Why?
Most wine labeling information is vague or misleading about grape origins and their connection to the winery.
Two prevalent facts that US consumers face with store-bought wines are:
• Grapes are often sourced from multiple off-site vineyards, not from the same land or vineyards controlled by the winery. This practice isn’t necessarily bad, as many great wines are made from carefully selected grapes grown at quality off-site vineyards. However, without more clues on the label, it’s hard for consumers to know if the grapes were carefully selected or bulk sourced.
• Many mainstream wines are simply "adjusted" purchased wines, not made at the winery by the producer. I pass on wines labeled "Cellared" or "Vinted" unless I know the winemaker and winery. Adjusting a wine can involve refrigeration, blending, or manipulation with additives and processes. If less than 75% of the grapes are fermented by the winery, where is the other 25% made? Great question.
Discovering the origin of the grapes or who actually produces the wine requires digging deeper into label details, which takes knowledge and time before you go to the store.
“Estate” is a powerful, regulated phrase in the US
“Estate Bottled” is a technical term defined by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
The phrases Estate Bottled, Estate Grown, or Grown, Produced and Bottled on the back label provide three absolutes:
• 100% of the wine comes from grapes grown on land owned or controlled by the winery.
• 100% of the grapes and winery are located in the recognized viticulture area on the bottle.
• 100% of the grapes are fermented, finished, aged, processed, and bottled on their premises.
That's powerful information in one easy spot on a label. The grapes and the winery are intimately and intentionally connected.
These wines are often from family estates where the owners' children are raised on the property. The use of chemicals in the vineyard is likely minimal to none.
Estate wines are also signatures of the best the winery has to offer. An estate's best fruit is used, and the winemaker’s skills shine through without overuse of additives or heavy processing.
Finding estate wines is a habit that is hard to shake once you start, especially if you’re pressed to choose a quality and low-intervention wine quickly.
So, look to the back first. Estate wines are a great step in selecting wines that are not only delicious but also made with quality and care.
Here’s to your wine and good health!
To learn more about wine labeling appellation rules: TTB Wine Labeling
Most wine labeling information is vague or misleading about grape origins and their connection to the winery.
Two prevalent facts that US consumers face with store-bought wines are:
• Grapes are often sourced from multiple off-site vineyards, not from the same land or vineyards controlled by the winery. This practice isn’t necessarily bad, as many great wines are made from carefully selected grapes grown at quality off-site vineyards. However, without more clues on the label, it’s hard for consumers to know if the grapes were carefully selected or bulk sourced.
• Many mainstream wines are simply "adjusted" purchased wines, not made at the winery by the producer. I pass on wines labeled "Cellared" or "Vinted" unless I know the winemaker and winery. Adjusting a wine can involve refrigeration, blending, or manipulation with additives and processes. If less than 75% of the grapes are fermented by the winery, where is the other 25% made? Great question.
Discovering the origin of the grapes or who actually produces the wine requires digging deeper into label details, which takes knowledge and time before you go to the store.
“Estate” is a powerful, regulated phrase in the US
“Estate Bottled” is a technical term defined by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
The phrases Estate Bottled, Estate Grown, or Grown, Produced and Bottled on the back label provide three absolutes:
• 100% of the wine comes from grapes grown on land owned or controlled by the winery.
• 100% of the grapes and winery are located in the recognized viticulture area on the bottle.
• 100% of the grapes are fermented, finished, aged, processed, and bottled on their premises.
That's powerful information in one easy spot on a label. The grapes and the winery are intimately and intentionally connected.
These wines are often from family estates where the owners' children are raised on the property. The use of chemicals in the vineyard is likely minimal to none.
Estate wines are also signatures of the best the winery has to offer. An estate's best fruit is used, and the winemaker’s skills shine through without overuse of additives or heavy processing.
Finding estate wines is a habit that is hard to shake once you start, especially if you’re pressed to choose a quality and low-intervention wine quickly.
So, look to the back first. Estate wines are a great step in selecting wines that are not only delicious but also made with quality and care.
Here’s to your wine and good health!
To learn more about wine labeling appellation rules: TTB Wine Labeling
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