What Does ABV Mean and Tell You About a Wine?
You'll need your magnifying glass to find this important information!
There are surprisingly few mandatory pieces of information that must appear on any wine sold commercially. A brand name, a designated AVA (American Viticultural Area), the name and address of the producer, the volume of the package (usually 750ml for wine) and the abv – alcohol by volume. This last requirement may be the most confusing, but it can often give you a good indication of what to expect from the wine.
An average beer will have an abv around 5 to 7 percent; most dry and unforrtified wines fall between 12 and 15 percent. The number listed on the bottle may be legally fudged – it's allowed to be within a percentage point (low or high) of the actual number. You'll find a lot of wines list 13.5% abv, which is a pretty good compromise, and it's convenient when printing new labels not to have to change the number for insignificant differences vintage to vintage.
But when I spot a number other than 13.5% I perk up because it's far more likely to be more specific. And the true numbers, when you have them, are a valuable indication of the strength of the wine. The abv in a dry wine is tied to the sugar level at harvest, which in turn is one important indication of ripeness. The riper the grapes, the higher the sugar content, which means when fully fermented the abv will be higher also. Red wines, which are generally harvested at higher sugar levels than white wines, will have more alcohol. An abv over 14.5% is going to be a wine that packs a punch, that may be wonderfully rich and full, but may also have blown out some nuances, and added some burn to the finish.
On the other hand a dry white wine with alcohol at 12% or under may have been under-ripened and could be quite acidic. When tasting through a selection of white wines from Métier and DeLille last week I was struck by the remarkably low abv's on several wines and asked Director of Winemaking Jason Gorski if that was done intentionally as a stylistic choice, or was more a function of a particular vintage.
The Métier 2022 Sauvignon Blanc was listed as 12.2%; the DeLille 2022 Roussanne at 12%; even the DeLille 2022 Chaleur Blanc came in under 13%. As my tasting notes indicate, these wines reflected the lower ripeness in many ways – enhanced aromatics, more tart acidity, savory notes and flavors that favored citrus and orchard fruits. This is also in line with the current trend toward making wines – both white and red – with those attributes, cutting way back on new oak, and experimenting with neutral fermenters such as concrete eggs and stainless steel.
Gorski's thoughtful reply to my question is this. "In general," he explained) "we do prefer lower alcohol levels, which sometimes the vintage does not provide. The 2022's had the benefit of more stable temperatures through August than normal. We usually have a week of elevated temperatures about this time that tend to push sugars in front of flavors, creating a situation where we have a very difficult series of decisions to make. Do we wait for flavors? How detrimental do we think the diminished acids will be? Is the fruit hanging together? Should we add water or de-alc to bring the abv down? (the answer to that is NEVER). In general, we wait for flavor development and carefully watch our acidity levels and the overall health of the fruit."
"In the case of Chaleur Blanc," he added, "we blend multiple sites, so we often hope/trust that the other sites will have potential alcohol more in check. A finished, fully dry wine below 14.0% is ideal for this cuvée in our opinion. To that end, we have added sites to the program that mature at lower potential alcohol, which should allow us to craft this wine with slightly lower alcohol when we see plenty of vintage heat. (Like this year in '23). In addition, the style of Chaleur Blanc is decently suited to moderate alcohol levels, with the brightness of Sauvignon Blanc in the lead, and plenty of new oak and lees contact adding mouthfeel to create a well-balanced wine despite the alcohol. The concern is how well the wine will age, with the extra alcohol."
"We harvested the Chaleur Blanc and Roussanne programs at traditional acidity levels in 2022 - those acidity levels just happened to be at lower sugar/potential abv but with the same full flavor development we traditionally pick for. Crop loads were higher than average in '22, which along with even August temperatures, gave us ample hang time for flavor without the detriment of sugar accumulation and acid respiration."
I hope these insights give you a clearer idea of how to interpret abv numbers on wine labels, and what they may indication about the vintage, the style and the flavors. Here are my notes on the wines (the Métier Sauvignon Blanc was reviewed in my previous post).
DeLille 2022 Roussanne – Once again the fruit is sourced from Ciel du Cheval, but note the drop in finished alcohol – from 14.4% in 2021 to 12% here. That's almost unheard of, especially for a Rhone grape that quite often touches 15%. Whatever challenges and decisions led to this, it's been handled quite gracefully and though quite different from any Washington Roussanne in my experience, it shows a more gentle, elegant side of the grape. Lightly spiced, tart but not sour, balanced and floral, the fruit leans into citrus and green apple, with a touch of gooseberry, not the usual tropical peach and papaya you might expect from Roussanne. It trails out with hints of lemongrass and sea salt. 750 cases; 12%; $38 (Red Mountain) 90/100
DeLille 2022 Chaleur Blanc – DeLille was among the first in Washington to make a serious effort at emulating top tier Bordeaux blanc. This is 69% Sauvignon Blanc and 31% Sémillon, sourced from vineyards scattered across four different AVAs. Fermented sur lie in French oak, the impact of 60% new barrels is felt, but not overbearing, and as with the Roussanne the finished alcohol is surprisingly low. Light floral, herbal and citrus elements combine seamlessly. This lighter, more elegant style suits the times and reflects choices made by the new generation at the helm of this winery. I say bravo and keep showing the world that Washington wines do not have to pound your palate into submission to be delicious and ageworthy. 5300 cases; 12.9%; $42 (Columbia Valley) 92/100
DeLille 2022 Rosé – As previously the blend is principally Mourvèdre and Grenache with about 10% Cinsault. Vineyard sources include Boushey, Ciel du Cheval and StoneTree – quite an all-star lineup. This was released in the late winter and the extra months have softened it a bit – it's now in a prime drinking window. Strawberry, watermelon, a dash of brine and a savory finish make this a subtle and intriguing rosé. A touch of oxidation suggests that you drink it over the next half year – should be a gorgeous Thanksgiving wine. 1000 cases; 14.1%; $36 (Columbia Valley) 91/100
I often find rosés – particularly rosés of Pinot Noir – come in at lower abvs, but given the varietal blend in this wine 14.1% is not surprising and seems just about perfect.
Next up I'll post my reviews of the DeLille red wines.
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“The alcohol content statement is a numerical statement on a wine label that indicates the alcohol content of the wine in terms of percentage of alcohol by volume.
For wines over 14 percent alcohol by volume, a numerical alcohol content statement is mandatory. The alcohol content may appear as either a specific number or a range.
For wines 7 to 14 percent alcohol by volume, a numerical alcohol content statement is optional if the type designation “table wine” or “light wine“ appears on the brand label as the mandatory class/type designation.”
This is copied from the TTB regulations.
Great post as always, Paul, always learn so much. Darrell Corti made waves many years ago by dropping high alcohol wines from offerings at his store here in Sacramento (BTW, many wines >15% ABV are sold there now...). But I'm curious what you think about requiring more info on ingredients on wine labels. Mega Purple is one additive I'd like to know about in wines I buy. Curious about your take on this.