What To Look For On Wine Labels
If you buy wine, knowing how to read a wine label is a useful skill to have. By knowing what to look for and what to ignore you’ll be able to sort through the multitude of choices and the find ones that best match your personal choices. So, lets look at each aspect of a wine label individually.
Firstly, the vintage; most bottles of wines stocked in stores are meant to be drunk immediately so look for ones that were produced in recent years. This particularly applies if youre looking for a fresh, lively, fruity wine at a reasonable price. Of course, there are some vintages of certain wines that are well known, but these tend to be pricey; research these wines online or in specialty magazines to learn about them before you buy.
Secondly, the geography; there are lots of famous regions and vineyards around the world (too many to list here) so this can be a bit of a lottery and unless you do prior research. However, as a general rule, the more specific a wine label is about its source (i.e. by stating a particular vineyard or town rather than a region or a country), the better it’s likely to be. This is because many bad wineries will try to benefit from the name of the large region where they are located, even if their vineyards are in undesirable parts of the area.
Thirdly, the alcohol content; it’s recommended that you look for one at around 14% or less. Although you might think that buying a high alcohol wine represents better value for money, this isn’t true if you want to enjoy the product as a higher alcohol contents usually mean that the wine is unbalanced.
Finally, you should look for small details that indicate high quality: the date the grapes were picked, whether the wine was made at the vineyard (estate bottled), and vineyard contact information. Details such as these add to a wines authenticity and indicate that the wine producer cares about and has faith in their product.
