Dealcoholisatie

Dealcoholisatie is a process used to remove alcohol from beverages, most commonly from wine and beer, to create non-alcoholic or low-alcohol versions. This is achieved through various methods, primarily focusing on separating ethanol from the liquid base.

One common technique is vacuum distillation, where the beverage is heated under reduced pressure. This lowers the boiling point of ethanol, allowing it to evaporate and be removed at temperatures that do not significantly degrade the beverage's flavor and aroma compounds. Another method is membrane filtration, such as reverse osmosis, which uses specialized membranes to physically separate alcohol molecules from the rest of the liquid. Evaporation, sometimes combined with heating or spinning, is also employed, where the alcohol is allowed to evaporate from the surface of the liquid.

The goal of dealcoholization is to retain as much of the original beverage's sensory characteristics as possible, including its taste, aroma, and mouthfeel, while reducing the alcohol content to below a specified legal limit, often 0.5% alcohol by volume for "non-alcoholic" products. The effectiveness of these methods can vary, and the resulting product may have subtle differences compared to its alcoholic counterpart. Dealcoholization has become increasingly popular as consumer demand for lower-alcohol and alcohol-free options grows.