Nutrition Labels for Wine

Nutrition info may be mandated for wine, beer, and spirit labels in the U.S. :

Pushed by consumer groups, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau for the first time would mandate disclosure of how many carbohydrates and calories and how much protein and fat alcoholic drinks contain, as food labels do. How and where to disclose alcohol content is generating heat. [From The Washington Post: Alcohol Labeling Proposal Sets Off a Brawl by Cindy Skrzycki.]

One of the objections raised by winemakers is that the requirements would cut down on their artistic options because of the label real estate needed for the nutrition data. This seems specious, as even makers of 12 ounce soft drinks and tiny candy bars manage to fit the nutrition information on their packaging.

More significant are disagreements about alcohol content labeling. The makers of beer, wine, and spirits tend to have differing views. Traditionally, food nutrition labels include a serving size. While a beer can be standardized as a 12 ounce can, there amount of alcohol in a mixed drink can vary widely, as can the size of the drink itself.

From a wine standpoint, we’ll be happy to see at least basic carb information on bottles. Alcohol content in percent as is currently mandated seems fine for our purposes of comparing wines, though perhaps some wine drinkers would like having the alcohol level expressed in a way easily compared to other beverages.

Supposedly, these regulations have been awaited for thirty years – we can only hope it doesn’t take as long for the data to show up on wine labels.