Manufaktur Jörg Geiger is investing in a vacuum distillation system and is therefore also focusing on dealcoholisation in the future. But why is vacuum distillation of alcoholic products so popular and how does this technology work in general?
Alcohol is a flavour carrier. When it is removed from fermented products such as wine made from grapes or pears, some of the flavour is automatically lost. This is why alcohol-free products had a bad reputation for a long time. However, the methods of vacuum distillation have also been further developed. In addition to increasing the vacuum in the system to 50 to 60 millibars and thus lowering the evaporation temperature of the alcohol, some of the flavour can be returned to the dealcoholised wine via the "flavour water" obtained.
Our first completely de-alcoholised product was the Champagne Bratbirne - Free from Alcohol. This is perfect for toasting, whatever the occasion. Instead of sparkling wine or champagne, this product is the perfect sparkling companion, whether as an elegant aperitif, just for fun or for festive occasions. To begin with, we produce a classic pear foam with alcohol from our old fruit variety Champagne Bratbirne. We use the bottle fermentation method for this. For this form of production, the still base wine is bottled from the juice of our Champagne Bratbirne pears and filled into bottles for a second fermentation with the addition of yeast. After three years of ageing in the bottle on the lees, typical brioche and mature notes have developed. There is no need for riddling and disgorging as with the alcoholic counterpart, instead the bottles are opened and prepared for dealcoholisation.
In a falling film evaporator, a wine-based vapour is produced from the wine itself, which is later used to remove the alcohol. When the wine to be dealcoholised enters the system, it is placed under vacuum in an initial container and simultaneously degassed. Volatile aroma components are released very easily at this stage, which can be collected again as flavour water in new systems and give the dealcoholised wine a special fruitiness. This is achieved by cooling with ice water. At 0 - 3 °C, these highly volatile aromas are captured in liquefied form.
Even when distilling fruit on our traditional stills, we can smell these highly volatile components long before the alcohol flows, but we cannot precipitate them on a pit still at atmospheric pressure and only with cold water cooling, where they remain gaseous and are lost.
The seven metre high "columns" are the heart of the plant. They contain stainless steel packings that provide a large surface area for energy exchange. The wine vapour rising from below heats the packs, while the alcoholic wine is sprayed into the top of the column and flows downwards in a thin film. Energy is now released when they meet and the more volatile alcohol evaporates upwards. From there, the alcoholic part is discharged into the booster column. The alcohol-free wine that flows downwards is sprayed again via a second column in order to be completely dealcoholised down to zero percent before blending with the flavour water can take place later.
For us, alcohol-free wine is "just" another new component with a variety of flavours resulting from vinification and maturation. The end product from the dealcoholisation plant should not simply be filled into the bottle - here it is important to incorporate our special knowledge from the last 20 years about complex alcohol-free moments of pleasure.
That's why we refine the C.-Bratbirne - alcohol free with various herbs, spices and white flowers. The specially formulated dosage of ripe pear juice from last year's harvest rounds off the full-bodied and delicate flavour of our de-alcoholised speciality. Finally, we fill the dealcoholised pear sparkling wine with a fine perlage to present an elegant and skilfully refined champagne roast pear without any alcohol.