How to Read a Wine Label

Reading a wine label can be as easy as reading the alphabet or as difficult as trying to decode a foreign language, it all depends on whose label it is and where it is from. New World labels tend to vere towards the straight-forward, "here's what it is" approach, with the varietal or blend clearly labeled, the producer, where the grapes were grown and the alcohol content right there in plain view. Old World wines have a reputation for "masking" key info., but this is not the case at all. If you know what to be looking for, you can easily decipher the pertinent label information with very little effort. Instead of the varietal being the primary piece of information on the Old World label, it is the location - where the wine is from. Old World wines are heavily invested in their individual terroir, not necessarily the specific grape, though if you know the region, then you will also have a pretty good handle on the possible grapes that made their way into the bottle.