Reading a Label, Step by Step

Step 1: Find the Mandatory Information

First, check the basics. Does it say vodka as the sales designation? What is the alcohol content in %ABV? And if a raw material other than grain or potato is used, is the corresponding raw material declaration shown alongside it? These three points are legally required in the EU. They usually appear close together, often in small print near the fill volume.

If one of these details is missing entirely, it's worth a second look. Without it, the bottle technically shouldn't be sold in the EU. Often, the text simply appears elsewhere on the label than expected.

Step 2: Recognize Protected Origin Markings

Next, look for names like Polska Wódka or the bison grass designation from the Northern Podlasie Lowland. Often, the round EU symbol for protected geographical indications appears alongside it. These names are tied to fixed recipes and places and cannot be freely assigned.

If such a mark is missing, that doesn't automatically mean lower quality. It simply means the bottle doesn't claim one of these special legal designations.

Step 3: Interpret National Standards

With imports from Russia or the US, a second look is worthwhile. References like GOST or a minimum strength of 40% ABV come from a separate national system, such as US law 27 CFR 5. Such details often explain why alcohol content or additives differ from the EU standard.

Anyone buying such a bottle would do well to compare both levels: the national standard of the country of production and, when sold in Europe, the additionally applicable EU minimum requirements.

Step 4: Separate Marketing Claims from Facts

Finally, categorize all remaining terms such as five-times distilled, diamond filter, or premium. These count as producer claims, not verified attributes. Once you've practiced these four steps, they take hardly longer in the store than a glance at the price. Still, the purchasing decision ends up on much clearer ground.

One Final Example

A bottle shows 37.5% ABV, the sales designation vodka, and no raw material declaration. It meets the EU minimum requirements and presumably comes from grain or potato. If Polska Wódka with the EU symbol also appears alongside it, a verified Polish origin is added.

If the same bottle also advertises five-times distilled or premium, that changes nothing about the facts already verified. These words remain free supplementary information and can be weighed accordingly when making a purchasing decision.

Where to Look Up Doubts Officially

Anyone unsure about a protected designation doesn't have to rely on the label alone. The EU maintains eAmbrosia, a public register of all protected geographical indications for spirits, where Polska Wódka and the bison grass designation covered in this journey can be looked up along with their full specifications, including the exact boundaries of the origin area and the permitted raw materials. For US imports, the TTB agency publishes its granted label approvals in a searchable database, where you can trace under what name and with what recipe a particular bottle was approved.

These official sources don't replace a quick glance in the store, but they help when a claim seems unusual or a sticker doesn't match the printed label. Anyone who regularly compares bottles from several countries develops, over time, a feel for which words are mandatory disclosures, protected designations of origin, or simply marketing, without needing to look each bottle up in a register. That sense of intuition was exactly the goal of this journey through eight stops covering law and labeling.