In May 28,2013 the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Treade Bureau (TTB) issued a ruling that allows the voluntary nutrition facts labeling of wine:

http://www.ttb.gov/rulings/2013-2.pdf

If you are a wine producer, there probably isn't a strong motivation to do voluntary labeling.  However if more voluntary wine labels spread throughout the market place, this might be something you would be interested in.  We reached out to the FDA for a couple clarifications of the ruling and we share the answers below.

Question 1: For the nutrient information, do wineries need to send their wine to a lab to be examined, or can a nutrient database (e.g. USDA SR-26) be sufficient?  

It’s best to send your wine to a lab for nutritional analysis.  The USDA database gives nutritional values for an average product.  Not all cabernets have the same alcohol content, and the caloric content will vary accordingly.  The caloric content of the wine will need to be within +5 and -10 calories of the label claim to be considered compliant.  

Question 2: Does the TTB have a preference of a lab to send the wine to?

TTB doesn’t recommend any particular lab.  A lab accredited to the ISO17025 international quality standard is preferred.

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If you have any compliance questions you can reach out to labatory@ttb.gov or check the latest information at http://ttb.gov/

 


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