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Ever wonder whether the claim that a wine uses “organic grapes” is really true?  Wine is one area where if such claims make their way onto a wine bottle, they are almost certainly valid, as the TTB and the National Organic Program (“NOP”) maintain extremely strict requirements for organic claims on the label.  The NOP has four primary categories for alcoholic beverages: 1) “100% Organic,” 2) “Organic,” meaning at least 95% organic and with no chemically added sulfites, 3) “Made with Organic [ingredients],” requiring at least 70% organic ingredients and may contain chemically added sulfites, and 4) for certain products that contain less than 70% organic ingredients, the ingredients statement may disclose the organic components.

In order to make any organic claims on a wine bottle or other alcohol label, TTB requires several sources of verification, making for a comprehensive but arduous application process.  Along with the items normally required for label approval, applicants must first provide a Processor’s or Handler’s Operation Certificate, which certifies that the winery uses accepted NOP standards.  Notably, imported wines sometimes have difficulty meeting this requirement because foreign certifications are only sufficient if the foreign entity is also a USDA-Accredited Certifying Agent.  Next, applicants must provide an Accredited Certifying Agent Preview, which indicates that the label has been reviewed and found to be in compliance with TTB rules.  Additionally, applicants may need to provide a crop certificate that certifies that the agricultural produce used in the product were grown to NOP standards.

The TTB also has specific rules for the label itself, including requiring a “certification statement,” which includes the name of the accredited certifying agent.  These requirements must be repeated for each vintage year, as labels for new vintages must be resubmitted for approval.

Notably, despite these strict requirements for organic wine labels, other statements on wine bottles that pertain to farming techniques and other “green” claims are largely unregulated by the TTB.  However, this is a fast-evolving area, so stay tuned.

If you need assistance with organic labels, the attorneys at Strike & Techel are familiar with the process and able to help.

Imbiblog is published for general informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice. Copyright © 2010-2011 · All Rights Reserved ·

Welcome to IMBIBLOG, the blog of Strike & Techel. We are attorneys specializing in the laws and regulations governing alcoholic beverages, also known as liquor law or alcohol law.  Liquor law is a specialized area of legal practice.  Compared to other areas of legal specialization, there are relatively few lawyers specializing in alcoholic beverage law. If you are considering starting a business related to alcohol, you will benefit from working with a competent liquor lawyer.

The team at Strike & Techel is experienced and can serve as your TTB lawyer, ABC lawyer, beer lawyer, wine lawyer or distilled spirits lawyer.  We are familiar with TTB law as well as state ABC law in California and across the country.  Preparing and applying for the necessary alcohol beverage licenses is a big part of the alcohol beverage practice and Strike & Techel is highly experienced with ABC license applications and TTB license applications.  

We are based in San Francisco and are particularly familiar with the alcohol laws and regulations of our city. The attorneys at our firm practice alcoholic beverage law exclusively. This blog is our place to tell you about current issues of interest for those in the business of making, promoting, and selling alcoholic beverages.