Wondering who carefully crafted the wine you’re drinking? From detecting the appellation to vintage and varietal, we’ve compiled the complete guide to reading a wine label. This will assist you with discovering vital information about the winemaker, vineyard, grape variety, and winemaking process for every wine you sip.
For more detailed information, sign up with an online wine club to get elaborate information about the wine, winemaker, and tasting notes for every wine you receive. Otherwise, read our list of 11 wine label phrases and terms to help you decode the name of the vintner and vineyard easily.
11 Winemaking Terms To Understand Before Reading A Wine Label
Before you understand the anatomy of a wine label, go through the following list of winemaking terms. It will help you discover who made the wine, when, where and how it was produced as well.
Blended By
If you see this term on the bottle, it suggests the wine is also blended with other wines of identical class and type.
Made By
This phrase denotes several meanings such as wine fermentation of not less than 75%, modification with alcohol/brandy/flavor/color/carbonation or secondary fermentation used for producing sparkling wine.
Produced By
When you see this phrase, it might refer to modified or fortified wines with alcohol/brandy/flavor/color/artificial carbonation or secondary fermentation used for producing sparkling wine.
Prepared By
Wines adhere to cellar treatments specified under 27 CFR 4.22(c) when this appears on your wine bottle.
Estate Bottled
This refers to wines from 100% of grapes grown on the land owned or leased by the same winery. Moreover, the wine must be produced, aged and bottled at the same location too.
Estate grown is a term which refers to wineries and vineyards inside American Viticulture Area (AVA).
Vinted By/Cellared By
This phrase is used on wines produced by wineries that buy wines in bulk from other vintners and bottle it under a new brand name. It also indicates that the wine complies with cellar treatments as noted in 27 CFR 4.22(c).
Grown, Produced and Bottled By
The phrase above specifies that the enlisted winery grew the wine on their own land (owned or leased) and bottled it themselves.
Produced and Bottled By
When you see this on the label, at least 75% of the grapes used for making this type of wine are grown on the land owned or leased by the vineyard.
Reserve
When you see this on Italian and Spanish wines, it denotes wines with extra aging. On French and US wines, ‘reserve’ refers to wine made with special care.
Old Vines or Vielles Vins
Wines with ages between 15 to 115 years are titled as ‘old vines’. This wine is sought-after for its concentrated flavors.
How To Read A Wine Label To Find The Winemaker
Whether your wine came from a club or a retailer, knowing more about it helps you unlock the world of wines. There are two types of wine labels: one focuses on the appellation and the other on the brand.
The following is a step-by-step method that will help you understand wine labels easily.
- Step 1: Identify the name of the Wine Producer/ Winery on the bottle.
- Step 2: Recognize the Special Quality Designation such as Grand (Burgundy), Reserve and so on.
- Step 3: Note the Vintage that denotes the year of harvest of the grapes used in the wine.
- Step 4: Keep a close eye to acknowledge terms like ‘estate-bottled’, ‘reserve’ and so on.
- Step 5: Determine the type of Wine or Grape Variety.
- Step 6: Check the displayed Name and Designation of the Vineyard where 95% of the grapes come from.
- Step 7: Crosscheck Alcohol Content by Volume (ABV).
- Step 8: Detect the Appellation
- Step 9: Winemaking/Bottling Information
- Step 10: The Back Label gives information about the winemaking process using the 11 terms we covered earlier.
Conclusion
Open the picture of a random wine bottle online and try to read the complete wine label. With this knowledge in hand, it will undoubtedly be easier. Moreover, the best wine clubs always share information about the winemaker online to or along with each shipment. Eventually, knowing what you’re drinking, where it came from, and the process it underwent will help you select the wines that match your exact preferences.