USA Wine Label Information
Wine labels in the United States, like other New World wine-producing countries, are straightforward and easy to understand. US wine labels can be very basic, although the widespread use of back-of-bottle labels to further describe the wine means that they offer consumers a far broader understanding of the wine than European labels.
The American labeling laws are enforced by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). It ensures that all wines produced in the country are within the framework of the US wine laws.
The minimum information required on American wine labels is as follows:
- Brand identification or brand name: This may be the producer's name, winery name, growing area, the name of the appellation where the wine originated, the grape variety, or a trademark name.
- Class or type of wine: It is mandatory for all wine labels to identify the contents as being one of several classes, including table wine, sparkling wine, fruit wine, aperitif wine or carbonated grape wine.
- Name and address of the bottler or producer: The words 'bottled by' must precede the name and address of the bottler. 'Produced and bottled by' is allowed if the bottler fermented and clarified at least 75% of the wine.
- Appellation of origin: The appellation system in the US is commonly referred to as AVA or American Viticultural Area. These AVAs are based on distinct climatic and geographical features, and are an important source of information. In order to have an AVA appear on a wine label, the following specifications must be met:
- The majority of US states require 75% of the grapes in a wine to be grown locally.
- With the larger state and county appellations, the laws vary depending on the area. For a County Appellation, 75% of the grapes used must be from that county.
- If a wine label specifies an officially designated viticultural area (e.g. Sonoma Valley), a minimum of 85% of the grapes must come from within the named region.
- Varietal labeling: Bottles labeled by variety must be made from at least 75% of the specified grape, although there are some exceptions. For example, in Oregon this requirement is 90%.
- Vintage labeling: At least 95% of the grapes used must be from a particular vintage in order for that year to appear on the label.
- Alcohol content: For wines under 14%, either the alcohol content or the designations 'Table Wine' or 'Light Wine' may be used; these denote an alcohol content between 7% and 14%. However, alcohol content is mandatory on any wines containing more than 14% alcohol by volume; these are often considered to be 'fortified'.
- Volume of contents: Mandatory information which may appear as 'Liters', 'Fluid Ounces' or 'Milliliters'.
- Declaration of sulfites: This information appears if the sulfur level in a wine is above a certain limit. Wines labeled as 'Organic' will be free of any artificially added sulfites, while those labeled 'Made with organically grown grapes' will have some sulfites.
- Government health warning: Any wine bottled or imported for sale or distribution in the United States must have a health warning on the label.
The illustration below shows a typical US wine label.
