UK Quality Wine Schemes guidance - sparkling wines

The schemes are administered by Wine GB, post bottling analysis is carried out by an accredited laboratory (ISO 17025), and the schemes are enforced by the Food Standards Agency (Wine Standards). It is important to remember that whilst there is no requirement to participate in these schemes, they do enable the wine producer to use certain labelling terms which they would not be able to use otherwise.

Important

Please refer to the Wine GB specification for full details on PDO or PGI certification via the Wine Scheme Applications website.

PDO - Protected Designation (of) Origin

This is the top category of sparkling wine in the UK. This wine has been produced within the criteria stated in the PDO specification laid out by Wine GB for sparkling wine.

Only 6 vine cultivars are permitted for PDO sparkling:

• Chardonnay
• Pinot Noir
• Pinot Meunier
• Pinot Noir Precoce
• Pinot Blanc
• and Pinot Gris

No hybrid vine varieties are permissible. 100% of the grapes used must come from within the stated demarcation (England or Wales).

Use of the protected term ‘English’ or ‘Welsh’ is permitted on labels. Should be labelled 'English/Welsh Protected Designation of Origin'.

PDO status is sometimes a minimum entry requirement for international competition and may help promote the wine. This wine will undergo two tests at Campden BRI at application stage - chemical post-bottling analysis and organoleptic no-fault tasting test.

Label example for PDO - sparkling wine

In this example label the following are voluntary labelling items (not mandatory, but if shown then should be correct):

• Anyplace Vineyards
• BLANC DE NOIRS
• 2025

In this example label these are the mandatory labelling items:

• Brut
• Produced by Anyplace Vineyards, QV1 2AA, UK
• English Protected Designation of Origin
• Product of England
• 75cl
• 12% Vol.
• Contains Sulphites*
• L-1234*

Items should appear in a single field of vision (*except allergens warning and lot number which can appear anywhere on the bottle).

PGI - Protected Geographical Indication

Often regarded as the most flexible category for quality wine in the UK. This wine has been produced within the criteria stated in the PGI specification laid out by Wine GB for sparkling wine.

88-90 vine varieties may be used for sparkling wine. Hybrid vine varieties are permitted such as Seyval Blanc.

Use of the protected term ‘English Regional’ or 'Welsh Regional' is permitted on labels. Should be labelled 'English/Welsh Regional Protected Geographical Indication'.

This wine will undergo two tests at Campden BRI at application stage - chemical post bottling analysis and organoleptic no-fault tasting test.

85% of the grapes must come from the stated demarcation (England or Wales). Remaining 15% can come from Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. No EU grapes can be used.

Label example for PGI - sparkling wine

In this example label the following are voluntary labelling items (not mandatory, but if shown then should be correct):

• Anyplace Vineyards
• BLANC DE BLANCS
• 2025

In this example label these are the mandatory labelling items:

• Brut
• Produced by Anyplace Vineyards, QV1 2AA, UK
• English Regional Protected Geographical Indication
• Product of England
• 75cl
• 12% Vol.
• Contains Sulphites*
• L-1234*

Items should appear in a single field of vision (*except allergens warning and lot number which can appear anywhere on the bottle).

Wine

From 1 January 2024, there will no longer be a formal varietal certification requirement in the UK. This means that wine produced in the UK can be described using a vine variety and/or vintage on the label without certification or fee.

The wine should contain 85% of the single vine variety shown on the label, or 95% of the multiple vine varieties shown. Use of the protected term ‘English’ or ‘Welsh’ or ‘English Regional’ or ‘Welsh Regional’ or ‘Sussex’ is not permitted on labels. There is no testing requirement (post-bottling analysis) and the wine can be labelled as ‘varietal wine’.

Example label for sparkling wine

In this example label the following are voluntary labelling items (not mandatory, but if shown then should be correct):

• Anyplace Vineyards
• CLASSIC CUVEE
• 2025

In this example label these are the mandatory labelling items:

• Demi-Sec
• Produced by Anyplace Vineyards, QV1 2AA, UK
• Sparkling wine
• Product of England
• 75cl
• 12% Vol.
• Contains Sulphites*
• L-1234*

Items should appear in a single field of vision (*except allergens warning and lot number which can appear anywhere on the bottle).

Please note: There are different mandatory labelling requirements for still wine and the labels shown above are for sparkling wine and are only to provide a visualisation of the mandatory labelling items and the items permitted for use at each categorisation through the schemes.

This page is not designed to be the authoritative guide to the UK Quality Wine Schemes.

If in any doubt about label compliance against the regulations, please contact your local Wine Standards Inspector before going to print.