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The final finesse on a bottle of wine is the art of the wine label.  The identifying marker… peaking personal amusement for the eccentric winemaker, inviting proliferation for a designer or artist, providing the conversation piece in a basement cellar… the label tells the story of the wine. 

 

This page is dedicated to the winemakers that not only lend their heart and soul to the juice in the bottle, but also to those responsible for the design on the bottle.  After all, for the consumer and collector… presentation is (almost) everything.  Label requirements have become very strict and vary greatly by region, but it is universally believed that the beauty of the label reflects the divinity of the wine inside. 

 

A Brief History of Wine Labels

Although wine is believed to have originated in ancient Greece, it was the ancient Egyptians who first recorded label details that are still required by law today; including vintage, growing region or vineyard, and winemaker.  This can be dated back to 1352 BC when buried with Egypt’s King Tut, were jars of wine with detailed etchings.  These bottles were unearthed in 1922 by archeologist Howard Carter.

 

Some early label designs were simply small identifying pieces of parchment tied with string around the neck. Later identifiers included carvings in the base of a pewter stand describing the region of the wine.  In the 18th century, depictions of life were described with imagery, much like history’s great paintings. This brings us to our first study, the infamous Chateau Mouton Rothschild.

Groundbreaking Innovators: Mouton-Rothschild

One of the most sought after, prized, collected, and prolific wine brands of all time is Mouton Rothschild.  The long-standing tradition of the quality of the wine was surpassed only by the early marketing techniques applied to the brand by the founder’s predecessor (and great-grandson,) Baron Philippe de Rothschild.

In the 1920’s, marketing wines with beautiful labels was one of many ambitious moves by Philippe de Rothschild to propel and modernize his winery. Philippe enlisted important artists of the time to create original designs to enhance the marketing ability of the wines.  This became a permanent practice of the winery in 1946, and the tradition has only been broken a couple of times since for special commemorations. 

<<<< Label Designed for Chateau Mouton de Rothschild

By Francis Bacon, 1990

Other well-known artists who have designed for Mouton include: Warhol, Picasso, Dali, Braque, Kandinsky, and Chagall.

Modern Design Icons: Jeffrey Caldeway and Chuck House

Caldeway on the label design:

 “It's a global market and this is the spiritual heart of the wine business.”

In 1996, French Winemaker, M. Chapoutier began distributing wine with Braille on the labels – a continuing tradition to this day.  The French appellation of Crozes-Hermitage is owned by Maurice Monier de La Sizeranne,the inventor of the first version of abbreviated Braille.
From the official site, “The trademark pays tribute to this man but also expresses the desire to reach out to and include all people with sight-impairments, lovers of good wines...”>>>>

Gallery

The collection of labels below express our affinity for conceptually stunning wine label art – an ever expansive and growing list.

To nominate your wine label to be showcased on this page, please email us a high-res image (JPG, GIF, PNG, or PDF) along with

a brief explanation behind the purpose of the design. We will notify you upon placement to our site.

The Wine: Cycles Gladiator Produced by Hahn Family Wines in the Central Coast of California

The Label: a vintage (1885) bicycle poster from France during the Belle Epoque era (beautiful era)... a time when peace and prosperity pervaded through Europe.

A label beloved Worldwide, banned in Alabama.  Read More >>>