Ca’ da Roman and Zeromax: Italy’s pioneer in Organic and PIWI dealcoholized wine

Following our coverage of Gaierhof’s “Loal” line, we continue our series on Italian No/Low alcohol pioneers with Ca’ da Roman Winery. Spanning 18 hectares of organic vineyards—7 of which are dedicated to PIWI resistant varieties—the estate is located in Romano d’Ezzelino (Vicenza), at the foot of the UNESCO Mab Monte Grappa reserve.
The winery’s first commercial campaign for organic PIWI wines launched in 2020, with current production reaching 50,000 bottles. In 2022, long before dealcoholized wine gained traction in Italy, owners Maria Pia Viaro and Massimo Vallotto launched Zeromax: Italy’s only zero-alcohol offering produced from organic PIWI grapes. Notably, Zeromax was the only Italian entry to secure a Gold medal at the 2025 World Alcohol-Free Awards in the UK.

Massimo Vallotto, where has your wine been dealcoholized so far? Now that Italian wineries are legally permitted to perform this process in-house, will you bring production on-site?
Our wine has always undergone dealcoholization via osmosis in Italy at Princess (Trento). Since they operate as a food-processing company rather than a winery, they were legally authorized to perform the process when others weren’t. We intend to continue outsourcing this phase.

What are your current production volumes?
Since our first year, we have produced 2,500 bottles annually. We have consistently sold out every vintage, exclusively within the Italian market. From the outset, we inverted the typical market approach. Usually, dealcoholized products are made from lower-quality base wines to keep prices down. Instead, we used a blend from one of our most prestigious labels, crafted from PIWI resistant varieties Bronner and Johanniter. By starting with a high-quality base wine, we’ve achieved a beverage that maintains its sensory integrity. We use a mechanical (non-chemical) osmosis process. The subsequent addition of food-grade CO₂ and frozen must (harvested in September) gives the drink a “Dry Taste” character. The residual sugar is 3g per 750ml. While we aim for a dry profile, a small amount of sugar is technically necessary as a preservative. Feedback from our regular wine-drinking clients has been overwhelmingly positive.

How has your distribution evolved over the past four years?
Initially, we saw interest from Michelin-starred restaurants, where we positioned the product as an alcohol-free pairing alternative to kombucha or juices. We have also seen success in mixology for mocktails—ranging from 0.0% versions of classics like the Hugo and Bellini to signature drinks. At our own five-star luxury resort, Ca’ Apollonio Heritage, Zeromax is featured both on the wine list (which boasts over 1,000 labels, including 70 PIWIs) and in the cocktail program.

How do you manage value perception?
Our alcohol-free wine retails at €18. Our market research into successful non-alcoholic beverages suggests we are highly competitive, especially considering Zeromax is a PIWI-based dealcoholized wine.

What are your future prospects?
More than 50% of the global population does not consume alcohol for cultural, religious, or geographical reasons. While non-alcoholic wine will always remain a niche and will not replace conventional wine, we are convinced there is significant room for growth, even in Italy. Some of our clients have been restocking the product for five years. Currently, dealcoholized wine accounts for 6% of our total production. We are now looking to develop export markets in Asia and North America, adding to our existing international footprint in Switzerland and parts of Northern and Eastern Europe.

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