Peltier Station Winery packages wine to avoid labeling regulation
Chances are that if you’re reading this you are aware that there are quite a few laws in the U.S. that make shipping wine across state borders difficult. This is just one of the regulations that wineries face in almost all aspects of making and selling their wine.
However, one recent regulation, and more specifically, one winery’s indirect answer loop-holing around this law caught my attention.
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) recently changed the regulations for the Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) that were aimed at protecting Portugal’s geographic indication. This prohibits any winery that was not “grandfathered-in” before the law was passed from using the term “Port” on their packaging.
Similar to the protection given to the “Champagne” designation, this label regulation aims to protect the unique winemaking and fortification techniques which originated in Portugal. That’s where Peltier Station Winery sought a way around this law.
The winery hired 6 West Design to indicate the word “Port” without actually using the word itself. Their way around this regulation was to name their 100% Zinfandel Port: “USB.” Anyone using a computer can connect those dots. A USB is to a port like a plug is to an outlet. They go together so inseparably that when you mention one you’ll innately think of its other component. To top it off, the back label further prods at the regulation: ”Be the Ultimate Savvy Buyer by including our USB __ in your __folio of wines”
6 West commented further on the design:
“The imagery screen printed on the front label shows an old vine built out of binary code that translates as “Peltier Station,” and has roots that form the recognized USB computer symbol. The back label leaves it to the viewer to fill in the letters “port” in underlined slots (i.e. im____ant for “important”). The back label took three months of TTB/Cola deliberation before they finally approved it – not without telling our Client they had never encountered someone going so far out of their way to prove a point.”
What do you think? Was this a cheap-shot or a clever move? Should we shun wineries which navigate their way around certain laws (even though this particular label is quite creative), despite the fact that their design does not technically break any regulations?
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October 30th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
My favorite workaround for this problem is “Starboard” from Quady Winery
http://www.quadywinery.com/ports_starboards.html
There’s always a way!
October 31st, 2008 at 5:51 am
It’s a striking and clever label. Here’s hoping the “port” contained within connects those dots just as cleverly.
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Hell Yes! This is so clever. And something should be said for the design team dreamed this one up. Love the design.