Heribert Bayer’s Zeronimo wine lands in US as alcohol-free movement wins over consumers

20 May 2024 --- Austrian winery Heribert Bayer has launched its Zeronimo wine — the world’s first-ever dealcoholized 98 point rated wine — into the US market.

The Zeronimo brand offers a premium alcohol-removed red wine, Leonis Blend and sparkling wine, Sparkling Select, that are being touted as “raising industry standards and embracing innovative dealcoholization technology.” 

The brand originally debuted in central Burgenland, Austria, in July 2023.

The family-owned winery, now led by winemakers Katja Bernegger and Patrick Bayer, crafted Zeronimo Leonis Blend from their most popular red wine, a native varietal blend of Blaufränkisch, Zweigelt and Cabernet Sauvignon. 

It is aged for two years in new French oak barrels, with grapes sourced from over 70-year-old vines that reach 30 meters down. Recently, Peter Moser awarded this blend 98 points in the Falstaff wine guide. 

Speaking to Food Ingredients First, Bernegger tells us: “This journey started for us in 2018, and when I started at the winery, I saw great potential in the alcohol-free wine arena. It has been inspired by making wine more accessible to everyone, whether they consume alcohol or not, it was just about expanding our reach so everyone can taste these great flavors.”

The family-owned winery is now led by winemakers Katja Bernegger and Patrick Bayer.However, Bernegger and Bayer were concerned the market was not ready. “Everything had to align at the same time: the technology, the consumer acceptance, and most of the flavor and nuances of the wine,” Bernegger says. 

In other alcohol-free beverages, we felt there was nothing that quote left us feeling satisfied, she continues. “So it was then that we felt we needed to start this process on our own with our own wines and make something that had the same complexities of wine and be multi-layered. We wanted to do something for the foodies, the flavor enthusiasts and those who want to enjoy a meal with a really great tasting alcohol-free beverage.”

“When Patrick agreed, he had one condition, that we take our best wine and make the alcohol-free version,” Bernegger shares. “He said that if our best wine doesn’t taste good, then nothing can taste good. And that was the reason why we started with our 98 point wine. 

The process of dealcoholized wine 
However, when the duo initially set out to dealcoholize the Leonis Blend, they discovered it was a challenging feat, they share. 

As Bayer describes: “Ultimately, with alcohol-removed wines, you have the naked truth in your glass.” Removing the alcohol concentrates the wine and deeply affects the sensory perception of acidity and other aromas. Therefore, the team leveraged a highly aromatic dealcoholization process using vacuum distillation and a patented aroma recovery method to preserve the authentic noble aromas of the wine: sweet dark cherry, forest floor, oak spices and fig leaf. 

“With a great product at hand, the question still remained: Are people willing to pay the price necessary to craft such a high-end, non-alcoholic wine? Nine months after its launch in Austria, the answer became clear.”

The move to the US market 
With the rising popularity in Austria for alcohol-free Zeronimo wine, Bernegger and Bayer saw “great potential to meet the desires of non-alcoholic drinkers and wine lovers in the US.”

Joshua James, a well-known bartender and owner of Ocean Beach Brands in San Francisco, was a major proponent of this decision. 

After tasting the Zeronimo wines, he was excited to share them with US consumers. 

According to James, “Everyone knows that good NA wine in the US is extremely hard to find. In 2020, when I took a year off drinking, I made it my primary mission to find the best-dealcoholized wine in the world. Zeronimo Leonis Red Blend and Sparkling White Wine is by far and away the best-dealcoholized wine I have tasted in the last four years of actively searching.” 

He tells Food Ingredients First: “I get a pulse on the general public at my beachside cafe and non-alcoholic bar and bottle shop, Ocean Beach Cafe. We attract a diverse crowd, which allows us to introduce locals to the booming alcohol-free market.”The Zeronimo brand offers a premium alcohol-removed red wine Leonis Blend (pictured) and a sparkling wine Sparkling Select.

“The excitement around alcohol-free wine is something I want the world to know about. The deep emotional connection of pairing fine wine with food and friends is something many miss, as I did when I took a year off drinking. With Millennials cutting back or quitting alcohol, and Gen X and Baby Boomers contributing to the decline in wine sales, this 98 point non-alcoholic wine will be very welcomed here in North America.”

Commenting on what Zeronimo caught his attention, James reveals: “It has that old-world funk and finesse that you would expect from a 98 point wine. I’ve managed wine bars and worked in many fine dining restaurants, and it took me right back to the highest quality wines I’ve experienced.”

“The taste matched the aroma perfectly,” he notes. “I’ve shared this wine with five sommeliers and eight others with F&B backgrounds, and every one of them was visibly taken aback.”

“Non-alcoholic red is by far the most requested category and brings people through the doors more than anything else. Now, with Zeronimo, people across the country can be satisfied by a high-quality, non-alcoholic wine.”

In addition to James’ support, Zeronimo has also caught the attention of Douglas Watters and Alex Highsmith, founders of the non-alcoholic drink shop Spirited Away in New York City.  

Functional wine?
In an interesting and unintentional finding, the Zeronimo Leonis Red Blend can also tap into the functional beverage space, Bernegger highlights. 

“Red wine contains resveratrol, an antioxidant, and when we created the Leonis blend, I always wondered with my health background: ‘What happens with the resveratrol?’ And we found out the levels of resveratrol actually rise when you dealcoholize the drink because you concentrate the wine.”

We then went on to find that Leonis is not only a non-alcoholic red wine but also a functional non-alcoholic beverage. We took part in a study with an institute here [in Austria] that was comparing the levels of resveratrol. This concentration means that the non-alcoholic wine has even more of this great antioxidant substance in it, which can lead to 50% fewer heart health issues. 

“So not only did we make wine with no alcohol, but it can also be good for consumer health which can appeal to an even wider reach of consumers,” she concludes. 

By Elizabeth Green