Article 1: Scope of application

This standard is applied exclusively to the labelling of spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin intended for direct human consumption and prepacked for sale to the end consumer, as defined in part I, chapter 7 of the OIV International Code of Oenological Practices.

Article 2: Labelling

1. Labelling shall include all the particulars, indications, trademarks, pictorial matter or symbols related to a spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin displayed on any pack, label, ring or neck label that accompanies or refers to the aforementioned spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin.

2. The labelling and methods used shall avoid any confusion and not mislead the consumer about the origin and/or nature of the spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin.

3. A label shall mean any document, trademark, image or other descriptive material that is written, printed, patterned, adhered, engraved or affixed to the packaging (container) of a spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin or attached to the latter.

4. The field of vision shall be any surface of the packaging (container), except for the base, which may be seen without having to turn the packaging (container).

Article 3: Language and legibility

1. The language used should be easily understood by the consumer.

2. If the language(s) used is/are not understood by the end consumer, the label should be replaced or another attached containing the appropriate indications in the appropriate language.

3. In the cases outlined in point 2, the particulars shall faithfully reflect those of the original label.

4. The obligatory indications shall be written in characters the size and colour of which shall be clear, indelible, and easily legible to the consumer, in normal conditions of purchase and use.

5. Member States shall provide for a minimum type size greater than or equal to 1.2mm.

Article 4: Prepacked product

1. A spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin is prepacked when it is placed in a package, whatever its nature, without the consumer being present so that the quantity and nature of the product in the container cannot be modified without the container being opened or noticeably modified.

2. Nominal volume (net amount) means the amount of the product that should be inside the container at a temperature of 20°C.

3. A prepacked batch shall be a set of pre-packed sale units of a spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin produced, manufactured, or pre-packaged under practically identical circumstances.

Article 5: Country of provenance, geographical indications, appelation of origin

For the purposes of this standard:

1. The country of provenance is the country in which the spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin acquired its main characteristics, quality and nature.

2. Geographical indication is any denomination protected by the competent authorities of the country of origin, which identifies a wine or spirit beverage as originating in a specific geographical area, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the wine or spirit beverage is essentially attributable to its geographical origin.

As far as spirit beverage of a vitivinicultural origin are concerned, the protection of the geographical indication:

• Is subordinate to the fact that the decisive phase of production being carried out in the country, region, place or defined area.

3. Appellation of origin is any denomination recognised and protected by the competent authorities in the Country of origin, consisting of or containing the name of a geographical area, or another denomination known as referring to such area, which serves to designate a wine or spirit beverage as originating in that geographical area, where the quality or characteristics of the wine or spirit beverage are due exclusively or essentially to the geographical environment including natural and human factors, and which has given the wine or spirit beverage its reputation. The protection of the appellation of origin is subordinate to the harvest as well as its transformation into wine in the region or defined area.

Article 6:  Ingredients

1. Ingredients shall mean any substance, including food additives, used for manufacturing and preparing a spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin, which is still present in the end-product or possibly in modified form.

2. Ingredients shall not mean:

a)      The components of an ingredient that have been temporarily removed during the manufacturing process and later reincorporated in a quantity that does not exceed the initial content.

b)      Additives whose presence in a spirituous beverage is only due to the fact that they were present in one or several ingredients of the said product, provided that they no longer fulfil a technological function in the finished product.

c)      Technological aids.

Article 7: Obligatory indications

1. The following indications are obligatory on the labelling of spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin:

a)      Sales denomination of the product.

b)      Alcoholic strength expressed as a % of the ethyl alcohol volume at 20°C.

c)      Nominal volume.

d)      Batch.

e)      Identification of the person responsible, whether the manufacturer, the packager or seller, and in all cases, the address.

f)      All information as required by law in the country where the beverage is being sold, especially indications regarding allergens.

2. The sales denomination of the spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin, alcoholic strength, and nominal volume shall be displayed in the same field of vision.

Article 8: Optional indications

Provided there are no specific provisions in this Standard and that it complies with national regulations, optional information may be indicated on the labelling (particulars, texts) such as:

a)      Trademark.

b)      Vintage, specifying the year of harvest or year of distillation depending on the case.

c)      The list and/or amount of specified ingredients or category of ingredients, for ingredients mentioned on the label.

d)      A text referring to the history of the product or the business.

e)      Distillation, ageing, and production techniques.

f)      Particulars of ageing, including the duration of this ageing.

g)      The country of origin or provenance.

Other optional indications in accordance with national regulations on food labelling shall also be provided.

Article 9: Conditions of use of particulars in labelling

Labelling indications must not be likely to cause confusion as to the product’s origin or the existence and/or capacity of the people or companies appearing in the presentation.

1. Sales denomination

Sales denomination shall refer to one of the denominations indicated for spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin intended for direct human consumption included in part I, chapter 7 of the OIV International Code of Oenological Practices.  This may be complemented or substituted by the name of a geographical indication or denomination of origin if the spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin in question has the right to make use of it. This could be the same for the generic denomination “spirituous beverage” possibly complemented by the nature of the raw material used.

Generic denominations of spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin intended for direct human consumption listed in part I, chapter 7 of the OIV International Code of Oenological Practices shall not be used in any way, or any reference be made to them in the labelling or presentation, if:

a)      Neutral alcohol of agricultural or vitivinicultural origin, has been added.

b)      Distillates of vitivinicultural origin that do not correspond to the definition of spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin according to the International Code of Oenological Practices have been added.

c)      The minimum alcoholic strength required for the spirituous beverage of vitivinicultural origin in question has been reduced.

d)      Production practices authorised by the OIV have not been implemented.

For mixtures of two or more spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin, where the final product does not relate to any of the definitions in part I, chapter 7 of the OIV International Code of Oenological Practices, the sales denomination shall be "Spirituous beverage". In the event that a spirituous beverage mix contains in its presentation one of the spirituous beverages defined by the OIV, the label shall obligatorily list the percentages, in descending order, expressed as pure alcohol, for each of the spirituous beverages used.

2. Name of manufacturer, packager or seller

The labelling shall display the name, registered name or denomination of at least one of the operators involved in the manufacturing or commercialisation process:

• the manufacturer, or producer
• the packager, or
• a seller or importer
• and, in all cases, the address.

The name of the person responsible may be:

• the family name of the natural person,
• or the registered name of the company,
• or the commercial name of the company that takes responsibility for the product prepacked by themselves or on their behalf.

To avoid confusion about the origin of the product, the Member States shall decide on the necessary measures.

3. Packaging ranges and nominal value

The nominal volume shall be written in figures and completed with the symbol or indication of all the letters of one of the following volume units:

• litre (l) or (L)
• centilitre (cl) or (cL)
• millilitre (ml) or (mL)

The volume therefore indicated can be followed by a particular referring to another system of measurement (for example, the imperial system), provided that this does not result in any confusion about the quantity presented to the consumer.

Spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin, when targeting the final consumer, may be introduced in packages of any nominal value in accordance with the rules in force in the consumer country.

The methods for actual volume control will be those defined in the specific ISO and OIML standards.

4. Country of provenance or origin

In international exchanges, the official or usual name of the country of provenance or origin should be mentioned.

The indication shall be presented through expressions such as "product of…" or "produced in…" complemented by the name of the country of origin.

5. Acquired alcoholic strength

It must be displayed with the "%" symbol and with the words "volume", "vol.", or "vol" and may be followed by the words "alcohol", "alc.", or "alc".

The indication of acquired alcoholic strength expressed as a percentage of the product’s volume is obligatory on the labelling with a tolerance of ± 0.3% vol. according to the legislation of the producer country and/or consumer country.

6. Batch

The labelling of spirituous beverages should have an indication (sign, letter, number, etc.) enabling the identification of the batch to which the product belongs, which is to be displayed so that it is easily visible, clearly legible and indelible.

The indication of the batch shall be determined and placed under the responsibility of one or more of the operators named in section 2, with special recommendations for handling the goods received by the packager.

It shall be preceded by the letter "L", except in cases where it is clearly distinguished from the other indications on the labelling.

7. Year of harvest

The year of harvest may be indicated on the labelling of spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin and shall be considered to be the year when the grape harvest took place if all grapes are from the same harvest, which shall be indicated in the following manner: “Harvest … [Year]”.

The manufacturer, packager or, where appropriate, seller responsible shall provide evidence of the certainty of these indications for the authorities of the country of production or commercialisation.

8. Distillation and production techniques

The labelling of spirituous beverages of vitivinicultural origin may display particulars related to special distillation or production techniques that may be of special interest to the consumer.

The person responsible shall provide evidence of the certainty of these indications to the authorities of the country of production or commercialisation.

9. Recognised ageing particulars or ageing duration

Provided that a regulation defines the ageing conditions and their monitoring, an ageing particular or an ageing duration can only be used if the ageing period is longer than the minimum ageing period required for the standard product (which only bears the generic term as a sales denomination) and provided that it is controlled by an official body of the Member State. 

In any case, in the event of a blend, ageing can only refer to the age of the youngest component.

However, in cases where an aging system is followed (as long as it is controlled by an official body belonging to a Member State), involving the carrying out of periodic samples and replenishments of fractions of the contents of the containers, in a manner that leads to assemblages and in order to continue the aging process, the aging period will be considered as the average time, and the aging system can be mentioned in the labelling.