I don’t mean to thread drift, and I know the alcohol discussion has been had many times over but labeled alcohol really doesn’t mean much because only on very rare occasions do the labeled number match what is in the bottle (at least for Napa). In my research (78 data points), there are literally only 3 producers that labeled alcohol matched the wine – (Spottswoode, Togni, Dunn) and in total only 11 were within .4% of labeled alcohol. The Avg labeled alcohol level is 14.5% (labeled) and the average real alcohol level is 15.4% with a low of 13.0% and high of 17.2%. Only 22/78 wines are below 15% alcohol.
I think even more surprising is the fact the wine that was 17.2% is labeled 14.5% and considered a darling by a critic that talks about a preference for “fresher”, terroir-driven wines. The review for the wine refers to the “purity of the fruit and sense of harmony” and states that the producer is making wines in a less extracted style than a few years prior…WOW at 17.2%!
So just want to continue to bring this up as I too was turned off by a labeled alcohol level and this research has been eye-popping to say the least. Now, I don’t care since i know very few are correct, I taste and buy what I like and projects I believe in the story, the site, the people etc.
Cheers all.
Dustin