Wine labels

摘要

Recently, while strolling along the aisles in a bottle shop, I was surprised to see a bottle labelled as 'AC/DC Rock or Bust'. Sure enough, the 2015 Shiraz was released to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this 'legendary rock n roll' band. Normally, I am not taken by flashy labels, but in this case, I could not resist the purchase and to savour the wine 'with the speakers thumping', as the label recommended. When I first started seriously purchasing wine, label information was minimal. There was only one label showing the name, the producer, the vintage and sometimes the variety or varieties. This is still the case in many parts of the 'Old World' wine industry. The argument seems to be that 'we make the wine and if you do not know what it is, then it is up to you to find out'. There are some labels with so much information, they can be difficult to read. Some imported wines have the text in the language of the country of origin as well as an English translation and a third label may be needed to include the mandatory information before the wine can be offered here for sale.