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Reading a wine label can be as easy as reading the
alphabet or as difficult as trying to decode a
foreign language, it all depends on whose label it
is and where it is from. New World labels tend to
vere towards the straight-forward, "here's what it
is" approach, with the varietal or blend clearly
labeled, the producer, where the grapes were grown
and the alcohol content right there in plain view.
Old World wines have a reputation for "masking" key
info., but this is not the case at all. If you know
what to be looking for, you can easily decipher the
pertinent label information with very little effort.
Instead of the varietal being the primary piece of
information on the Old World label, it is the
location - where the wine is from. Old World wines
are heavily invested in their individual terroir,
not necessarily the specific grape, though if you
know the region, then you will also have a pretty
good handle on the possible grapes that made their
way into the bottle.
1) How to Read a Wine Label: New World
by Blackstone Winery
New World wine labels are pretty user friendly,
offering consumers a few key pieces of wine buying
information. The varietal is listed on the label,
making for less guesswork than many Old World
labels. The producer, varietal, vintage year, region
where grapes are grown, and alcohol content
typically appear on the front label. The back label
sports the government warning, "According to the
Surgeon General..." and the sulfite statement along
with some witty wine wisdom and pairing preferences
for the particular wine.
2) How to Read a Wine Label: Alsace (FR)
Lucien Albrecht
Alsatian wine labels tend to be easier on the New
World consumer, as they are the one French wine
region that habitually states the wine’s grape
varietal directly on the front label. These labels
are a good place to start easing into Old World
label decoding, because they provide a "hybrid" of
Old World and New World labeling strategies. The
detective work is significantly reduced as consumers
conquer the label offerings in record time, but easy
label deciphering aside, the majority of Alsatian
Rieslings need little help in convincing consumers
to give them a go. Alsace has an international
reputation for producing tip top Rieslings at
consumer-friendly price points - this particular
Lucien Albrecht Riesling is no exception.
3) How to Read a French Wine
Label: Burgundy
There is a bit of detective work in learning how to
read a French wine label. Take this bottle label
below, for example.
JJ
Vincent
It is from Burgundy (decoded by the phrase in the
top right corner “Vin de Bourgogne,” meaning “Wine
of Burgundy” in French). In Burgundy there are two
main wines to know: Red Burgundy (Pinot Noir) and
White Burgundy (Chardonnay). These two wines
comprise the majority of the region’s wine, with
Chablis, Gamay and some sparkling wines rounding out
the rest of Burgundy’s wine offerings. This label
represents a white wine from Burgundy, which we
figure out from bottle and label clues. First, the
bottle will have the sloped shoulder style that is
typically found in white wines (and Pinot Noir)
where there is no need for a sediment lip. You'll
also be able to see that it is a white wine through
the green glass, instead of red wine. Next, it's
critical to take some time to get to know key
appellations in the dominate wine regions of France.
These appellations will tip you off on which grapes
are likely in the bottle of wine. So for this
particular label, we know that the region where the
wine’s grapes were grown is Burgundy (via the top
left corner of the label, designated "Vin de
Bourgogne"). Next, the specific appellation in
Burgundy is Macon-Villages (known for stellar white
Burgundy wines, aka Chardonnay). The precise estate
where the grapes are from is listed as "Domaine
Champ de Brulee" (literally translated to “Burnt
Field” – referring to the specific vineyard’s
optimal sun exposure). The wine's producer is
Vincent (an extension of the Chateau Fuisse Estate)
and the bottling information is found at the bottom
of the label. All in all, we know that this is a
Chardonnay from Burgundy produced by JJ Vincent in
2003 with an alcohol content of 12.5%. Other terms
that you may encounter on French wine labels
include: "Blanc" - meaning "white"; "Cru" -
typically meaning "vineyard"; "Grand Cru" - meaning
"Great growth" designating a vineyard of exceptional
reputation and quality; "Cuvee" - meaning "blend" of
grapes or wines; "Domaine" - meaning "estate";
"Rouge" - meaning "red".
4)
How
to Read a German Wine Label
Reading German wine labels can be tricky, but if you
get familiar with the basic lay of the label, you'll
be navigating them in no time.
Fritz
Haag
The vast majority of German wines are Rieslings, and
for good reason. Germany has been setting the
traditional standard for the Riesling grape for
centuries. The German wine label includes the basic
information found on most other labels: producer,
region, vintage, vineyard, varietal, and the like,
but they throw a curve when the ripeness levels,
sugar levels and quality classifications also grace
the label. The quality classification starts off
with the basic table wine, "Tafelwein" and proceeds
to a level 5 designation of "Qualitätsweine mit
Prädikat" (QmP) - translated to "Quality wine with
attributes." This is the quality classification of
the featured wine label above. At this level 5
quality classification, the ripeness classification
system kicks in to further designate who's who in
the world of German Riesling. The ripeness
classification system communicates when the grape
was picked, so it's an indicator of initial grape
sugar levels not final bottled residual sugar
levels. The wines in ascending ripeness level order
are as follows: Kabinett (least ripe, lightest
style), Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese (BA), and
Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA - a late harvest, Botrytis
picking - most ripe, fullest body). There are also
label residual sugar indicators to keep in mind: if
the wine is dry, it is labeled as "Trocken"; "Halbtrocken"
is off-dry and sweeter Rieslings are designated as "Beernauslese"
(BA)and "Trockenbeerenauslese" (TBA).
5)
How to Read an Italian
Wine Label
For those that don't speak Italian, wine labels from
Italy can be daunting, until you know a few
essential label clues. Check out the label codes
below.
Frescobaldi
The primary pieces of information that Italian wines
want to communicate to you, their celebrated
consumer, are the wine's: Name, Growing Region
(There are 37 designated wine growing regions in
Italy), Grape Type (Italy has over 2,000!), Estate
and Producer Names, Alcohol Content, Vintage Year
and Classification (Vdt, IGT, DOC, DOCG - government
appellation designations related to volume, location
and quality). If you can grab these key pieces of
information off of an Italian wine label then you
are good to go. |
