Cul Sec 2025: When Unripe Grapes Become Gold

The 2024 debut vintage sold out in four months. Now the Culemborg-based Cul Sec moves to a tenfold larger production, with a counterintuitive claim up front: for alcohol-free, unripe grapes beat ripe ones.

The waste that wasn’t

Making alcohol-free wine needs a different playbook. Cul Sec is built around verjus, the tart juice from unripe grapes. For traditional winemakers, an under-ripe cluster is failure, headed for the compost heap. For an alcohol-free alternative, it’s ideal. “We needed grapes low in sugar but rich in tannins and acids,” the makers explain. The short Dutch growing season, usually a curse for viticulture, produces exactly that profile.

This vintage draws from a mixed palette: Müller-Thurgau and Bacchus from Germany’s Kitzingen region, Viognier and Chardonnay from France’s Ardèche, plus grapes from Hungary. Increasingly, Dutch fruit from partners like Dassemus in Chaam forms the backbone. Both juice and pulp play roles. The juice provides mineral acidity and oxidative notes; the pulp undergoes lacto-fermentation on water kefir and kombucha bases. The same bacterial process behind sauerkraut’s complexity.

Lab technique alongside craft

The 2025 cuvée marks a step forward in refinement. After a year of close work with farmers, the Fruitslagers team has tightened processes that sound closer to perfumery than winemaking. Ultrasonic extraction, for instance: high-frequency sound waves pull flavour from ingredients in minutes rather than weeks. That captures the lemon brightness of Douglas pine and the green intensity of blackcurrant leaf without oxidation.

Oak treatment has changed too. Where 2024 leaned heavily on toasted barrels, this year uses fresh oak, oak bark, and apple cider vinegar aged in barrels before blending with unripe grape skins. The result is a tannic, bracingly sour base, particularly suited to L’Étable Fumé, the orange wine featuring a hay blend of Dutch lucerne, chamomile, and verbena from local food forests.

The four 2025 expressions (Blanc, Orange, Rosé and Rouge) share a philosophy of restraint. Sugar levels have dropped further from last year. The Rouge layers lacto-fermented juice with teas brewed from Pinot Noir and Cabernet skins, building body and tannin without sweetness.

Scale and price

Scaling brings real questions. Can the experimental edge of Cul Sec survive a tenfold production increase? The wild, unpredictable character that made 2024 compelling could get tamed in pursuit of consistency. Price is the second issue. Quality is evident, but Cul Sec costs as much as or more than many conventional wines. For consumers who view alcohol-free as the cheaper option, that’s a mental step, however justified by the labour-intensive process.

The sustainability story holds. Collaborations with food forests Nieuwe Bodem and Schevichoven, and with cidermakers Elegast, build a regenerative supply chain. Whether the market will pay premium prices for that narrative is the open question.

Worth the wait

I’ll taste these bottles myself once they’re available after the October 20 launch. The makers promise expressions that are drier, more textural, and longer on the palate than the debut. If they deliver, Cul Sec 2025 proves that good wine doesn’t need alcohol, sunshine, or even ripe grapes. Whether the Netherlands is the right place to prove it, I’ll find out in the glass.