Biofach live: Beverage innovation distills vacuum-processed brandy, tea “bouquets” and seawater isotonic drinks

16 Feb 2024 --- At the ongoing Biofach organic food trade fair in Nuremberg, Germany, Food Ingredients First speaks to players in the beverage arena piloting novel concepts and processing methods. Among these are bouquets of herbs offering a new format to tea drinking, vacuum processed and nutritional drinks infused with minerals from the cold and rough waters of the open ocean.

Refix is a functional isotonic drink based on seawater, containing more than 78 essential minerals found in these waters. The Spanish functional beverage brand says ocean water contains the same proportion of mineral salts as blood plasma — magnesium, chloride, calcium and potassium.

“Twenty percent of our beverage is seawater, which is sourced directly from the Atlantic Ocean in our region, Galicia, Spain. This is the difference between Refix and another isotonic drink on the market,” Roberto Herrero Tomé tells us.

The isotonic innovation comes in orange, lemon, pineapple and apple varieties. Marketed primarily toward improving athletic performance, the drinks help maintain the correct level of hydration, by replenishing mineral salts lost during training.

“It’s really good for preparing your body before physical training, recovering post-workout and recovering lost mineral salts after stomach problems. It can be beneficial for your bones, arteries and brain, while helping improve sleep by relaxing the nervous system,” highlights Tomé.

Roberto Herrero Tomé is asked about the sanitation procedures and methods to prevent microplastics from entering the supply.

“We process all the water in our factory and preserve the clean mineral salts. We take water from a protected area by Natura 2000. It’s really pure water. It is the only place where you’re allowed to fish seafood and directly place it on your table,” says Tomé.

“You can find us in 12 countries, but our main distribution is across Europe and the US.”

To prevent future contamination of the oceans with microplastics, Refix uses glass bottles with aluminum lids and 100% recycled cardboard tetra pack boxes, which are made with black inks — that “pollute the least” — to avoid the use of polluting colors.

German spirits brand Artwerk organic brand is exhibiting its range of vacuum distilled brandies.Vacuum distilled brandy
German spirits brand Artwerk organic brand is exhibiting its range of vacuum distilled brandies — made with a common process that is newly introduced to the category — from the Rheingau region in Germany.

“We started our start-up in order to bring more quality and sustainability into the brandy category,” Benjamin Scheuerer, partner at Artwerk, tells Food Ingredients First. “The category is quite huge in Germany and worldwide, however there has been almost no innovation in the last 20 years.”

“In terms of our product innovation, we use only organic brandy in order to be eco-friendly. We also reduced our plastic food print in packaging, as well as our energy footprint, which is done through our vacuum distillation.”

Artwerk highlights the highly aroma-preserving nature of vacuum-distilling organic wines at below 30°C, which produces its “fruity, fresh and modern” brandies.

“Usually, brandy producers distill at 85°C. Our method reduces heat, which leads to cost savings on energy use, while improving the flavor because the brandy is not cooked,” says Scheuerer.

“It’s more flavorful compared to the cognacs like Hennessy, or brandies from Spain.”

Scheuerer is asked why the processing method is not more widely available across the segment, considering its benefits. 

“That is because there’s always the requirement of some additional investment in such an innovation,” he responds. “Additionally, if a product — like Hennessy — has been running for centuries, what is the incentive to change?”

“Vacuum sealing is not a new innovation. However, if a brandy distillery wants to switch to vacuum-distilling technology, they can do it, but they have to rebuild their distillation model at their facilities. We built our factory from scratch, so we had the possibility to rethink the system.”

Artwork’s portfolio includes a classic brandy that is extra-blended in French oak, in addition to a spirit made with pure Riesling. 

“It’s a very traditional category, so you have to break some rules here,” says Scheuerer. “We have to educate the consumer that vacuum-sealed brandy is more fruity and delicate and flavorful, not like the woody stuff we had in the past.

“We do a lot of trials on the market and we’ve completed around 60,000 of these to get to know our customers better.”

Dary Natury is presenting a novel format for tea blends, shaped like miniature bouquets.Tea bouquets
Dary Natury is presenting a variety of tea blends branded as “tea sticks,” which are formatted in a miniature bouquet-style aesthetic.

“We have two different kinds of teas on a stick — one is made from dried herbs and flowers, while the other is freeze-dried botanicals,” Magdalena Wiercinska, export referee at Dary Natury, tells Food Ingredients First.

“These are very detailed and time consuming to make, because everything is made by hand. These are unique to the market.”

Each tea on a stick in Dary Natury’s range is made by hand from organic ingredients obtained from the natural state or a botanical garden. The plants were harvested according to the biodynamic calendar.

The flowers and herbal blends are held together with a bamboo clasp that shapes the bushels into a convenient format for dipping directly into hot water.

“We sell in Poland but also abroad. We don’t have many distributors right now, but we are targeting whole selling in Europe and potentially in other global markets.”

By Benjamin Ferrer