New EU wine labeling law and ECJ ruling on "cocktail containing wine"

Wine lovers will soon notice: Wine and sparkling wine have a QR code on their label.

Wine, spirits and agricultural products are part of the European Union’s cultural heritage and belong to its assets. The Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 establishing a common organization of the markets in agricultural products (CMO Regulation) was fundamentally amended in 2021. One change concerns the sectoral wine legislation. Wines and aromatized wine products produced after December 8, 2023 can be labeled in a completely innovative way and, unlike all other foods, with a QR code that provides consumers with the list of ingredients and the nutrition declaration which are now compulsory particulars laid down in Article 119 of the amended CMO Regulation. Old stocks may be sold off.

What is new according to Art. 119 CMO Regulation?

The list of ingredients and the nutrition declaration must be presented in accordance with Article 40 (1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33. If producers do not wish to present this information "classically" on the package or the attached label, they have the option of limiting the nutrition declaration to the energy value if the full nutrition declaration is provided by electronical means, electronic labeling or e-labeling means accessible by the public through a barcode of any kind that provides a link to online information. In this case, the energy value is expressed by using the symbol "E” followed by the value, e. g. “E: per 100 ml 310 kJ/74 kcal. The link to the electronical information must be displayed on the package or on the label. The list of ingredients can also be provided by electronical means (Article 119 (5) CMO Regulation). If a QR code is used as an electronical label, it must be preceded by a heading. This means that the words "ingredients" or "list of ingredients" must precede a QR code for a list of ingredients, "nutrition declaration" for a QR code for nutrition labeling or, in the case of a combination of both, "nutrition declaration / list of ingredients".

The electronic means/platform on which the information is displayed must be completely neutral (white landing page) and must not contain other information intended for sale or marketing purposes. Furthermore, it is forbidden to collect or track any user data.

ECJ ruling from May 8, 2024 (C-261/23) - Hauser Weinimport

The ruling of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) of May 8, 2024, is also interesting. The ECJ ruled that no beer may be added to an "aromatized wine-product cocktail”, not even as flavoring. Only products that are explicitly provided for incorporation such as grapevine products may be added. The starting point of the legal dispute was an alcoholic mixed drink consisting of 55% wine and 10% beer.

The authorities objected to the labeling on the grounds that beer is "alcohol" within the meaning of Article 3(4)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 215/2014, which may not be added to a beverage described as an "aromatized wine-product cocktail”".

The ECJ agreed with this view. The alcohol in an aromatized wine-product cocktail must be obtained from grapevine products which must account for at least 50 % of the total volume of the drink.  

Practical tip

Mixing and mingling different alcoholic components is often tricky in terms of labeling. Caution is also required when alluding to spirits. The new Spirit Drinks Regulation (EU) 2019/787 has comprehensively revised the law on allusions. Allusions on alcoholic beverages other than spirits, such as "Beer flavoured with Rum", are prohibited, while the label "Beer flavored with Genever" is permitted if all the alcohol added to the beer comes from authentic Genever.