02/04/08 New Wine Labeling Laws

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran. Have you heard about the U.S. government's proposed changes to wine labels? Well let's talk about it on today's program. The U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, that is the bureaucratic entity which governs the laws surrounding alcohol, is seriously considering changes to the wine labeling laws. Among them are whether nutritional information such as calorie, carbohydrate, protein and fat content should be mandatory for all wines. Also any ingredients used in the wine's production including processing agents. This would include any additives that might be potential allergens. Wineries already have a legal option to calories and carbohydrates and the amount of resveratrol  the polyphenols present in some wines which are believed to have health benefits. Apparently the issue of labeling wine in much the same way that other foods are currently labeled was brought up primarily by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. As you can well imagine there are many arguments both for and against such changes in the label laws. The TTB took community feed back this past summer. The feedback option was closed at the end of September and the input was to be reviewed. Who knows what will happen next  but just in case you were wondering - a five ounce glass of wine ranges from about ninety to one hundred and ten calories. Remember to send your wine questions to Linda at Vine to Wine dot net and thanks for joining me on today's Vine to Wine.