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Secrets Beyond the Label

Are you affected by the new EU label for wines? How will you balance your offer now that consumers can see more details?

If you are a retailer, wine producer, or importer, there’s some change coming. Imagine that your consumers want to have the least caloric wine. Or the champagne with the most sugar. How can we ensure that the EU-label works in your favor?

The new EU-Label requirements:

In the new wine labels, consumers will be able to find at least the following information:

  • the designation of the category of grapevine product
  • the term ‘protected designation of origin’ (PDO) or ‘protected geographical indication’ (PGI), and its name, for wines registered as geographical indications
  • the actual alcoholic strength by volume
  • the indication of provenance
  • the name of the bottler or the name of the producer or vendor
  • the net content
  • the sugar content in case of sparkling wine categories
  • the nutrition declaration
  • the list of ingredients
  • the substances causing allergies or intolerances
  • the minimum durability date for grapevine products that have undergone a de-alcoholization treatment.

Fact checked Transparency

Meron analyses over 50 wines daily and keeps a database of over 300k analyzed wines.

Harry van den Dungen lists the core principles that allow Meron to control a wine’s quality based on facts, beyond the new legislation’s needs.

  1. Meron Champions Transparency in the Wine Industry with Cutting-Edge Technology:
  • For 30 years, Meron has advocated for transparency within the complex wine industry. Since 1994, leaders in European retail, wine producers and importers, and bottling companies have trusted Meron’s fact-based approach.
  • Going beyond professional tasting and utilizing GC-MS/MS technology to analyze and detect various substances in wine benefiting numerous retailers, importers, bottlers, and producers worldwide by ensuring the quality and authenticity of their products.
  1. Lack of Consumer Awareness:

Consumers remain largely uninformed unless retailers and wine sellers see this as an opportunity to improve their own selection and target the right consumer at the right price point.

New regulations requiring wine producers to disclose caloric and energy values on labels represent a significant step toward consumer transparency.

  1. Transparency Beyond Legal Minimums:

While the law mandates displaying this information on the back label from the 2024 harvest onward, Meron advocates for immediate adoption and transparency beyond legal requirements. An informed retailer makes better options to reflect the taste profile of their consumers. For Meron, more information is still unexplored in the recommendation of wines.

Imagine that you do not need to go to a Michelin Star restaurant and can have a great wine pairing between your shopping list and your cellar. How would your wine offer and consumption change?

Meron is an independent wine institute dedicated to ensuring transparency in the wine industry. We offer a fact-driven approach, a comprehensive database, and B2B services, empowering all stakeholders in the industry.

When you need to improve, test, improve, and discover wines, Meron unlocks all the secrets beyond the bottle.

Willem Schouten

Without temperature control, analysis would be unreliable and inconsistent. This environment allows for precision in identifying faults, understanding structure, and documenting development.

Why Wine Should Be Analysed Throughout Transport and Storage

A bottle might leave a winery in perfect condition, but its journey isn’t always smooth. Transport and storage environments vary wildly. From cargo containers to shop shelves, wines encounter heat, cold, vibration, and light. Each of these variables can influence flavour, aroma, texture, and ageing potential.

We have seen it happen: a wine that passed initial testing at the winery can taste very different after a long-haul shipment or poor storage conditions. That’s why it is smart to analyse wine at different points: before release, after transport, mid-storage, and pre-consumption. These stages reveal how the wine holds up in real-world conditions.

Wine Analysis Journey

Best Timing for Wine Analysis at Meron

The timing depends on your role in the wine’s journey as a producer, distributor or retailer.

  • Pre-release: Understand how the wine is evolving in bottle.
  • After shipping: Check for heat damage or cold stress.
  • During storage: Monitor consistency across different batches.
  • If something tastes off: Confirm whether changes in profile are due to environmental factors.

Our fully certified lab and independent testing can help identify what happened, how it happened, and whether it’s reversible or if it’s time to rethink storage or shipping protocols.

Does Temperature Define Wine Quality?

Temperature is not the only factor affecting a wine’s performance, but it is one of the most unforgiving. It can’t fix a wine’s flaws, but it can highlight or mask them. And once heat damage sets in, there’s no way back.

Handled well, temperature can bring out a wine’s complexity and balance. Mishandled, it flattens, distorts, and disappoints. Whether you’re sipping by the pool or sending a new vintage across the globe, a few degrees can change everything.

Before you raise your next glass, take a moment to check the temperature. It might just be the detail that lets the wine speak for itself.

How do you serve your wine? Here is how Anna Niepoort and other industry leaders see it: 

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