Alcohol-free wine brand Eisberg has doubled its production capacity following the installation of a new, more energy-efficient dealcoholisation unit in Trier, Germany.
The brand, owned by German wine group Schloss Wachenheim, will soon be capable of producing 80,000 litres, or 110,000 bottles of alcohol-free wine daily using the new equipment and its existing dealcoholisation machine.
The new unit – installed at a cost of €1.1m (£930,000) – was an “industry-leading” model that would enable Schloss Wachenheim to “develop new products and new projects” as well as support further growth of Eisberg, said Dan Harwood, MD of the group’s UK subsidiary SW Wines Europe.
The machine was more efficient than its predecessor, Harwood said, adding it required “lower temperatures and less energy” to produce alcohol-free wine of the same quality using a vacuum distillation method.
With the additional capacity, Schloss Wachenheim planned to introduce two new Eisberg propositions – alongside its core Signature and premium Selection ranges – by summer 2025, Harwood said.
“In the pipeline alongside Eisberg Signature and Selection we have a spritz range, which we hope to launch next summer alongside cans as well,” he said. “We produce cans for other markets at the moment, so everything is ready to go.”
Alongside the new unit, Schloss Wachenheim has also installed 5,000 solar panels, making the initial energy used for the vacuum distillation process greener. Solar power now accounts for 30% of production leads at Schloss Wachenheim’s Trier facility.
Eisberg is the largest dedicated alcohol-free wine brand in the UK, with sales of £5.9m [NIQ 52 we 24 April 2024]. Volumes for the brand – stocked with Tesco, Morrisons, Ocado and Co-op – grew by 8% last year.
Harwood said Schloss Wachenheim had the “staying power, expertise and investment to grow and demonstrate to other retailers on the market that Eisberg is a must-stock”.
Following the decision to establish SW Wines Europe earlier this year, Schloss Wachenheim would soon be selling full-strength alcoholic wines alongside Eisberg in the UK, Harwood added.
“We’re one of the biggest sparkling wine producers in Europe, so for us the next step is to begin to introduce wines with alcohol,” he said.
The first wines with alcohol to arrive in the UK will be a duo of sekt wines from Mucha Sekt, and a riesling crémant and a sparkling pinot blanc from the Schloss Wachenheim brand.
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