judged to be more or less stimulating, it will continue to develop, thanks to definitive legislation, continuous production progress in technology, and, according to some experts in the wine world, explicitly defending and safeguarding dealcoholized wine. The future of no- and low-alcohol wine continues to dominate the spotlight, and was the focus of a new event at Vinitaly 2025 in Verona, titled, “Technology 0.0: production and innovation compared”, at which Unione Italiana Vini (UIV) was center front, in collaboration with Veronafiere. The participants at the round table discussion (the massive public attendance demonstrated that the topic is extremely interesting), were producers of “No-Lo” wines, leading figures in the wine world, and suppliers of Italian dealcoholization technologies and machinery. The discussion focused on the technology that is progressing in dealcoholized products, which is a fundamental aspect in order to respect the organoleptic characteristics of the product and favor scaling technologies. At the moment, though, there is a large obstacle, which comes from the fact that in Italy it is impossible to produce something that puts investments on “stand by”, therefore costs increase because Italian wineries must go abroad.
Paolo Castelletti, Secretary General of the union of Italian wines, UIV, reiterated “the need to clear up some aspects related to wineries, especially excise duties on no and low alcohol products”. He once again requested “a “bridge law” to accompany us until 2026”. Unione Italiana Vini also emphasized that “inhibiting production, in addition to the ambiguity of provisions relating to the obligation of separating spaces, which should be resolved shortly, is the regulation mess that leaves the sector at the mercy of uncertainty on the application of excise duties, while waiting for the inter-ministerial decree, expected to start on January 1, 2026”.
dolfo Rebughini, General Director of VeronaFiere, is indeed curious to see how the emerging “No-Lo” trend evolves, to which Vinitaly 2025 has dedicated a large space. Massimo Pivetta, Wine Sales Director at Omnia Technologies, a group that deals in industrial innovation and specializes in tailor-made solutions for the wine, beverage, food, dairy and pharmaceutical sectors, gave an overview of production techniques. “De-alcoholized products must have an acceptable quality and be as close as possible to the original product. Separating alcohol is not easy, and there are components in wine that cannot stand up to thermal changes”. Technology and work, however, have produced results. I t all starts by using a “membrane that allows separating noble components (such as tannins, polyphenols , and so on, ed.) from water and alcohol, which instead can be separated in a simple way. The process is composed of a vacuum, so that water consumption is not recovered. There are requests, there is a lot of talk, but we are now waiting for legislation”. Albano Vason, General Manager of the VasonGroup, specializing in innovative solutions and products for oenological use and the agri-food industry, also explained his wine dealcoholization technique, and the significant quality results they have obtained. “Producing a dealcoholized wine is much more difficult than producing wine with alcohol, because in the process - in the dealcoholization phase - a component is removed that is instead fundamental for several aspects. Among other things, dealcoholized wines will have an expiration date, which is a completely new aspect for the wine world. There is a lot of enthusiasm in Italy, but we have only just started selling systems. We are working very well in Spain, and now the market has opened up in Argentina, too”.
One of the most well-known names in Italian and South Tyrolean wine is Hofstätter, a historic winery in Alto Adige. Martin Foradori Hofstätter, a pioneer in alcohol-free sparkling wines from the Moselle, is at the helm of the winery. “We're talking about landing on Mars, while in Italy we don't have binoculars to see the moon yet. The world is changing. After nicotine, it now seems that alcohol is the number one enemy. Quality is important, but I predict a quality "mess", in terms of denominations. Just read the back labels and you will find all sorts of things, including natural aromas, infusions, salt content. Dealcoholized wine must be protected by law - from what? From cocktails, and all non-alcoholic drinks. The enemy is not dealcoholized wine. This part of the supply chain must also be protected, and we need to also work on denominations, as the French have done. We have to be different and stand out to the rest of the world. We have wasted time, which we absolutely must recover. I hope that the machinery is also accessible to small producers, in order to maintain our added value”.
Fedele Angelillo, CEO of Mack & Schühle Italia, which produces and distributes wines worldwide, said, “there is a lot of confusion on the market”, as well as “a significant quality diversity”. The future belongs to these new types of wine also, therefore, “we will need to work on technology to produce no and low alcohol wines, to lower sugars as much as possible and act on the aroma of the products. We must get out of the drinks world, as it is a losing battle against the multinationals. To do this, we have to continue insisting on quality, starting in the vineyard”. Claudio Galosi of the Argea Group, the main Italian private group in the wine sector, said, “we started working on “No-Lo”in 2021. Quality has increased a lot, since the beginning. In my opinion, the bulk of the work must be done in the vineyards.
Today, costs for plants are quite high, while legislation is not very clear and going abroad increases costs. However, I am confident, because looking at last year it seems that ten years have gone by. And, demand is high”. Pierluigi Guarise, CEO of Collis Wine Group, said,“ on one hand we are looking at this market (“No-Lo”, ed.) very seriously because it is positive, while on the other, we are being cautious. It is a confusing situation, as we no longer understand where the wine is. We have to be careful not to overlap into the world of drinks. If we do not defend dealcoholized wines, we will risk not bringing the business home. Technology has made and will continue to make giant steps; therefore, we need to pay close attention and regulate what needs to be done”. Regarding this small, but growing sector, Alessio Del Savio, Technical Director of Mionetto, one of the leading companies in Prosecco, is working with Glera-based wines to “shorten the distance to Prosecco, winking at the denomination”. Production, around 4 million bottles, is abroad (Germany), “and we are convinced that we will also be starting in Italy. We hope the changes to the decree will be coming as soon as possible”.
Marzia Varvaglione, president of the Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins (CEEV), and of the Association of Young Italian Wine Entrepreneurs (AGIVI) concluded the discussion on the “ No-Lo” theme, saying,“ we are taking giant steps in quality. Last year, we were fearful of a conflict with wine, while today instead, we understand that the typologies are complementary, which allows us to differentiate risk in an extremely volatile context of consumption. Now, as producers and entrepreneurs, we must understand how to protect these wines, and how to frame them, so that they are easily and clearly recognizable for consumers as well”.