So, no/low drinks aren’t a no-no!
While alcoholic beverage sales have shown a decline of late, the one single category of drinks that shows a steady uptick in sales is that of now/low beverages, often called NoLo. Let’s check out some hows and whys.
The topic for this post – low and no alcohol beverages – is regarded as a passing fad no longer. The category is here to stay, and therefore merits some discussion and debate. I have been seeing some chat on the internet among beverage journalists on the topic, and a little more digging revealed some data I thought I would share.
IWSR, the global leader in data, analytics, and insights for the beverage alcohol industry, has stated that despite the gloom-and-doom scenario staring the world wine and alcobev (alcoholic beverages) industry in the face, there is a single category that stands out as the only one continuing to show strong growth.
This is the category of low-and no-alcohol beverages, often called NoLos.
Before yelling “Et tu Brute?” at me and burying your face in your wine glass, let me explain that this phenomenon is not going to go away soon. So, better we understand it than not, I say.
Dial back to 2019, and the WSET Diploma topic assigned to my class turned out to be…. yes, you guessed it – the new category of low-and-no alcoholic beverages, specifically wine. Instantly, there was an uproar in the class. “Aren’t we supposed to be studying wine?! This isn’t even a category…. just a fleeting fad!” argued a classmate. No-alcohol wines at the time tasted awful – flabby and unappealing. Why on earth would anyone want to drink them, let alone study them, he exclaimed. He had a point, we thought.
He was wrong.
A short while ago, I got in touch with IWSR. I asked them to share data they had collated on the growth of the NoLo category in spirits and especially in wine, globally from 2018-2023.
This is what I heard.
“The 2018-2023 compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for volume for no-and-low alcohol wine combined was 14%. Globally, the no/low-alcohol segment is experiencing healthy growth, primarily driven by Europe and the Americas, in contrast to the negative growth seen in alcoholic beverages.”
“The 2018-2023 compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for volume for no-and-low alcohol wine combined was 14%. The 2018-2023 compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for volume for all no-and-low alcohol beverages (wine plus beer, cider, and spirits) combined was 5%.” IWSR reported, “Globally, the no/low-alcohol segment is experiencing healthy growth, primarily driven by Europe and the Americas, in contrast to the negative growth seen in alcoholic beverages.”
Wow. This was big.
But before we jump to conclusions, let us look at how it all began.
People going off alcohol, including wine, to rest their systems from a period of overindulgence was not unheard of. But what caught the world’s attention was a movement started in 2013 called Dry January, by the group Alcohol Change UK. Four thousand people signed up to see if a month off alcohol would help them after the excesses of the year-end festive season. It apparently did, and people reported experiencing improved sleep, increased energy, weight loss, and an all-around “better relationship with alcohol”. The movement took root and now millions around the world follow the Dry January routine – a month without alcohol in any form to aid their sense of well-being. It is estimated that in 2025, 55.7 million Americans alone joined the Dry January bandwagon.
Well-established as a practice, today Dry January has been joined by Damp January (a month with much less alcohol consumed but not zero consumption), Sober October, and now Sober Spring, also by Alcohol Change UK, based on an idea created by Catherine Grey, author of The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober. (The sobriety never ends, especially for the wine industry.)
Of course, the drive did gain momentum post-pandemic, when, quite understandably, the focus on health grew.
So, with their eye on a sizeable and still-growing market of non-drinkers, the major alcoholic beverage producing companies tried their hand at creating alcohol-free drinks. Alas, non-alcoholic or de-alcoholised wine was attempted and at first failed miserably to satisfy wine drinkers. Without the texture and body that ethanol and the volatile flavour compounds provide to wines, the wines that were (expensively) stripped of their alcohol, bottled, and sold tasted more like clarified grape juice. But over time, the processes have become smarter and better, and the end products far more palatable, leading to higher sales. Today, many restaurants and wine lists sport a NoLo wine or two.
I spoke contacted Miguel Torres Maczassek of the noted Familia Torres during the course of my Diploma research and asked him why, when Torres was a world leader in winemaking, they had chosen to add non-alcoholic wine to their portfolio. “It is just a solution for a very concrete group of consumers,” he replied, “This is in line with the drinking-driving regulations in many countries and a growing interest for ‘less calories,’ ‘pregnancy care,’ etc, in many of our mature markets. So, after many years of research, we launched our first 0,5% alcohol wine called Natureo White in 2007, made of Moscatel.” These consumers probably think, just like we did, that wine is the perfect companion with food and didn’t want to give up on that. Things have moved along since then. Technology, along with time, has created a product which, though far from the real thing, provides an adequate facsimile, enough to keep drinkers satisfied.”
“Technology has created a product which provides an adequate facsimile, enough to keep drinkers satisfied.”
In India, where the eternal crowd favourite nimboo-pani (lemonade) is the popular no-alcohol drink of choice, would buying a (relatively) pricey no-alcohol wine do the trick? A question worth thinking about.
For one, the process for creating a no-alcohol wine is complex and therefore expensive. The wine is first fermented and finished just like any other wine. Then, one of several processes is followed to strip the alcohol, bringing the alcohol component down to zero. These processes include either the use of the spinning cone (which uses a spinning column to separate volatile flavour compounds and alcohol from the liquid using heat and vacuum) or reverse osmosis to remove alcohol from wine. There are other methods, too. While some big players like Torres have invested in their own spinning cone machine, not every producer can afford one.
The whole issue gets more complex when adding the inscrutable Generation Z to the mix. No one can fathom why this cohort is drinking much less that its earlier generations did at the same age, or whether this phenomenon is permanent.
If you are looking at insights into this subject, I would suggest listening to a podcast series called A Question of Drinks by Lulie Halstead and Felicity Carter. Carter, an Australian wine journalist based in Germany, is known for her fact-based, data-driven reportage, and is a 67 Pall Mall Awards finalist for 2025. She has put out a couple of interesting, data-driven episodes on Gen Z’s drinking patterns.
So, in the meanwhile, while we debate IRL about whether the declining trends in alcohol consumption are a harbinger of a more permanent situation, I’ll let IWSR have the last word.
“The no-alcohol segment, however, remains niche. The moderation trend has been mainly adopted by younger LDA plus (legal drinking age) consumers (aka Gen Z – Ed) and is gaining traction. Health awareness and active lifestyles have become a priority for consumers, leading people to opt for lower-alcohol options, such as beer, wine, and spritz cocktails. Additionally, the focus on health and wellness has spurred demand for products with low sugar, low calories, and organic ingredients. Beer is the most developed category in terms of no-alcohol, and brewers have invested heavily in NPD (new product development) in recent years.” But there is still a way to go, it adds. “Taste is an important barrier for no/low wine and spirits buyers, suggesting that improving flavour has the potential to increase consumption frequency. As the no/low category develops and more products come to market, other drivers besides alcohol moderation are becoming increasingly important in increasing consumption frequency, particularly in emerging no-alcohol categories. Factors such as taste, availability, and brand are increasing in importance in categories outside of no-alcohol beer.”
Susie Goldspink, Head of No- and Low-Alcohol Insights at IWSR, notes: “As the no-alcohol category matures, consumers want more than just an absence of alcohol. They want products that deliver on taste, complexity, and overall drinking experience. This evolution is pushing the category further, prompting brands to innovate and raise the bar in terms of quality and variety.”
Where does India stand in all this? It is worth noting that wine sales in India have shown a decline in the past year or so, a major departure from the hitherto YOY growth. Is this temporary? Or will there be a bounce back? There is no clear-cut answer yet.
IWSR adds its predictions:
Strong growth across no-alcohol categories has continued throughout 2024, with RTDs expected to have the fastest growth rate through to 2028, off a lower base (+10% volume CAGR, 2024-2028). Beer will grow at 7% volume CAGR, and will continue to lead future no-alcohol growth in absolute volume terms.
No-alcohol’s share of TBA across the 10 key markets will increase to over 3% by 2028, with its share of the US TBA market doubling in that time. Brazil, Canada, and the US will see higher growth in the no-alcohol segment soon, whereas growth is predicted to be more gradual in Spain, South Africa, and Germany.
Main pic: Alyona Yankovska/Unsplash
(Several Indian Duty Free shops have a no/low alcohol wine and spirits section. Look out for them. Ed)
