Unfiltered Wine?

[Randy Caparoso]

Yes, we are in disagreement. The question is, at what point does a statement of fact on a label go from quality consideration to "marketing device?" Certainly, words like "Reserve" or "Select" are very often marketing devices. In many cases, they really do mean "Reserve" and "Select" -- a vintner's best cuvees. The same for appellation names -- "Napa Valley" and "Sonoma Mountain" are meant to inform as well as to entice. But when included on the label, are they "simply" shrewd attempts to sell wine, or are they statements of fact meant to denote a certain level of quality?

In my own experience, wineries who bother to put "unfiltered" on their labels do so because they truly believe it to be a quality factor that the consumer needs to consider. To say "simply a marketing device" somehow demeans a lot of good, conscientious intentions; particularly since the word is far less common and prone to abuse than designations like "Reserve" and "Napa Valley."