Oregon regulators ease rules for wine labeling

PORTLAND — Oregon has relaxed its wine-labeling rules for the first time in 30 years — a move that gladdens some, but not all, winemakers.

Most Oregon wines, such as pinot noir, pinot Gris, chardonnay and Riesling, will be unaffected and still must meet a rule that requires 90 percent of the contents to come from the grape on the label.

But the Oregon Liquor Control Commission has approved a request by the state winemakers, who now are allowed to blend 18 of the 72 grape varieties grown in Oregon with up to 25 percent of other grape varieties but still sell it under the label of the primary grape.

The change applies primarily to warm-weather grapes and will not affect the Willamette Valley.

Some Oregon wineries said the state's labeling regulations were some of the strictest in the nation and limited their ability to compete with winemakers in states with looser laws.

But critics argued that the loosening of the standards will lower Oregon wines' reputations.

Other changes by liquor regulators include allowing Oregon producers to list their wine as either "pinot Gris" or "pinot grigio," made from the same grape, on wine labels. Previously, regulations allowed only the use of "pinot Gris."