What even is NoLo wine? (And why it's everywhere)

It doesn't hit like a high. It lands like a choice. NoLo, short for no- and low-alcohol, is the quiet ritual: the pour that lets you stay present without leaving the table.

The short answer: NoLo wine is wine with all or part of its alcohol taken out, plus wines that are naturally light. Dealcoholised wine starts like any other: grapes, fermentation, transformation. Only then is the alcohol gently removed.

How the alcohol comes out

In the EU, wine has officially been allowed to be dealcoholised since 2021. The two main approaches:

• Vacuum distillation: at low pressure, alcohol evaporates at a low temperature, which is kinder to aroma. The spinning cone column is the best-known machine.
• Membranes: reverse osmosis and membrane contactors use pressure and fine filters to separate the alcohol from the rest of the wine, while trying to hold on to fragile aroma molecules.

What the labels mean

Rules differ from country to country, so always check the ABV on the label. In the EU, new rules in force since 18 March 2026 (Regulation (EU) 2026/471) call fully dealcoholised wine alcohol-free, keep 0.0% for the very lowest levels, and use reduced alcohol for wine that has had part of its alcohol taken out.

Then there are wines that are simply light by nature, no machine involved. Moscato d'Asti and many fruity German Kabinett Rieslings stop fermenting with some grape sugar left, so they carry less alcohol than most table wines.

Why it's so hard to get right

Alcohol does more than change how you feel. It gives wine body, texture and warmth, and it carries aroma to your nose. Taking it out is like rewriting a sentence without losing its soul. The risks:

• Lost aromas: the most fragile ones can leave with the alcohol.
• Thin body: without alcohol, the wine can feel watery.
• Stability: alcohol helps protect wine from microbes, so without it producers have to be extra careful.

The better producers capture aromas during the process and put them back, choose grapes with dealcoholisation in mind, and blend carefully. If you're new to it, start with sparkling: the bubbles give back some of the lift that alcohol takes away.

Why NoLo, why now?

Call it a quiet shift. People are rethinking how much and when they drink, not whether wine belongs at the table. The reasons are ordinary ones:

• Driving home after dinner.
• An early start, a training day, a month off.
• Not drinking alcohol at all, but still wanting the ritual: the glass, the pour, the toast.
• A weekday lunch where a full glass feels like too much.

You can even see the shift in the law. The EU only allowed dealcoholised wine in 2021, and five years later it had already rewritten the labels.

Is it still wine?

Yes. And not quite. It begins as wine and ends in restraint: a wine reimagined, still carrying intention. Taste it as its own thing, not as wine with something missing. Chill it well, pour it into a proper glass, and drink it with food.

NoLo isn't about what's missing. It's about what remains. Less fog. More memory.

Curious how much alcohol ordinary wine carries? Read alcohol content in wine.

Questions people ask