Wine & Spirits

Wine Labels
California-Wine Institute Rules and Regulations

75% of the varietal is required to be from a main grape, if less than 75%, it cannot be labeled, for instance, Cabernet Sauvignon http://www.wineinstitute.org/fedlaw/regs/27cfr_part4/4_23.htm

75% of the varietal is required to be from the same appellation to named from this appellation, such as "Stags Leap" or "Howell Mountain." If not the wine may be labeled from the region, such as Napa County, and if less than 75% from this region, then "California," if 75% is from California.

Estate Bottled
1) Is located in the labeled viticultural area; (2) grew all of the grapes used to make the wine on land owned or controlled by the winery within the boundaries of the labeled viticultural area; (3) crushed the grapes, fermented the resulting must, and finished, aged, and bottled the wine in a continuous process (the wine at no time having left the premises of the bottling winery). http://www.wineinstitute.org/fedlaw/regs/27cfr_part4/4_26.htm

Vintage
Year of harvest ( not bottling ) http://www.wineinstitute.org/fedlaw/regs/27cfr_part4/4_27.htm

Producer
To be labeled as producer, 75% of the wine must be produced by the same party. 75% of the wine must be packed by the same packer to be labeled. Although the term 75% "produced and bottled" by the same party may be substituted for either the "bottler" or "packer." Therefore the person who grew the grapes need not be named, or if the bottler had someone else bottle, but he packed the wine, he then can use " produced and bottled".

In addition to the name of the bottler or packer and the place where bottled or packed (but not in lieu thereof) there may be stated the name and address of any other person for whom such wine is bottled or packed, immediately preceded by the words "Bottled for" or "Packed for" or "Distributed by" or other similar statement; or the name and principal place of business of the rectifier, blender, or maker, immediately preceded by the words "Rectified by," "Blended by" or "Made by," respectively, or, in the case of imitation wine only, "Manufactured by." http://www.wineinstitute.org/fedlaw/regs/27cfr_part4/4_35.htm

The wine must not be named after a geographic region ( as is the custom in Europe ) http://www.wineinstitute.org/fedlaw/regs/27cfr_part4/4_24.htm

For more information, please see: http://www.wineinstitute.org/fedlaw/table_of_contents.html

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