Living: Art for Wine's Sake

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Small vineyards make their mark with elegant labels

When there were relatively few wine makers and their names were mostly well known, the illustrations on labels were usually austere monotone depictions of vine rows or chateaux. With the proliferation of new vineyards in the past 15 years, more and more wineries have learned that a distinctive label can be the decisive factor in selling a bottle. Artful packaging, most notably in California, has become almost as important in the industry as the vintner's art. Says Marshall Ream of the Santa Ynez Valley's Zaca Mesa Winery: "You've got to put on a better suit of clothes to be invited to the party."

Every year since 1945, Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, one of the world's greatest wines, has enhanced its name by decorating its labels with the work of the greatest artists of the time, from Picasso to Chagall. A number of smaller American vineyards have now taken label decoration a step further: emphasizing the artwork over the maker's name. Styles include art nouveau, abstract and realistic; at least one vineyard is putting photography on labels. Zaca Mesa uses several styles, clothing some of its varietals with twin panels of golden oaks and distant hills. Says Ream: "If you go into the supermarket—where the industry is headed—you want people to see the label from a distance."

The Santa Maria Valley's Sanford Winery and Monterey County's Ventana Vineyards regularly vary their labels: Sanford features wild flowers of the area, while Ventana uses dramatic color photos taken by Co-Owner Shirley Meador. Napa Valley's Frog's Leap has a whimsical depiction of, yes, a frog leaping. Inevitably, the Falcon Crest television series, based on a fictional California wine-making family, has inspired a wine of the same name; made by Napa Valley's Spring Mountain Vineyards, it uses the familiar screen mansion on its labels. A few East Coast vintners have splashed their labels with color. Hargrave Vineyard of Cutchogue, N.Y., uses art associated with its Long Island location.

Napa Valley-based Artist Sebastian Titus and Partner Wesley Poole, who have made labels for some 50 wine makers, always sample the product before turning to the palette. Says Titus: "Consumers will buy a pretty label once, but if the wine isn't good, they won't buy it again." Moreover, the wine lover who used to be embarrassed by the rows of empty bottles in his house can now label himself an art collector.