Wine labelling: what's mandatory in 2026
Since 8 December 2023 every bottle sold in the EU declares ingredients and nutrition. Some of it can live behind a QR code — but not all of it.
What changed, and when
Regulation (EU) 2021/2117 brought wine into an obligation the rest of food already had: declaring ingredients and nutritional information. It applies to all wine produced and sold in the European Union since 8 December 2023.
What's new is that wine was the first sector allowed to give part of that information electronically, through a QR code on the pack. That relieves an already crowded label, but it doesn't empty it.
What must stay printed
Even with the full sheet behind the QR, two things cannot be delegated to a scan and must appear on the physical label:
- The energy value (calories), on the bottle itself
- Allergens — sulphites and the rest — printed too
- The remaining nutritional declaration and the ingredient list may live behind the QR
What a compliant QR actually looks like
Any old link won't do. The page the QR points to has three conditions that get broken often:
- It cannot be advertising. The destination carries the mandatory information and nothing else — not the winery's homepage, not a product listing.
- It cannot track whoever scans it or collect their data.
- It must be in the language of the country where the bottle is sold, and stay available for as long as the wine is on the market — which, in wine, means years.
Who inspects this
In Spain the policy is coordinated by AESAN, but inspections are carried out by the regional authorities, with their own consumer inspectors, at the winery, in distribution and at the point of sale. It isn't paperwork: it's a possible visit.
And then PPWR
It doesn't stop there. The EU packaging regulation adds harmonised labelling from 2028 — common pictograms for material and recyclability on every pack, bottles included. Better to redesign once covering both than twice.
Frequently asked
- Can I just point the QR at my website?
- No. The destination page may only contain the mandatory information, with no advertising and no tracking. A QR pointing at the winery homepage does not comply.
- Does this affect beer or olive oil too?
- The QR route for ingredients and nutrition is specific to wine; other foods already declared it on the physical label. What does reach everyone is PPWR packaging labelling from 2028.
- Do you set it up?
- Yes: we design the label with the mandatory elements properly placed and prepare the ingredients page with its QR. Tell us how many references you have and we'll quote.