How do you read a wine label?

The core elements of any label

Most wine labels carry the same handful of facts, even if their order varies. The producer is the winery, château, domaine or négociant responsible for the wine. The appellation or geographical indication states where the grapes grew, from a country down to a single vineyard. The vintage is the year the grapes were harvested; non-vintage blends, common in Champagne, omit it. The grape variety may be stated, especially outside Europe; in the EU a wine naming a single variety must contain at least 85% of it. Alcohol is shown as a percentage of volume. A quality tier such as AOP, DOCG or Prädikatswein may appear. In the EU, labels must also mention allergens such as sulfites, and US labels carry a government health warning. See wine appellation systems for the tiers.

French labels

A French label usually leads with the producer and the appellation, with the words Appellation d'Origine Protégée or Contrôlée underneath. Grape varieties are often absent, because the appellation implies them: Sancerre means Sauvignon Blanc for its whites, Pommard means Pinot Noir. Château is generally used for Bordeaux estates and domaine for Burgundy ones. In Burgundy, the place name signals rank: a village name like Gevrey-Chambertin, a village plus a premier cru vineyard, or a grand cru such as Chambertin on its own. In Bordeaux, a line such as Grand Cru Classé en 1855 refers to the 1855 classification. Mis en bouteille au château or au domaine means the estate bottled its own wine; a négociant bottling may instead name a merchant in Beaune or Bordeaux.

Italian and Spanish labels

Italian labels show the denomination and its tier, DOC or DOCG, sometimes with extra terms. Classico marks the historic heart of a zone, as in Chianti Classico; Riserva means the wine was aged longer than the standard version; Superiore usually signals stricter rules such as higher minimum alcohol. Italian wines may also be named by grape and place together, as in Barbera d'Asti or Montepulciano d'Abruzzo.

Spanish labels add ageing terms. In Rioja, a red Crianza must be aged at least 2 years with at least 1 year in oak; a Reserva at least 3 years, with at least 1 year in oak; and a Gran Reserva at least 5 years, including at least 2 years in oak. Rioja whites and rosés have shorter minimums. Wines without these terms are often sold young, sometimes labelled Joven.

German labels

German labels are among the most detailed. They must show the producer, the region (one of 13 Anbaugebiete), the alcohol and an official AP number proving the wine passed quality testing. Vineyard names follow the village name with the suffix -er, as in Bernkasteler Doctor, meaning the Doctor vineyard of Bernkastel. Prädikatswein shows its ripeness level at harvest: Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese, Eiswein or Trockenbeerenauslese. These levels describe grape ripeness, not necessarily sweetness, so the separate terms matter: trocken (dry) generally means up to 4 grams of sugar per litre and halbtrocken (off-dry) up to 12, while feinherb is an unregulated term for a similar off-dry style. Members of the VDP mark their top dry wines from Grosse Lage sites as Grosses Gewächs. Most German Prädikat wines are Riesling; see the Mosel and Rheingau.

New World varietal labels

In the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Argentina and South Africa, the grape variety is usually the most prominent word, followed by the region and the producer: for example a Barossa Valley Shiraz, a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc or a Mendoza Malbec. In the US, a wine naming an American Viticultural Area such as Napa Valley must contain at least 85% grapes from it, and California requires 100% Californian grapes for a California state appellation. Terms such as Reserve or Old Vines are generally unregulated in New World countries and depend on the producer. Brand names, sometimes called proprietary names, are common for blends, as with Opus One. South African labels may carry a Wine of Origin seal, as for Stellenbosch.