Tiny wine options find home in B.C.’s market | 24CA News
Wine lovers have rising choices on the shelf to get pleasure from their favorite beverage as producers in B.C. supply smaller container sizes.
Multiple British Columbia wineries over the past a number of years have begun providing their product in smaller, single-serve cans and bottles.
Along with making wine extra enticing to these trying to toss some in a backpack or sip on the golf course, the petite containers depart wineries with choices for a possible shift in mindset as Canadians talk about the well being advantages of decreasing alcohol consumption.
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Vancouver-based wine advisor Kurtis Kolt stated he’s watched the phase of the wine trade providing smaller bottles and cans “explode” over the past a number of years, notably throughout the COVID-19 pandemic when individuals had been assembly outside in parks and seashores and on the lookout for one thing extra moveable to take with them.
“You’re not taking a hit on quality, you know? In fact, if someone is only going to be having a glass or two, you’re cracking a can and it’s completely fresh, guaranteed,” he stated.
It’s additionally a bonus for individuals who need to drink much less, he stated.
“It’s much less of a commitment to crack open a can or a small bottle or a smaller vessel than it is to open a bottle,” he stated.
“Then you have to decide how quickly you’re going to go through it or end up dumping some out if you don’t finish it.”
Last month, the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction launched a report funded by Health Canada saying no quantity of alcohol is secure and those that devour as much as two customary drinks per week face a low well being threat.
That’s a major change from the centre’s 2011 recommendation that stated having 15 drinks per week for males and 10 drinks per week for girls was low threat.
Health Canada has stated it’s reviewing the report.
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Charlie Baessler, the managing accomplice at Corcelettes Estate Winery within the southern Interior, stated his vineyard’s Santé en Cannette glowing wine in a can was launched in 2020 as a lowered alcohol, lowered sugar, low-calorie possibility.
“We’ve kind of gone above and beyond to attract a bit of a younger, millennial-type market segment with a fun design concept of the can and sparkling, low alcohol — all these things that have been recently a big item on the news,” he stated.
Santé en Cannette is a 9 per cent wine and decreasing the alcohol was a approach to cut back its energy, he stated. The also can makes it enticing for occasions like a picnic or golf, is recyclable, and makes it simpler for eating places which may need to supply glowing wine by the glass with out opening a whole bottle.
At the identical time, the decrease alcohol content material makes it an possibility for individuals who may need a glass of wine with out feeling the identical impact that comes from the next alcohol content material, he stated.
“So the health is clearly one incentive, but I think more importantly, so was being able to enjoy a locally made product of B.C. from a boutique winery, dare I say, with a mimosa at 11 o’clock and not ruin your day,” he stated.
Baessler stated the vineyard has doubled manufacturing for the reason that product was first launched to about 30,000 cans a 12 months, which it expects to match this 12 months.
He stated there’s naturally a marketplace for the product however he doesn’t anticipate it to compete with the higher-alcohol wine.
“So this isn’t our Holy Grail. This is something that we do for fun and we’ll never compete, or never distract, from what is our core line of riper, higher-alcohol wine,” he stated.
Jeff Guignard, govt director of B.C.’s Alliance of Beverage Licensees, which represents bars, pubs and personal liquor shops, stated the trade has seen a shift in customers wanting choices which can be extra handy.
“It’s not a massive change in consumer behaviour but it is a definitely a noticeable one, which is why you see big companies responding to it,” he stated.
Guignard stated the newest CCSA report is creating an elevated consciousness and need to grow to be educated about accountable consumption selections, which is an efficient factor, however he provides it’s essential for individuals to take a look at the relative threat of what they’re doing.
“If you’re eating fast food three meals a day, I don’t think having a beer or not is going to be the single most important determinant of your health,” he stated.
“But from a consumer perspective, as consumer preferences change, of course beverage manufacturers respond with different packaging or different products, the same way you’ve seen in the last five years, a large number of low-alcohol or no-alcohol beverages being introduced to the market.”
While he received’t predict how a lot the market share might develop, Guignard stated non-alcoholic drinks and low-alcoholic drinks will proceed to be a major piece of the market.
“I don’t know if it’s reached its peak or if it will grow. I just expect it to be part of the market for now on.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed Feb. 5, 2023.
© 2023 The Canadian Press
