BevZero pitches tank insulation and dealcoholization tools for hot harvests

BevZero is highlighting equipment it says can help wineries manage hotter harvest conditions and growing demand for lower- and non-alcoholic wine. The Santa Rosa company is pushing tank insulation, mixer technology and dealcoholization systems as wineries face heat-driven quality and energy pressures.

Why it matters: - Rising summer temperatures are making harvest more expensive and harder to control for wineries in California and other wine regions. - Hotter conditions can force wineries to run refrigeration longer, raise energy costs and create quality risks in tank storage. - Consumer demand for lower-alcohol and non-alcoholic wine is adding a second pressure point for producers. - BevZero is positioning its equipment as a way to manage both production stress and shifting market demand.

What happened: - BevZero introduced a set of tools aimed at wineries dealing with heat and changing alcohol preferences. - The lineup includes PolarClad tank insulation, the VinFoil tank mixer and ClearAlc dealcoholization technology. - The company is based in Santa Rosa, California, and works across wine and spirits equipment and beverage services. - Todd Dicello, BevZero sales manager for the PolarClad tank insulation division, said ambient temperature is one of the biggest challenges winemakers cannot control.

The details: - PolarClad is an R-12 thermal barrier BevZero distributes in the U.S.; the product is called BevClad in Europe. - BevZero says PolarClad can reduce ambient heat gain into a tank by as much as 96.5%. - Dicello said insulation helps wineries reach target temperature faster and maintain it once achieved. - VinFoil is a tank mixer built by CPE and distributed by BevZero. - VinFoil moves large volumes of wine gently with an impeller designed to maximize flow and minimize turbulence. - BevZero says VinFoil reaches cold stabilization roughly three times faster than pump-based mixing. - BevZero says VinFoil delivers average energy savings of more than 80%. - Dicello said tank mixing helps keep temperatures even across the top, middle and bottom of a tank. - Sylvia Cedeno Daguerre, BevZero’s managing director and an enologist, said higher temperatures are contributing to lower acidities in wine and affecting freshness and pH. - ClearAlc is manufactured by Tomsa Destil and distributed exclusively by BevZero. - ClearAlc uses a single-pass vacuum distillation process. - The system can reduce alcohol to as low as 0.05% ABV or rectify the alcohol fraction back up to 92% ABV, depending on the goal. - ClearAlc won the 2025 WINnovation Award for wine dealcoholization. - Dicello said quality, flavor and aroma retention are the key hurdles in dealcoholization.

Between the lines: - The product pitch is about control in a season where wineries cannot control outside temperatures or the effect of heat on fruit chemistry. - PolarClad and VinFoil address tank temperature management, while ClearAlc addresses the finished product and consumer demand. - BevZero is betting that wineries will invest in tools that reduce energy use while protecting consistency during hotter harvests. - Dicello said wine will continue to be sold in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic formats.

What's next: - BevZero is likely to keep marketing the lineup as wineries look for ways to protect quality during hot harvest periods. - The company’s broader focus on low- and non-alcoholic beverages suggests continued demand for dealcoholization equipment. - BevZero operates facilities in Santa Rosa, Villatobas, Spain, and Wellington, South Africa, supporting customers across those regions. - The company says it has worked in this space for more than 30 years, dating back to Tony Dann’s vacuum distillation work in 1991.

The bottom line: - BevZero is trying to turn two industry disruptions — hotter harvests and lower-alcohol demand — into a single equipment opportunity.