When you walk into the local wine Shoppe and you are faced with one hundred bottles or more to choose from, how do you choose? How do you know you are getting a quality wine or a table wine, sweet or dry, varietals or blend? Maybe you can’t judge a book by its cover, but you may be able to judge a wine. The contents of wine labels are heavily regulated by the governments of each wine producing country and the indications on the label provide quit a bit of useful information.

So how do you read a quality wine label? Each wine producing country regulates its own labels, but there are a general 15 indicators that are considered in this regulation for a quality wine label. These indicators are either mandatory, permissible, or neither.

1. The word "wine":
   
   The word "wine" is not required to be on the labels of EC country wines because their controlled appellation systems already fill this function. Wines produced in the United States or any other non-EC country are required to have the word "wine" on the label. This is also true for any wine entering the EC from an outside country.
   


2. Country of Origin:
   
   The country of origin is mandatory for the labels of wine produced anywhere in the world. Wines that are destined solely for the home market (very limited) are excepted.
   


3. Denomination of Origin:
   
   The denomination of origin is generally based on a geographical region (e.g. Rioja in Spain) or on a vine variety (e.g. Barbera d'Alba in Italy). This indicator is mandatory in the majority of wine producing countries, but permissible in Israel, Romania, Australia, and Chile.
   
   


4. Quantity in Bottle:
   
   The quantity is mandatory in every country except Austria, where it is permissible. Quantity is generally measured in centiliters.
   


5. Alcohol Content:
   
   This indicator is mandatory in all countries except Cyprus, where it is permissible. This requirement is largely indicative of an increased responsible attitude towards alcohol on the part of governments and regulators. Alcohol content, mainly ethyl alcohol, is measured as a percentage of the total volume (12%), but may also be indicated in degrees (12º). The percentage must be exact to 0.5%.
   


6. Name and Address of the "Responsible" bottler/brand owner or lot number:
   The name and address of the "responsible" party is mandatory in al l countries except Romania and Argentina. This indicator has to do with allocation of liability. If a company is bottling wine under contract with another company (for instance the vineyard), then the liability rests with the company for whom the bottling is being conducted. If a company chooses to place their "own label" on the wine, then the liability falls on the company whose name and address appears on the label. Similarly the lot number or marking allows for a system where consumer initiated complaints trace the contents of an individual bottle back to the exact batch of grapes.
   


7. Quality Status:
   
   This indicator is required by countries that have a controlled appellation system. There are four recognized levels of quality: 1. table wine; 2. table wine from a designated region; 3. Quality wine from a designated region; and 4. Top quality wine from a designated region. As Examples:
   France:
   
   
   
   1. Vin de Table;
   
   
   2. Vin de pays;
   
   
   3. Appellation d'origine vin délimité de qualité supérieure (VDQS)
   
   
   4. Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC)
   
   
   
   Italy:
   
   
   
   1. Vino da tavola (VDT)
   
   
   2. Indicazione geografica tipica (IGT)
   
   
   3. Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC)
   
   
   4. Denominazione di origine controllata e garantita (DOCG)
   
   
   
   



Of course each country uses its own language and acronyms. If you are looking at wines other than French or Italian you can find the labeling requirements online or in a good wine encyclopedia.




8. Sulphite/additives declaration:
   
   A declaration of sulphites and other additives is mandatory for wine produced and imported into the US and Australia. This requirement is largely permissive in other wine-producing countries. Sulphite is sulphur dioxide and is used as a preservative in wine. The growing trend is to use as little of this preservative as possible. While most countries do not require this disclosure on the label, all additives are vigorously regulated in the wine making process. The US has been proactive in requiring this disclosure and is considering requiring that use of pesticides be disclosed on labels.



9. Grape varieties:
   
   Indicating the grape varietal is largely a permissible indicator, but if mentioned, it is strictly regulated. The percentage of varieties in a bottle is strictly regulated. In EC countries there may only be two varieties listed on a bottle. If one variety of grape is listed, the wine must contain a minimum of 85% of that variety. If two varieties are named on the label, they must equal 100% of the wine, with the larger percentage variety listed first. In countries outside the EC, a wine must be between 75 and 100% of the named variety.



10. The term "estate":
    
    Using the term "estate" on the label is mandatory in the US and South Africa, but is permissible everywhere else. This indicator tells the consumer that all of the grapes used to make the wine were grown only on the mentioned estate. This can be a bit misleading however, due to internal regulatory differences. For instance in South Africa, "estate" means that grapes came from that estate, but could also have come from a nearby estate with the same soil and micro-climate.
    


11. Vintage:
    
    This is another factor that is largely permissible, but if used, the US requires that 95% of the wine come from that vintage and other countries require that 85% of the wine come from that vintage.
    
    



12. Sweet/Dry description:
    
    This indicator is also largely permissible, only mandatory in Hungary, Austria, Israel, and Bulgaria. The description can be in the form of words or symbols (white wine generally uses symbols). For sparkling wines in the EC the sweet/dry descriptions are mandatory, such as Brut, Demi-Sec, etc.
    
    



13. Test of Quality:
    
    The test of quality can be conducted either by tasting the wine both before bottling and after aging or by laboratory analysis. This indicator has a 50/50 split between mandatory and permissible requirements, but is becoming more important and more common.
    
    


14. Official seal:
    
    The official seal is placed under the capsule and over the cork and shows that the regional controlling authorities have authenticated the wine's origin and quality.
    



15. 
    Single-vineyard specification:
    
    This is a completely permissible indicator, but plays an important role, as it signifies extra quality. This is a particularly important indicator in France's quality system.
    
    
    

This article was written by Jessica R. Manganello, Esq. Jessica is an attorney and "wine-nut" with Exemplar Law Partners, LLC at their headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts. Exemplar is the first large firm to abandon the billable hour and instead offers fixed prices and customized legal services in the areas of business/corporate law, international law, entertainment and business development. Exemplar also offers a discount to Wild WE members.

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