Accolade launch low-cal wine brand

The latest company to take part in the low-calorie wine craze in the US is Accolade Wines with the launch of The Light Grape.

The Light Grape contains 80 calories per 148ml serving

Promising 80 calories per five ounce serving (148ml), the new brand is undercutting rival low calorie wine brands The Skinny Vine and Skinnygirl which contain 95 and 100 calories per five-ounce measure respectively.

The Light Grape is promoting is low-calorie status with advertising in Weight Watchers magazine, as well as an email campaign targeted at the 35,000 strong Weight Watchers database in the US.

The wine achieves its low-calorie content from its reduced abv of 8.5%, and will be promoting itself with the tagline “80 calories, 100% taste”.

Four wines are currently being offered under The Light Grape: a Chardonnay; a rosé; a white blend (made from Pinot Grigio and Viognier), and a red blend containing Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Syrah (pictured below).

Priced at US$12 per bottle, The Light Grape is pitched between its two major competitors, The Skinny Vine, which has an RRP of $11 and Skinnygirl, which sells for $15.

As previously reported by the drinks business, with around 20% of Americans on a diet, low-calorie wine brands are booming in the US.

Kick-starting the trend was Skinnygirl, which was created in 2009 for ready-made cocktails by TV star Bethenny Frankel, who extended the range to include a three wines in March 2012, following the sale of the brand to Beam.

Meanwhile, in January this year, former Foster’s wine division Treasury Wine Estates launched The Skinny Vine in the US.

Skinnygirl is believed to have sold 200,000 cases in its first year, while The Skinny Vine claims it has shifted 100,000 cases since its launch.

A standard bottle of white wine at 13.5% abv contains around 560 calories, meaning a 5 ounce/148ml serving will provide you with approximately 112 calories, 32 more than found is the same measure of The Light Grape.

The Light Grape Chardonnay’s back label

Accolade Wines North America was formed in June 2012 when Australia-based Accolade Wines bought the Geyser Peak, XYZin and Atlas Peak brands from Ascentia Wine Estates.

Accolade’s US division sold the Geyser Peak winery in March this year to the Francis Ford Coppola Winery but has held onto the Geyser Peak brand, and is launching a line-up from the Californian label specifically tailored for the UK market.

Accolade Wines has created a Geyser Peak varietal range comprising a Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, which, as previously reported by db, will be will be available in World Duty Free from this month with an RRP of £8.99.

Ondine Chattan, director of winemaking at Geyser Peak, said this was the first time the producer had specifically changed the style of its varietal wine range to suit a particular export market.

“We understand consumers in the UK and Europe are looking for a little more acidity, and a little more tannin and intensity in their wines than the US wine drinker,” she said.

For more on low-calorie wine brands, as well as a top 10 in terms of calorie content, click here.

The Light Grape’s full range of wines