What’s in a label? Most times they are fun to look at but did you know that most times the label gets explored more closely than what is actually inside the bottle?
It is required that each bottle contain two informational labels, one on the back and one on the front. What should they mean to you?
Label #1 : The Front
There are no statutes about which label should be which size so most times wine makers will make the Front Label, the one with all of the US Government requirements small and make the Back Label extremely large so they can show off their pretty logo designs.
Confused? Isn’t the large pretty label the one we see when we enter a wine shop or grocery store? Yes, well this is just a great tactic for the sellers to get you to see what they want you to see.
Even though wine is produced all over the world the US actually has the most rigid rules when it comes to labeling, so many of the wine makers have stuck to the US requirements when bottling their wines. What exactly is required on the Front Label?
- Type of wine
- Name of the bottler
- The amount of wine in the bottle (usually expressed in milliliters)
- The phrase ‘Contains Sulfites’
- The alcohol content
- The US govt warning about possible health risks related to the consumption of alcohol
Label #2 – The Back
The label on the back is mostly for presentation and is often used for selling points the wine makers would like to stress to the consumer. There are really no requirements for this label however most use it to display the name of the wine and their captivating logo or graphics. Some can include if the wine is award winning, if there is a limited amount of cases that can be purchased, if the grapes were crushed by foot and even the different combinations that went into making the wine.
The word “Reserve” is added to the back label if there was extra aging time at the factory before bottling and the word “Estate” usually means the grapes were grown at the same winery where it was bottled.
Researching Can Be Fun
Next time you are shopping for wine take a few extra minutes to see if you can identify the different parts of information. Educate yourself by looking for different wineries, the location where the wine was bottled or even dive deeper by researching the different types of grapes and to what percentage make up certain classifications of wine. Then enjoy the fruits of your labor with a group of friends by sampling and trying the labels that interested you most.
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