Wine Label Maker for a Front and Back Label Pair

A wine sold in the United States carries its mandatory information on the labels of the bottle, and the TTB splits that information between the brand label, the label that carries the brand name and usually the front, and the other labels on the container. The brand name and the class and type go on the brand label, and the name and address, the net contents, the alcohol content, the sulfites and the government warning may sit on any label affixed to the container. This wine label maker turns that split into a front and a back you can design as one pair.

The front label is the label a buyer sees on the shelf. The back label carries the sentence that explains the wine and the small print that a shop, a distributor or a label reviewer reads. The wine label maker gives each side its own size, its own starter and its own type sizes, so the front can be the larger, taller label and the back can be a smaller companion that still holds the warning.

The rules quoted on this page are from 27 CFR part 4 and part 16, read on the eCFR, and from the TTB wine labeling pages. The tool shows what each check reads and the paragraph behind it. The TTB handles the COLA application; the wine label maker gives you the label files.

27 CFR 4.32(a) puts the brand name and the class, type or other designation on the brand label. The brand name is the mark a buyer knows, and the class and type say what the wine is: Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Red Wine, Rosé Wine. The TTB brand name page adds that a class or type standing alone cannot be the brand. The TTB label anatomy page adds that a color alone is not a class and type, so Rosé becomes Rosé Wine.

Two or more grape varieties in the class and type need the percentage of each, another point from the TTB label anatomy page. The wine label maker reads the class and type field for a grape variety from the TTB approved list, for a color alone and for two or more varieties, and the starter’s words pass these checks on the front label.

An appellation of origin becomes mandatory when a varietal designation, a type of varietal significance, a semi-generic name or a year of harvest appears on the label. 27 CFR 4.34(b) lists the cases, and the appellation must sit in direct conjunction with and in lettering substantially as conspicuous as the class and type. The wine label maker reads the class and type field for a TTB grape variety and the vintage field for a year, and it turns on the appellation requirement when either one is there.

The appellation field takes a country, a state, a county or a viticultural area; 4.34(b) gives American, New York, Napa Valley and Chilean as examples. The check reads that the appellation is present, on the front label and in direct conjunction with the class and type.

4.34(b) asks for the appellation in direct conjunction with the class and type, in lettering substantially as conspicuous; the starter gives the appellation the class’s font, weight and color, directly under it, at three quarters of the class’s size or more. The row reads the appellation’s presence, the front label and the 2 mm distance; the starter’s matching lettering keeps it as conspicuous as the class.

The vintage is optional. A year of harvest is a statement about the grapes, and when a label shows one, 4.34(b)(5) makes the appellation necessary as well. A wine label template for a gift can leave the vintage blank; a wine label for sale gets a check that points out the missing appellation when the year is there.

27 CFR 4.36(a) requires the alcohol content above 14 percent by volume. At 14 percent or less the statement may be left out when the class and type says table wine or light wine on the brand label. The wine label maker reads the number in the alcohol field, or the top of a range, and turns on the requirement when the wine is over 14 percent or the class and type does not claim the table wine or light wine statement.

When the statement is there, 4.36(b)(1) fixes its words: Alcohol 13.5% by volume, or a similar phrase. Alcohol and volume may be abbreviated only as alc. and vol.; the TTB alcohol content page excludes ABV. The wine label maker reads the forms Alc. 13.5% by Vol., Alcohol 13.5% by volume and 13.5% Alc. by Vol., and flags ABV, a slash such as alc/vol, another abbreviation and a missing percent or by volume phrase.

The statement is also the one mandatory line with a largest as well as a smallest size. 27 CFR 4.38(b)(3) puts it between 1 and 3 mm on a container of 5 L or less and forbids setting it off with a border or otherwise accentuating it. The check measures every letter the scene drew: the shortest must be at least 1 mm and the tallest at most 3 mm. A range is allowed too, with 4.36(b)(2) limiting it to 2 percentage points above 14 percent and 3 points at 14 percent or less.

The other mandatory words have their own minimum. 4.38(b)(1) asks for at least 2 mm on a container of more than 187 mL, and 4.38(b)(2) for at least 1 mm at 187 mL or less. The TTB guidance measures each numeral and letter, both uppercase and lowercase, so the wine label maker reads the shortest letter the scene drew for the brand, the class and type, the appellation, the net contents, the bottler and the sulfites, and it names the word whose letter is below the minimum.

27 CFR 4.37(a) sends the net contents to the standards of fill in 4.72, a table of 25 sizes from 50 mL to 3 L. 750 mL, the usual wine bottle, is one of them, and so are 375 mL, 1.5 L and 3 L. The wine label maker matches the volume against the table and flags a size that is not a standard of fill; it also flags the wrong metric form, such as 1000 mL for 1 L or 75 cl for 750 mL.

The US equivalent is optional. When a label shows one, 4.37(b) fixes its rounding: fluid ounces only, to the nearest tenth below 100 fluid ounces, as in 750 mL (25.4 fl. oz.), and to the nearest whole ounce from 100, as in 3 L (101 fl. oz.). The wine label maker reads a stated equivalent and compares it with the table, so a wrong number in parentheses is caught before the file goes out.

From 4 to 17 liters the TTB net contents page asks for even liters, that is whole liters: 4 liters, 5 liters, 6 liters and so on. The wine label maker checks that form too. A 375 mL dessert wine, a 500 mL can and a 3 L box all read as standard when the field writes them as the table does.

27 CFR 4.35(a)(1) requires bottled by or packed by, followed by the bottler’s or packer’s name and the address of 4.35(c). The TTB name and address page adds that the city and state are required, that the street address and ZIP code may be left out, and that bottled by is for containers of 4 liters or less while packed by is for more than 4 liters. The wine label maker reads the phrase, the name, the city and the state, written out or as its two-letter code (CA), and it checks the phrase against the net contents.

The sulfites declaration belongs on a front label, back label, strip label or neck label when sulfur dioxide or a sulfiting agent reaches 10 parts per million or more, under 4.32(e). The accepted words are Contains sulfites, Contains a sulfiting agent or the name of the agent, and the TTB sulfites page says sulfite-free and similar claims are not allowed. The row flags a label with no declaration, and a sulfite-free claim fails it.

The government warning is the part a back label usually carries. 27 CFR 16.21 fixes the words, and 16.22(a)(2) puts GOVERNMENT WARNING in capitals and bold and forbids bold in the rest. 16.22(b) sets a minimum type size by container size: 1 mm at 237 mL or less, 2 mm from there to 3 L and 3 mm above 3 L. 16.22(a)(4) sets a maximum of 40, 25 or 12 characters per inch for those same steps. The wine label maker holds the shortest letter to that minimum and counts each line over its printed width for that maximum.

The one-click button places that paragraph on the back label at the smallest size that meets the minimum letter and the maximum characters per inch for the net contents and the label width. The warning stays a single element, so editing another fact does not break the paragraph apart. The panel reports the size, the shortest letter and the characters per inch, which are the same measures the checks use.

The wine label maker offers three pairs. The classic pair is a 3.5 × 5 in front with a 3.5 × 4.5 in back, in the range wine labels commonly come in: a front about 3 to 4 inches wide and 4 to 5 inches tall, with a smaller back. The Bordeaux pair is a 4 × 4.5 in front with a 4 × 4 in back. The Avery 5164 pair uses the label maker’s Avery 5164 sheet: two 4 × 3.333 in labels next to each other, three rows, six labels and three pairs a page.

The classic and Bordeaux pairs print on one fitted sheet: Letter on an inch page and A4 on a millimeter page, with a quarter inch margin and an eighth inch gap. The pair sheet puts the two labels side by side when they fit, or one above the other, with a quarter inch gap. The Avery pair keeps its Letter sheet in every language because the sheet itself is Letter stock. The print panel still has the single label PDF, the SVG, the PNG and the Cricut file, and the wine panel adds the front PDF, the back PDF and the pair sheet PDF.

The files draw the words as vector outlines, so the text prints exactly as designed and needs no fonts at the printer. The colors are kept, the PDF can carry the cut line as a spot color, and the classic and Bordeaux sheets draw a cut line around each label. The Avery pair fills the 5164 die-cuts, so its cut lines are the sheet’s own. A plain paper proof on the pair sheet is the quickest way to check the sizes against a bottle before a sheet of label stock goes in the printer.

Gift and homemade is the default purpose, for a wedding, a birthday, a dinner or a home batch. Wine made at home is for personal or family use (27 CFR 24.75), so the checks stay off for wine made for family and friends. The design needs no rules: pick a pair, type the facts, and the wine label generator lays out the front and the back. The government warning element is still there if you want it, and the checks wait until the purpose changes to For sale in the US.

A wine that is sold in the United States goes further. The check rows give the paragraph behind each item, and the guide above explains what each one reads. A label for a shop or a distributor often needs a COLA, the TTB certificate of label approval, before the wine moves between states; the TTB handles that application, and the wine label maker gives you the label files for it.

The design can come from the AI wine page through the Design with AI button. The wine label maker sends the front label as the design to restyle or to fill with background art, and the result comes back onto the label. The AI page is paid per design; the wine label maker and its print files stay free and need no account.

The free label maker is the same editor without the wine section, for a plain product label, a round sticker or a tag. The bottle label maker sizes a wrap from a bottle’s girth, and the candle label maker pairs a jar front with a fire safety warning. The label templates directory lists every Avery sheet the label maker prints on, including the 5164 sheet behind the Avery pair.