The way to Learn a Wine Label Like a Professional

Top-of-the-line methods to have a stress-free wine-buying expertise lies in understanding their labels. Wine labels can provide you extra perception as to what’s contained in the bottle. Nevertheless, what’s listed on these labels can extensively range relying on the place the wine was made. Essentially the most notable variations are discovered between Previous or New World wine areas. 

Many modern, world-class wines are produced in New World areas. Although the time period has turn out to be considerably antiquated and Euro-centric, the New World class refers to a winemaking area exterior of the normal areas in Europe like France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. It typically contains areas like america, South Africa, Chile, Australia, Argentina, Mexico, the Center East, and New Zealand. 

“New World wine labels could be complicated for these accustomed to French, Spanish, or Italian labels,” says Steven Karataglidis, director of wine at Fairmont Royal York in Toronto. “The emphasis on grape selection over area, completely different appellation programs, and branding could be perplexing.”

Nevertheless, label necessities in most New World areas aren’t as stringent as they’re in most conventional winemaking areas. In consequence, most labels from New World areas are usually clearer, and simpler to navigate as a result of they’re extra simple. Necessary info could be listed on the entrance or again of the bottle.

Michéala Johnson, sommelier at Le Jardinier in New York Metropolis says, “Flip that bottle round and have a look at the again label. You could be stunned with the quantity of data you could find on this a part of the bottle.” 

Let’s break down a New World wine label from Oregon-based Elk Cove Vineyards to decipher what it means.

Who’s the producer?

On a New World wine label, the producer is usually entrance and middle. The producer on this instance, Elk Cove Vineyards, is listed most prominently on each the back and front labels. A producer generally is a single winemaker or a model with a number of winemakers, or perhaps a model that purchases wine from different grape growers after which bottles it beneath their very own title.

By emphasizing producers, shoppers are inspired to discover wine primarily based on repute and the fashion of winemaking of a producer and never essentially a cohesive fashion or custom of a given area. This provides New World winemakers extra inventive freedom in what wines they produce.

What grape is the wine constituted of?

On the Elk Grove Vineyards label, the grape selection is Pinot Noir. One of many main distinctions between a New World wine label and an Previous World wine label is its emphasis on grape selection. However it’s essential to grasp that the wine may not be product of the acknowledged selection alone.

“Whereas New World wines do comprise the grape varieties indicated on the label, most don’t require having 100% of that selection within the bottle,” says Johnson. For instance, in america, if a grape selection is listed on a label, the wine contained in the bottle solely needs to be composed of at the least 75% of the listed selection.

The place the grapes are grown can be a consideration in labeling. 

“Some AVAs [American Viticultural Areas] do have stricter pointers on this, like in California and Oregon, the place wines are required to be made solely from grapes grown of their respective state,” she says.

One other complicating issue relating to decoding wine labels: Not all wine legal guidelines are common. “Chilean wine regulation requires 75% of a wine needing to be made up of the grape selection on the label, although many Chilean wineries use 85% in order that they’re able to export to the European Union,” explains Johnson. 

Elk Cove offers further element on the entrance label by classifying the wine as “property grown.” This lets shoppers know the grapes had been grown and cultivated by the producers themselves somewhat than sourced from different winegrowers. Elk Cove additionally included the precise winery, Mount Richmond, on their property on the label.

Whereas winery particulars are supplied within the above instance, this info isn’t at all times included on each New World wine label.