Those Baffling Wine Labels
Decipher The Fine
Script And Lingo
Shopping at the store
and baffled by the wine labels? Or
ordering wine at a restaurant
and mystified?
What do all those strange scripted words, abbreviations, and acronyms mean, you ask? What you really want to know is “Will I like this wine?”. That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? Understanding wine labels requires two things. One is to know what all the wording actually means. Then you have to know enough about wine in general to interpret the meaning of the label. While there’s no substitute for tasting, you can get a rough idea from label reading. Relax, it’s complicated but I’m here to help. Here are some tidbits about wine labels: - Different countries, regions, and even wineries have their own laws and methods of labeling.
- A label is based on where the wine is marketed - not where it is made. So for example, the label on a French Bordeaux sold in the United States has to comply with American regulations.
- While some wine labels are very beautiful, that doesn’t mean the wine will be just as good. And vice versa. Don’t judge a book by the cover. By the way, if you want to collect labels, you can purchase a label removing kit. Makes the removal a snap.
- A word that comes up a lot in all of this is appellation. The standard definition is a name or title. In wine lingo, it’s the official and registered geographic origin of the wine. It becomes part of the wine‘s name. In Europe, it goes way beyond that. The name can refer to the varietal, growing methods, winemaking methods, etc. Thus the name defines the wine as well as names it.
- Another designation you may see on wine labels is the QWPSR. No, I didn’t come up with that by typing with my eyes closed. Only for European wines, it stands for Quality Wine Produced in a Specific Region.
You will see various abbreviated QWPSR designations on their bottles. Each country classifies them by status with rigid regulations and standards. Thus, it becomes a rough guide to the level of quality of the wine. However, there is no guarantee that a designation automatically determines quality. Only your palate can do that. Below, I will go into those in more detail.
- Reserve wine means that the wine was aged longer at the winery before being released. The implication is that the wine is better than normal and worthy of extra
aging.
With wines from other countries (especially Spain), that is true. However, with American wines, this term has little meaning because it is so commonplace. Not that this wine is bad. But, like designer jeans, it still sounds good and thus perceived worthy of a
higher price.
- Estate wines are those that are bottled by the same vineyard that grew the grapes. This means that the vineyard is accountable for all winemaking operations and has a personal hand in the finished product. It makes sense that would enhance the quality of the wine and command higher prices.
First, let’s look at what most wine labels will contain: - Varietal (the main grape like Chardonnay or Cabernet). You won’t see this on many European labels, however.
- Brand name
- Vintage (year bottled)
- Wine type such as table wine,
dessert wine,
or
sparkling wine
- Name and address of the bottler (producer)
- Volume of alcohol by percentage
- Volume of wine in the bottle. The standard is 750 milliliters or about 26 ounces.
- Vineyard
Now let’s look at wine labels peculiar to the country of origin. In all my lists below, the labels will contain some of the items on the list but not necessarily all of them.
- United States
- American Viticultural Area (ARA) or a fancy name for region. Sonoma and Napa Valley are examples.
- Quality designation such as reserve.
- Estate-bottled designation.
- Government warnings (naturally) including sulfites.
- Novelties. There are many novelty wine labels out there such as Marilyn Merlot, Menage a Trois, Seven Deadly Zins, etc. Some of these will have the usual info. Sometimes novelty will prevail and not much else will be listed outside of the must haves. Suffice it to say that these are mainly table wines. Even so, don’t be fooled by the cutesy labels. Many of them are quite good.
- Australia (looks like Australia keeps it pretty simple)
- Region
- Winery
- Name and location of producer
- Allergens
- France. They can and do make their wine labels extremely complicated. Regions, districts, sub-districts, villages, and vineyards can all appear on the label. Some larger regions like Bordeaux have over 100 appellations. Frankly, it is not necessary to fine-tune your purchase on all that. In addition to the general list above, I list the most important items:
- Appellation (Region). This is the primary way French wine is classified as opposed to a varietal like pinot noir. Seldom is the varietal listed on the label. Thus, the best way to drink your favorite varietal is to determine which appellation produces that varietal. For example, pauillac is an appellation of Bordeaux which is a cabernet. So if you like cabernet, then pauillac may be for you.
The six most prominent regions in France are Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Loire, and Rhone. You owe it to yourself to try them all. Furthermore, you owe it to yourself to go there and see the beautiful countryside. - QWPSR. Quality Wine Produced in a Specific Region.
- The top designation is AOC. When you see this designation, this is considered a higher quality wine.
- Next is AOVDQS. This is a lesser designation for smaller areas and those with potential for the full AOC classification.
- VDP. This one is from a specific region but with fewer qualifying restrictions.
- Vin de Table. You guessed it. This is table wine - the least restrictive classification.
- Estate. If you see chateau or domaine on the label, it is the French version of an estate wine.
- Vieilles Vignes. This is French for old vines. Old vines will produce small harvests compared to younger vines. Thus, the quality of the grapes is considered to be very good. Unfortunately, this phrase not regulated and anyone can call the vines old.
- Italy. They have similar classifications to France.
- Appellation (Region). There are 20 Italian wine regions that correspond to their political regions. The most notable ones are Tuscany and Piedmont located in the north.
- QWPSR. Quality Wine Produced in a Specific Region.
- The top one is DOCG. It means a regulated and guaranteed place name. A blind taste test must be passed to get this designation.
- DOC. This is without the guarantee.
- IGT. This is from a specific region but is classified as a finer table wine.
- VDT. This is a lower quality table wine and/or one that does not follow current wine laws. But many are still good.
- Riserva. This is the Italian version of reserve.
- Spain. Similar to the others.
- Germany.
- Appellation (Region). Mostly located in the western part of the country, the main regions are Ahr, Baden, Franconia, Hessisiche, Bergstrabe, Mittelrhein, Mosel, Nahe, Palatinate, Rheingau, Rheinhessen, Saale-Unstrut, Saxony, and Wurttemberg
- QWPSR. Quality Wine Produced in a Specific Region.
- QmP - quality wine with special attributes is the highest designation
- QbA - the next level of quality
- Tafelwein - Table wine.
So, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Feel free to print this page and take it with you into the store.
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