What a label can tell you — labeling rules for Japanese wine

Start with the ingredients The National Tax Agency notification says that Japanese wine shall be labeled “Japanese wine.” Domestic-manufactured wine, by contrast, lists ingredients such as fruit, concentrated juice, and imported wine in descending order of use, together with the place of origin of the ingredients. Being made in Japan does not by itself mean that only Japanese grapes were used.

If concentrated juice is used, wording such as “use of concentrated juice” is shown; if imported wine is used, wording such as “use of imported wine” is shown. The notification places these statements on the “side bearing the principal trademark” of the container or package. Start with the ingredient name and place of origin, not only the product name on the front label.

Conditions for place, variety, and harvest year A place name may be shown for Japanese wine under the notification’s conditions. When at least eighty-five percent of the grapes come from the same harvest area, a name containing that area may be shown. A name containing the place of vinification is also possible under conditions, but a separate statement must make clear that the place is not the grape harvest area. A place name alone does not show that the vineyard and winery are in the same place.

A variety name may be shown only when the displayed varieties account for at least eighty-five percent of the grapes used. The notification provides formats for the most-used variety, the top two in descending order, and three or more varieties with their percentages in descending order. A harvest year may be shown only for Japanese wine using at least eighty-five percent grapes harvested in that year. The condition for displaying a fact and the fact being displayed are separate things to check.

Is “domestic wine” a defined term? The notification defines “domestic-manufactured wine,” “Japanese wine,” and “imported wine.” “Domestic wine” is not a defined term in this notification. Do not use that phrase alone to infer the ingredients. Check the “Japanese wine” statement, ingredients, place of origin, and any statement about concentrated juice or imported wine.

Our reading: The value of the labeling rules is not to decide what is good or bad, but to make differences in ingredients and production distinguishable on the label. Do not assume that a place, variety, or year is reassuring by itself; check the eighty-five-percent condition and the required position of the statement.