A mini dealcoholizer designed for testing and experimentation, with an accessible and scalable investment. This is MasterMind® Remove Lab Unit, VasonGroup’s new dealcoholization device created to support companies in the experimental phase of producing no- or low-alcohol wines, within a market context showing growing interest in reduced-alcohol products but where the wine sector is still in its early stages on the supply side. Designed and built with a compact layout by Juclas – Group company specialized in plant engineering and technology development – the machine enables controlled small-scale dealcoholization, replicable at laboratory level. It ensures advanced research, preliminary testing, and protocol development on small volumes, with the same quality as industrial processes. The lab unit is in fact a faithful reproduction of the industrial membrane dealcoholization process “Mastermind® Remove” (MMR), which operates gently at ambient temperature and pressure.
“This is a particularly interesting solution for companies still in an analysis and evaluation phase, both in terms of target market and product offering”, explains Albano Vason, Managing Director of the Group, which since 2008 has been researching techniques and technologies for partial or total wine dealcoholization using an approach that combines innovative oenological practices and specific biotechnologies to minimize the impact on wine quality. “On the production side, we are still at year zero. Wineries first need to study demand and understand how to interpret it within their labels, and then try to translate it into bottled products: a process that requires study, research, and experimentation. That’s why we offer the opportunity to use next-generation technology with a truly accessible investment, even for small and medium-sized companies”.
The system is also used for third-party dealcoholization, a practice gaining traction in Italy and abroad. Examples include the historic U.S. winery Bohemia Manor Farm (Chesapeake City, Maryland), which already uses the MMR Lab Unit to dealcoholize small private-label batches and present samples to clients. Another case is the UK-based contract winery Defined Wine (Kent), which, after consolidating its partnership with VasonGroup for oenological practices, has also purchased and made available to its clients the dealcoholization system in the full-scale MasterMind® Remove version. Joining these is the Italian startup Frizero – already a producer of premium dealcoholized sparkling wines and wines made with Juclas’ MasterMind® Remove – which, thanks to its partnership with the Verona-based group, allows wineries to outsource dealcoholization (total or partial) and bottling, receiving continuous support during preliminary analysis and throughout the production cycle.
The key players of these partnerships will be at the center of the workshop organized by VasonGroup at Vinitaly, titled “Dealcoholization: VasonGroup technology and approach through real-world experiences and applications” (April 14, 2:00 PM, Vinitaly-NoLo Experience area). Speakers will include Gianmaria Zanella (R&D Manager, Enologica Vason), Francesco Lonardi (Technical Sales Manager and R&D, Juclas), and Paolo Libralato (Head of Velcorin® Corimpex Service division), alongside Ilario Ensini (Technical Manager, Terre Cevico), Giulio Corbellani (Production Manager, Frizero), and Gabriel Rubilar (Winemaker, Bohemia Manor Winery – Maryland, USA).
