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Understanding Wine Labels - THE BASICS
The label on a bottle of wine undergoes more regulatory and creative scrutiny
than perhaps any label on any other commodity. After a design is created and
selected, the label must pass muster from the government agency that controls
wine production as well as the various government agencies controlling
importation and sale in every country where the wine is distributed.
A collage of wine labels. There are collectors of wine labels who don't
consume wine and consumers of wine who base their purchases entirely on the
appeal of the labels. Understanding wine labels can be difficult and
intimidating for the consumer who is primarily interested in the taste of the
contents. Knowing what information labels are permitted to and are required to
provide can help.
Surprisingly, very little of the information on the label tells how the
product in the bottle may be expected to taste. In fact, descriptions which
often appear on back labels are completely unregulated and frequently are
composed of "buzz words" that appeal to the public palate, rather than being
actual notes based on an unbiased tasting of the contents.
The consumer can make better buying decisions by initially knowing the basic
facts required on wine labels, subsequently absorbing the idea of what aromas
and flavors to expect from regional wine characteristics, and finally
considering how this information combines to reveal the tastes beneath the cork.
The place to start is with the requirements. |
