This post will start short but is likely to grow long over time. Very long. We will try to show the enormous range of foodstuffs from which wine is produced. With each post we will add to the list, and I predict it will grow way past 50 60. Today we add Cherry wine to the list.

1. Avocado wine
2. Banana wine
3. Blueberry wine
4. Buffaloberry wine
5. Cantaloupe wine
6. Cherry wine. Made by Strawbale Winery of Renner, South Dakota.
7. Dandelion wine
8. Elder flower wine
9. Fig wine
10. Gooseberry wine
11. Grape wine
12. Jasmine fruit wine
13. Kiwi wine
14. Linden flower wine
15. Lingonberry
16. Lychee wine
17. Mango wine
18. Mangosteen wine
19. Marionberry wine
20. Onion wine
21. Peach wine
22. Pomegranate wine
23. Pear wine
24. Pepper wine
25. Persimmon wine
26. Pineapple wine
27. Rhubarb wine
28. Strawberry wine
29. Tomato wine
30. Watermelon wine

Most people assume TTB would be okay with the second word but not the first. Actually, it’s the other way around. The federal government is okay with Santa, but is not fond of his elixir. TTB asserts, from time to time as the issue arises, that the term “elixir” ought not to be allowed, because it would tend to suggest that the alcohol beverage has medicinal properties. That’s a big no no. Good old Webster does not really disagree, and defines the term as:  “a substance held capable of prolonging life indefinitely.” Hence there are very few “elixir” approvals after about 1999. We don’t normally show the whole paper COLA in the space above. But the paper COLAs are getting fewer and fewer, as the bulk of labels are submitted via COLAs Online. The above is starting to look like a fondly remembered antique. This 1999 approval, for Santa’s Elixir wine specialty, is one of the oldest readily available in TTB’s Public COLA Registry, because it starts showing images in about 1999. Adding to this approval’s old school quaintness, I believe I see indications of a typewriter, a Xerox machine, and perhaps there is some Wite-Out lurking in the shadows. I am writing this about a week before Christmas, but now that we’ve...

Maybe John has been asleep at the switch, but this is one of the first vegan beers we have seen come down the pike. Rebecca’s Divine Wit is Vegan Beer Brewed with Oranges and Coriander. Wikipedia (not Wikileaks) says veganism is:

a philosophy and lifestyle whose adherents seek to exclude the use of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose. Vegans endeavor to never consume or use any animal products of any type. The most common reasons for becoming, or remaining, vegan are moral conviction concerning animal rights or welfare, health, environmental concerns, and spiritual or religious concerns.

I suppose some beers have a bit of animal matter, in the form of isinglass or gelatin. This site explains and provides a helpful guidepost. So far as we know, TTB treats this term more like “biodynamic” or “premium” and less like “organic” or “Meritage.” Perhaps, when there are more vegan labels for alcohol beverages, the policy will get more clear. For a wine example, here is Flint Hills Red Wine (“for vegan enjoyment”).

We thought this approval (for Smirnoff Frozen Vodka & Lemonade) was noteworthy because it points out several things. First of all, it tends to show that it’s okay to add a little bit of extra verbiage, to the mandated statement of composition, on a distilled spirits specialty. The required statement is probably VODKA WITH NATURAL FLAVORS AND FD&C YELLOW #5. The one on this label adds a few extra words such as MADE WITH SMIRNOFF. It adds a few other descriptors nearby, at VODKA & LEMONADE. Second, it tends to show it’s okay to put the color details on the back, if the general statement is on the front. CERTIFIED COLOR (general) is on the front and CONTAINS FD&C YELLOW #5 is on the back only. Third, this shows it can take a lot of work and a mighty long time for a big company to bring a product to market. This approval is already about eight months old, and there is no sign of  this product on the web or at the indicated domain. Fourth, it’s probably an unusual, pouch-type package and freeze technology, based on the approval, but we’ll need to wait a bit longer to see it. Finally, as with many other Smirnoff-branded products, the references to VODKA are very large, even though...

This post will start short but is likely to grow long over time. Very long. We will try to show the enormous range of foodstuffs from which wine is produced. With each post we will add to the list, and I predict it will grow way past 50 60. Today we add Blueberry wine to the list.

1. Avocado wine
2. Banana wine
3. Blueberry wine. Made by Coltsfoot Winery of Abingdon, Virginia.
4. Buffaloberry wine
5. Cantaloupe wine
6. Dandelion wine
7. Elder flower wine
8. Fig wine
9. Gooseberry wine
10. Grape wine
11. Jasmine fruit wine
12. Kiwi wine
13. Linden flower wine
14. Lingonberry
15. Lychee wine
16. Mango wine
17. Mangosteen wine
18. Marionberry wine
19. Onion wine
20. Peach wine
21. Pomegranate wine
22. Pear wine
23. Pepper wine
24. Persimmon wine
25. Pineapple wine
26. Rhubarb wine
27. Strawberry wine
28. Tomato wine
29. Watermelon wine