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As a wine critic, I taste and review a lot of wines without ever seeing the label. What’s in the glass is what counts, and that’s something wine writers have espoused for decades, if not centuries. If a wine tastes good to you, it shouldn’t matter what a critic says…or what the label looks like.
Or does it? Obviously, wineries spend a lot of time, energy and money developing labels for their bottles. The label is the first point of contact for many consumers and gives the producer a unique chance to make an impression.
A label can suggest a conservative, traditional estate, or a modern, forward-thinking one. It can emphasize a grape variety or a region or a producer. It can evoke a mood or a place. Most importantly–to the marketer–it can jump-start or retard sales, although I think its significance in that regard is often overstated.
For example, I often hear complaints that German wine labels are too complicated–too many unpronounceable words printed in overly ornate Gothic script. But I actually appreciate the amount of detail I get from a typical German wine label. Not only can I read the region, but also the village, the vineyard name and the level of ripeness the grapes were picked at (and sometimes an indicator of style, as well). If you can’t, click here. It irks me when I have to search the fine print on the back label to find this stuff on some of the “modern” label designs.
Speaking for myself, I rarely buy a wine from an unfamiliar producer because of the label; I am more likely to be turned off by a label than turned on. I’m not a fan of gimmicky or “witty” labels that seem deliberately designed to be noticed or provoke. You won’t catch me buying a bottle of “Bitch Bubbly,” even though the wine isn’t bad, made in a softly carbonated, sweet style.
And yet, those labels have certainly found a big chunk of the market that appreciates them. Arrogant Frog, the Bitch series from R Wines, Fat Bastard, Marilyn Merlot, 1040FU (modeled after an income-tax return)–they all have their constituencies, and some are hugely successful in terms of volumes sold.
Not that this is anywhere near the same thing, but Hugel et Fils, one of Alsace’s venerable wine firms, has recently changed the label for its Classic Pinot Gris to include a Ralph Steadman illustration, and while I don’t find it offputting, it certainly made me take a second look at the bottle next to the more traditional design. It wouldn’t stop me from buying the wine, but will it entice someone else to buy it?
How about you? Do you have any favorite labels or any that you absolutely hate? Please share them with the rest of us.
Filed under: Industry Issues, Opinions and Commentary
9 Comments
March 15th, 2010 at 6:18:38 PM
As one who owns a small winery and therefore has to sell it to the public in order to stay in business I can only say you should try a year or two on the other side of the ownership counter and you might have a great deal more appreciation for the label design and how impactful it can be. Rare is the customer that has your level of knowledge or appreciation of wine and knowing the brix the grapes were picked at is the last thing on their mind when they are buying a bottle of wine, if they even know what brix is.
When faced with an array of 50-100 bottles of wine on the shelf the average customer selects based on 1. Have they had the wine before. 2. Label Appearance and 3. Price. So for the new customer this comes down to items 2 and 3 and unless you just want to make the cheapest bottle of wine you can than the label is all you have for them to select your bottle and try it.
Is label design and appearance important? You bet it is.
March 15th, 2010 at 6:53:27 PM
I think that the label actually does matter in the consumer’s mind, especially for the novice or occasional consumer. While you and I may focus more on the taste and qualities of a wine, there are many newcomers to wine in my area of North Carolina that have told me that they have purchased the wine simply because the label was “pretty” or “looked expensive”. I will admit that I even notice, and have noted in some of my blogs and articles, the quality of artwork or design on a label. North Carolina has a wine community that is just coming into it’s own, and I can somewhat judge a new winery or vineyard by how much thought, time, attention and dollars that they have thrown into their bottles’ appearance. I definatley think it matters, but I will say that just because a winery has a nice label, it doesn’t mean that the wine is going to be any good.
March 15th, 2010 at 8:36:07 PM
We recently asked this question of our 6,000 twitter followers, many of whom (about 50%)responded that a cute label or one that appealed to them visually clinched the sale. I’m all about the wine – where it’s from – the story in the glass. I am completely put off by wines that try to “wave” at me from the sweet potato aisle at our local grocer or have a name that suggest I should be their new best friend.
Women & Wine http://womenwine.com is all about asking women to be more curious about the wines they drink – to see beyond the label – explore options outside their local grocery aisle by traveling to wine country or forging a relationship with a local retailer that can help them on this journey.
I’m sure that this change over from a traditional label to one that’s cuter is just the beginning of what will surely be a stampede as wineries fight to capture the hearts and minds in the direct to consumer market.
Julie Brosterman
Join the conversation on facebook.com/womenwine
March 16th, 2010 at 1:56:41 PM
Thanks for the interesting read on how effective or defective label design can be. In regards to Don’s comment – I think he raises an interesting point on the type of information wineries should strive to promote on their labels. I certainly would agree that it is rare for the average consumer to want to know brix levels or the toast levels of the barrels used, and that is something I personally wouldn’t strive to provide on any of my core wines. However, I would acknowledge the fact that there is a segment of the market looking for this information and I would strive to provide that to a certain extent on the labels of limited production bottlings or reserve wines, given that I already had a proven label desing in place to begin with.
JK
March 22nd, 2010 at 4:35:35 PM
Trailer Trash wine: Australia
The label is a lady in a red dress driving a white tractor pulling a full trailer also look up the below website
Peter May’s Unusual Wine Labels 15
Unusual Wine Labels – Unusual varieties, weird labels, funny names, legal label nonsense
http://www.winelabels.org/ labels15.htm -
March 24th, 2010 at 5:59:23 PM
As another small winery owner I agree with Don Phelps. We are in the process of redesigning our label and it’s very complicated. We try and get as much information on our back label as possible and still have a nice looking package. For those who want more info. about the wine we’ve put it on our website. Hand selling wine here allows for alot of information to be shared but at the store it’s a different story. In stores the labels are very important.
March 26th, 2010 at 7:29:35 PM
I like to taste a wine at a winery before I buy it. The label is not important to me now. When we lived in Switzerland in the ’70s, when we were 25 or so, I collected labels and made a huge collage of the most colorful designs. It still hangs near our bar as a conversation piece. My husband and I are spending two months in the central coastal area of California for the distinct pleasure of wine tasting, attending the Paso Robles Zin Festival last week-end ( March 19-21) and hiking. Most of our University wine club friends probably feel the same way about labels. You need some basic information on the label such as clone number, year of harvest, description of the wine, name of the winery, size amount, and alcohol content.
April 2nd, 2010 at 6:06:47 PM
For more unusual lables withcartoon women on them check ot marlargowines.com they all look anorexic. However the wesite is cute.
January 30th, 2012 at 9:26:22 PM
The label is almost as important to sales as good wine in the bottle is….