ABV on CT somewhere?

WINE TALK
#1

It is frustrating to try to figure out ABV… I usually do not want some 16+% behemoth. This is particularly a problem on winebid for old, obscure bottles with not much online info. Is this entered somewhere on CT or in some other database?

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#2

I always include the ABV and price in my CT notes when I known them and I wish more people did.

It’s a bit tricky because the same wine sold in different markets can have a different ABV given on the label.

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#3

Are old obscure bottles 16++?

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#4

I saw a WA bottle the other day, maybe 10 years old, that was 16.2%. But I do wonder about bottles from the 80/90s if possible. Staying at max 13 would be my preference generally speaking.

#5

I also try to put the ABV in my CT notes. Also, I google a lot of the older/obscure bottles I bid on, quite often you can pick up a stray review or two and pick up nuggets on ABV, blends, cooperage, etc.

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#6

The bottle I opened last night said 13% on the producer’s label, and 14.5% on the importer’s label. It sure didn’t taste like 14.5%, but what’s correct?

#7

Almost certainly the producer. Legally speaking for tax purposes both numbers are the same. The importer is probably just lazy and lists everything under 14.5 as 14.5.

Given that the ABV number on the label is inherently unreliable up to 14.5 I don’t think it’s all that useful to focus on distinctions below that amount. Notes of course can be helpful if you know the reviewer. If someone I trust gives a favorable note and doesn’t call out the ABV I would assume all is well.

#8

I actually suspect the importer label is correct based on the different harmonized tariff system classification for wines under or over 14%. There’s a regulatory implication for the different numbers as far as importing into the US even with the end of the infamous Airbus dispute tariffs.

#9

I’m not sure why people are so obsessed with the ABV on the label. It’s unreliable at best. More important to me is how a tasting note reads. We had a bottle last night listed at 12.5% and everyone could feel the heat. No way it was less than 14+.

#10

Sucks for you in the US to have it that way re: stating alcohol on the label. In the EU the difference between the actual value and the stated can be no more than 0.5% which comes especially handy with wines like Beaujolais where I really don’t want to buy any wine with a high ABV no matter who the producer is.

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#11

Lets see how reliable the it will be but WS announced that:

“ This year also saw a new project take off. Between April and December, we added 882,423 attribute data points – additional information about the wines and spirits like organic/biodynamic status, alcohol strength, residual sugar, sweetness levels, viticulture and winemaking notes for thousands of wines.”

https://www.wine-searcher.com/m/2023/01/wine-searchers-go-big-online

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#12

Not on Cellartracker.

I remember a discussion on the CT forum years ago about adding ABV to CT. I don’t remember Eric’s exact position but it’s obviously not a data field in CT.

My thoughts were it’s just another field to be incorrect and of low value. There’s enough challenges with correct AVA and duplicates

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