Aluminum wine bottle

More than any other liquid food segment, wine is tightly linked to glass packaging. This resistance to change is a combination of strong consumer attachment to glass packaging and necessary product protection. Today, about 20 billion wine bottles are manufactured and sold, mainly in the 750 mL format.

In some countries, bag-in-a-box, carton, and plastic packages are present with small market shares. Over recent years this sector has not shown any significant innovation effort. Recently, however, it has seen a new entrant – an aluminum bottle. This is the result of a joint effort between wwine.it and Biscaldi, which is responsible for the distribution of this product.

Outside of an innovative material and high design content, there is little innovation in the way the product is marketed. Claims of re-usability and recyclability are part of the sales pitch and this brand’s environmental mission.

The light weight of the aluminum bottle when compared to the traditional glass bottle reduces CO₂ emissions during transportation and provides some advantage in re-use and recycling. However, this does not make this package environmentally friendly.

Target segments

This product targets younger people through its well-executed design language (the combination of its shape, color and the visual/sensory appeal of its surface). On the other hand, this execution may exclude older demographics less willing to change their purchase habits. The light weight and robustness creates new opportunities for additional consumption occasions, such as the aperitivo, which is rather common in Italy.

The Design

The design is appealing, simple, and modern. The usage of colors in combination with the aluminum surface produces outstanding shelf impact. The lack of transparency and inconsistent color coding compared to traditional wine labels may create point-of-purchase (POP) issues and requires a strong branding effort.

Opening

The bottle is fitted with a screw cap which requires less effort and no opening tools - this is an improvement over the traditional cork from a usability perspective. [Editor's note; see our article on The grandfather of closures, cork, is under challenge.] The lack of oxygen permeation, however, is seen as disadvantage for proper wine aging, limiting the application of this package to cheaper wines, which is counter to its high design content image.

Closing

A tight seal is virtually guaranteed by the screw cap. This offers an opportunity to store the opened wine bottle in the horizontal position if needed.

Accessing

There are no accessibility problems for consumers with nominal dexterity. It is a significant improvement when compared with cork.

Handling

The bottle shape, material, and light weight accommodate handling and pouring well. The aluminum provides impact resistance and prevents the bottle from breaking in case of an accident.

Storing & Transporting

This product is compact, light weight and robust. The lighter weight may offer an opportunity to sell the bottles in multi-packs, offering additional differentiation as well as easy transportation.

Environment

Aluminum is not renewable, but is highly recyclable. Given the high energy requirements for aluminum processing, it has a larger carbon footprint than a glass bottle, and is not best choice for an environmentally friendly package.

Conclusions

This product offers some unique improvements in usability but faces the risk of being tied to niche segments due to a radical design change. The aluminum bottle is probably more suited for markets where the heritage of the glass bottle is weaker.

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