One of the campaigns that we support most vigorously is that of responsible drinking. This doesn’t necessarily mean that we stick warning labels all over our bottles, as to be honest, I am not really sure that our Albariño would necessarily be the first choice of those who drink more than they should. However, in an ever increasing number of markets these days, it is actually becoming obligatory to include certain warnings on the label of the bottles that we sell.

Take France as an example. Now, whilst we don’t sell huge volumes of our wine to the French market (albeit I am very proud of the fact that we at least sell some), we are now obliged to add the silhouette of an expectant mother encompassed by a warning circle (see above) to each bottle – a recommendation not to drink during pregnancy. The same sentiment has actually been expressed in words on the back label of our U.S. exports for many years now, along with a reminder of the hazards of drinking, driving and operating machinery.

My own opinion is that we now need to agree a new ‘International Standard’ of all the various warnings, in order that they can be encompassed in one single format. If not, then there is a very real danger that we will simply be overwhelmed by the number of individual labels that we will have to print for different customers around the world.

Is there anybody out there (in a position of some influence) listening?