Wine bottles and labels have been generating some interesting news items over the last 12 months. This month, Vineyard Magazine rounds up some of the most important stories from at home and abroad.
Irish alcohol labelling laws
Changes to Section 12 of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 in the Republic Ireland due to commence in May 2026 are anticipated to have a significant knock on effect on wine availability in the country.
Ireland will become the first country to require all alcoholic drinks to carry a warning about the health risks of consuming them on the label. Within the detail of this legislation, it has been specified that alcoholic strength and calorific value must also be detailed.
While this will not be an issue for the biggest wine producers, who aim for total consistency at all times, the story may not be the same for smaller producers. Since vintage variation means that the precise alcohol content and calorific value will vary, a bespoke label would be necessary for every wine they sell into Ireland. Bodega Catena Zapata of Mendoza, Argentina have reportedly already announced that in future the Irish market will not be worth the trouble.
While the average alcohol consumption in Ireland has declined by more than a third since 2001, according to the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland figures, wine remains the second most popular drink after beer, commanding a 28.2% share of the market in 2024. Wine imports into the country reached 374 million Euros in 2023.
However, it has been reported that the changes to labelling in Ireland may be somewhat delayed. This is due to concerns around the trade tariff dispute between the United States and the EU, the Tánaiste, Simon Harris, has reportedly said that it was important to put back the introduction of the new rules to protect Irish jobs and industry “at a really key moment of economic turbulence” the Irish Times reported.
A useful guidance on food labelling has been published online by DEFRA
Encirc strikes over pay and collective bargaining
Encirc is a large manufacturer producing glass containers as well as offering filling, warehousing and logistics services via three UK sites; Derrylin in Co Fermanagh, Elton in Cheshire and Bristol. Shortages of bottled, box and bags of wine have been anticipated on supermarket shelves this summer as more than 200 Unite members go on strike over pay and collective bargaining.
While Encirc has an annual turnover of over £600 million, according to Unite they only offered workers a 3.2% pay rise without negotiating with the recognised union first, as well as stating that it will only give pay rises tied to inflation in the future. This has effectively removed Unite’s collective bargaining rights, they claim. This is a long term trend according to the union, who say that they had “been unable to negotiate with management on pay” on previous occasions.
Eleven strike dates were set in June and early July, with workers in different areas of the business taking strike action on different dates to have the biggest impact on production schedules. A 12 week overtime ban was also put in place as part of the action. Encirc requested negotiations through the conciliation service Acas, which were agreed to, but then chose to offer workers a worse deal than that which had already been rejected.
At the time of writing, following the first day of strike action, the Unite Bristol regional officer, John Sweeney, said: “The first action was targeted and wasn’t the entire workforce, but as the dispute continues the action increases. As yet the action caused disruption, but didn’t get the employer back to the negotiating table.
“We would like the business to get back around the table and put forward an improved offer, but that has not happened as yet. The next action is this weekend and continues to ramp up, so hopefully this will force their arm to get around the table.”
“There is no doubt that this action will hit supermarket shelves,” John said. Since Encirc produces more than three billion glass containers each year, commentators expect the impact on the availability of wine in UK supermarkets to be substantial.
Creating a “competitive and future-proof EU wine sector”
In June 2025, the Council of the European Union’s Special Committee on Agriculture approved the Council’s negotiating mandate on measures aimed at making the EU wine sector more competitive and resilient. These measures included curbing excess supply, looking at climate resilience and boosting rural economies through wine tourism.
Measures aimed at providing more clarity on wine labelling have also been put forward. The Council’s announcement outlined how “operators will benefit from a more harmonised approach to wine labelling, which will reduce costs and simplify trade across EU borders while providing consumers with easy access to information; this includes the use of pictograms and electronic labelling.”
One of the key changes within this relate to wines with a reduced alcohol content or without alcohol. The proposal is to use the term ‘alcohol-free’ where the alcoholic strength of a product is lower than 0.5%. ‘0.0%’ would be permitted for use where alcoholic strength does not exceed 0.05%.
Products with a reduced alcohol content are those defined as above 0.5% but at least 30% lower than the minimum strength for the category before de-alcoholisation. The Commission proposed the term ’alcohol-light’ but it has been suggested that this may mislead consumers.
Although de-alcoholised, many wine products still contain more alcohol than most commercial beers and ciders, for example. A Spanish fortified wine that must be at least 15% alcohol according to EU rules would still contain 10.5% ABV after de-alcoholisation. As a suggested alternative to make the alcohol content easier for consumers to understand, the European Council has put forward the term ‘low-alcohol’ for this category.
Following the approval of this mandate, the next step is for the Council presidency to begin negotiations with the European parliament.
A UK Government explanatory memorandum on the proposals reads as follows:
“We recognise that the market for reduced alcohol products including wine is increasing rapidly and there is a range of terminology currently used to describe low and no alcohol products. EU rules applicable in NI already provide for the production and marketing of ‘de-alcoholised’ wine that must have an alcohol content at, or below, 0.5% abv and ‘partially de-alcoholised’ wine with an alcohol content of over 0.5% and below 8.5% abv.
“The UK has not yet regulated in this field, so the minimum level of alcohol for wine products remains at 8.5% abv or 4.5% abv for wine that has a registered geographical indication.
“The Department of Health and Social Care are responsible for guidance on terms used to describe ‘low alcohol’ products – i.e. that have 1.2% abv (alcohol by volume) or less. This guidance has been subject to consultation, the outcome of this is still awaited. We have considered the proposals against the backdrop of the current GB guidance and do not feel that it will impact significantly on the NI market for these products, or that in GB which is currently limited to classifying products with low/no alcohol ‘wine-based products’ or similar.”
Aldi remove sleeves from own label wine
Discount supermarket Aldi is removing the protective sleeves around the necks of its own label wines by the end of 2025. After successful in-store trials in March, the decision has been taken to make the move permanent and roll it out nationwide. It is estimated that this action will remove 38 tonnes of unnecessary packaging each year with the removal of sleeves made from aluminium or plastic, depending on the product.
Luke Emery, National Sustainability Director at Aldi UK, said: “We know that sustainability is a priority for our customers, and we’re always looking for new ways to reduce packaging and offer more sustainable choices.
“Launching wines with naked corks is a step in the right direction, and we’re proud to be the first supermarket to introduce this change across our entire range of own-brand quality corked wines.”
Wine capsules no longer form a functional purpose. With the uplift in cork quality and sustainability, along with the relative scarcity of UK consumers who cellar their wine, capsules on wine bottles arguably now offer little beyond aesthetic familiarity. The vast majority of wine purchases are consumed within two weeks in this country, so there is little danger of external factors damaging the cork. However, we know that the sleeve is well embedded in the public consciousness – screw cap bottles are designed to emulate them.
Another supermarket, Waitrose, undertook a similar sustainability trial in the spring of 2023 and have continued to market their Loved & Found wine range without capsules ever since.
It seems like this is an easy way for wineries to save money as well as boost their environmental credentials. Admittedly, it takes away one element of the theatre of opening the bottle; slicing the protective sleeve with a wine key and removing it. Is that a reasonable excuse to keep using more packaging than is necessary?
Some US winemakers that have already ditched the capsule have replaced it with a wax seal over the top of the bottle. This offers some protection against dust, dirt and pests for wines that may be cellared as well as providing a branding opportunity – they can literally add the producer’s seal of approval to their products.
Making labels more accessible
The big shift in making wine labels more accessible to the consumer is generally accepted to have been the New World’s break with tradition to name varietals on the bottle, rather than just provenance alone. Since then, there has been limited innovation in the realm of the paper label, beyond making their materials more sustainable.
Bodega Cuatro Rayas have sought to shake things up by making their wines more accessible to people with visual impairments. Their organic Verdejo now comes with braille lettering on the label. It gives details about the winery, grape variety and vintage, reportedly because the cooperative “represents the livelihood of 383 families in rural areas and is actively engaged in the effective promotion of equality between women and men in that environment.”
They are not the first to make a foray into braille. Michel Chapoutier in the Rhône region introduced braille to all his wines in 1993 after being inspired by an interview with his friend, the musician Gilbert Montagnin. Gilbert is blind and talked about how he had never been comfortable to go into a wine shop alone because he didn’t know what he was picking off the shelves.
But is braille really making a big difference? The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) estimates that around 7% of people who are registered blind and partially sighted in the UK use braille. The numbers are lower in other parts of the world.
While it is a useful innovation for those who read braille, it is perhaps important to stress the importance of legibility on wine labels to make them accessible to the widest possible audience. Getting the basics right is key:
- Using straightforward language and short sentences to get key information across quickly and simply
- Using appropriate font sizes and clean typography that is
- easy to read
- Making use of high contrast colours and clear visuals to make the information easier for people with a range of disabilities to access.
The RNIB has issued useful guidance on understanding colour and contrast for people with sight loss which is useful when designing all print material, not just wine labels. The recommendations are also suitable for web design.
The senior designer for disability charity Scope has written a useful summary of the core principles for accessible print design that are helpful when considering consumers with cognitive difficulties or who are neurodiverse. These guidelines include advice on how to pick accessible fonts, check your colour contrasts and make sure that your formatting is done in an accessible way, as well as offering further reading for those who are keen to know more.
Summary of the core principles for accessible print design
The RNIB Guidelines
Jeremy Keith / Wikimedia Commons
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