How to Read the Label

“The Grape Compromise”

Any wine is required to have a statement of origin, but now, after the passing of Bill HB 1597, the statements of origin in Texas may have more meaning. In 2021 legislation was passed that affects wines made from grapes harvested on or after January 1, 2022. While federal law states that a wine labelled with a U.S. state must be made from 75% grapes from within that state, ‘The Grape Compromise’ asks for further specificity for wines labelled with a Texas county, American Viticultural Area (AVA), or single vineyard site. Now, any wines labelled with any of those three must be made from 100% Texas fruit, giving a person purchasing a Texas wine assurance about where the fruit in the bottle came from.

· Wines labelled with a Texas county must contain 75% of grapes grown in that county, and the remaining may come from anywhere in Texas.

· Wines labelled with a Texas AVA must contain 85% of grapes grown in that define AVA, and the remaining may come from anywhere else in Texas.

· A single vineyard site on a label must contain 95% of grapes from that vineyard, and the remaining must be from Texas.

· In difficult years or other reasons, a producer may opt out of any of these by simply labelling their wines with the appellation “Texas.” By federal law 75% of the grapes will be from Texas and the rest may be from another state.

*It is worth recognizing that for each of the above, many producers in Texas will choose to exceed these minimums. For instance, many producers will label with an AVA and source all of their grapes from within that state AVA in an effort to educate consumers on the taste of a specific place.

1. Brand Name

The brand name on a standard wine label is the name of the winery or winemaker that produced the wine. It is usually the most prominent information on the label, and it is often used to identify and market the wine. The brand name can be anything that the winery or winemaker chooses, but it must be unique and distinctive.

2. Statement of Grape Variety

A grape variety has a set of characteristics associated with it, and can therefore tell you the color, flavor, or style of a wine when stated on a label. A U.S. wine label is not required to list a grape variety, but if one is listed it is required by federal law that the wine be made from at least 75% of the stated variety. For example, a Texas wine labelled with the single grape variety “Sangiovese” will contain at least 75% of the red grape Sangiovese but may also contain up to 25% of other varieties of grapes that are not required to be stated.

3. Vintage / Age Statement

A year that is stated on a wine label indicates the year that the grapes were harvested. This is referred to as the ‘vintage’ of the wine. This information can tell you how young or old the wine is, along with how the wine may taste based on the climate and weather patterns of that particular growing season. A wine label may have no age statement, or it may say “NV”, which stands for non-vintage. The grapes in a non-vintage wine are harvested from several years, and therefore are not permitted to state a single year on the label.

4. Statement of Origin

Some statement of origin is usually included on a wine label to give us a context to where the wine was grown, made, or sold, and therefore how it may taste. The origin of the wine may be labelled by an “appellation”, which can be very large to very small. Examples of appellations would be a country, a state, a county, or even a single vineyard site. In the U.S. statements of origin on a label have legal meaning tied to them so that wines labelled with a stated origin must be made at least in part by grapes that are grown in that area. This can help a person understand how a wine will taste when made from grapes that are grown in there. Texas has its own unique set of laws regarding statements of origin as described in the section on “the Grape Compromise.”

5. Alcohol Percentage

The alcohol percentage on a bottle of wine, also known as alcohol by volume (ABV), is the percentage of alcohol in the wine. It is measured by the volume of pure alcohol in a given volume of wine at a temperature of 15 degrees Celsius. The ABV of wine can vary depending on a number of factors, including the type of grape, the climate where the grapes are grown, and the winemaking process. However, most wines have an ABV between 11% and 14%. The ABV of a wine affects a number of its characteristics, including its flavor, body, and mouthfeel. Wines with a higher ABV tend to be fuller-bodied and have a more pronounced alcohol flavor. Wines with a lower ABV tend to be lighter-bodied and have a more delicate flavor.

6. Volume

The standard wine bottle contains 750 ml of wine. This is equivalent to 25 fluid ounces.

7. Estate /
Estate Bottled

In the United States, the term “estate” on a wine label has a specific meaning that is regulated by the TTB. An estate-bottled wine is one that meets the following criteria:

• 100% of the grapes used to make the wine must be grown on land owned or controlled by the winery (with a long term lease 3 years or greater).
  
• The winery and the vineyard must be located within the boundaries of the same American Viticultural Area (AVA).
  
• The grapes must be crushed, fermented, aged, and bottled in a continuous process on the winery’s premises.

This ensures that the winemaker has complete control over the winemaking process and that the wine is truly representative of the terroir of the vineyard.

The term “estate” can also be used in a more general sense to refer to a winery that owns and farms its own vineyard, but it does not have the same legal meaning as “estate bottled.”

The TTB regulations do allow a winery to label a wine as “estate bottled” even if the grapes are grown on land that is not contiguous with the winery, as long as the winery owns (or long term leases and controls) both properties.

In short, an estate-bottled wine is a wine that is made from grapes that are grown, harvested, processed, and bottled on the same property. This gives the wine a unique sense of place and character that is not found in wines made from grapes that are sourced from multiple vineyards.

8. Reserve

The term ‘Reserve’ or ‘Riserva’ on a label does have legal meaning in countries like Italy and Spain, but in Texas this term is a looser indication of something special that the winemaker may want you to know. This could be that the wine was matured in special barrels, for a longer time, or even just that the grapes used in the wine were their best of the season.

9. Fanciful Name

A fanciful name can be almost anything but is intended to represent an idea that the producer chooses. This name may be used in place of the grape variety, style or source of the wine. This is most often used for blends when a wine contains a mix of multiple grape varieties.

Winemaking Details

No indication of the winemaking process is required to be printed on a wine label, but sometimes producers will choose to use space on the front or back label to let the reader know how the wine was made. This could be stylistic details like “semi-sweet sparkling rosé,” a short description of a choice that affects the flavor of the wine “aged in oak barrels,” or a full description of winemaking choices that the producer feels is pertinent.

Traditional Method/
Methode Traditionnelle

A wine labelled with this term is made in a highly regulated method where the wine is sold in the same bottle that it was fermented in. Because of this winemaking method, the wine will be fully sparkling and have notes of toast or dough. The most known wines made in this method are called ‘Champagne’, which is from France, and ‘Cava’ from Spain.

Pétillant Naturel or “Pet Nat“

This is an ancient method of winemaking also called Methode Ancestral where the wine is fermented in bottle and often sealed with a crown cap that captures some bubble. These wines can be semi to fully sparkling, and will be undisgorged, meaning that the yeast that ferments the wine is left in the bottle. The resulting wine will be hazy, lively, and wild.

Portejas

A combination of the words ‘Port’ and ‘Tejas’, this term became recognized recently as a term defining a sweet, fortified style of wine reminiscent of Portuguese wines labelled ‘Port.’ These wines are high in alcohol, in sugar, and are distinctly Texan.