New Wine Labeling Law in Effect in Washington

On December 31, 2009, new wine labeling laws went into effect due to legislation that was passed unanimously by the state legislature. The new Washington law requires that any wine with a label claiming or implying that its contents are from Washington must contain at least 95 percent Washington-grown grapes.

Federal law is similar to the old Washington law, in which the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) allows a wine to use the name of a state on its label, as long as 75 percent of the grapes used in the production of that wine come from that particular state. Federal requirements for AVA indications on the label are even more stringent. In order to use the more specific name of a particular American Viticultural Area (AVA) on a wine label, the TTB requires that 85 percent of the grapes used be from the particular AVA stated on the label. But now the new Washington law is more stringent that federal law, increasing the content requirements to 95% beginning in 2010.

Why would labeling wine with a higher percentage of grapes from a particular state or a particular AVA be desirable? For one, it strengthens the reputation of anything branded as a "Washington" wine, so the consumer knows they will be drinking a wine that has a very high percentage of grapes grown in this state, and if they like what they taste, they know the quality of the beverage is attributable to Washington-grown grapes. Same principle applies to the AVA denotation.

Washington wines certainly have a lot to be proud of and the new law will undoubtedly strengthen the reputations of Washington wines.