Front and back labels

The front label must, by EU law, contain certain pieces of information:

In addition, it must have the name of the country of origin, and wine classified as “table wine” must not state the year of vintage. Legal requirements in non-EU countries may be different.

Many wine producers find that these requirements get in the way of attractive design, so they put this information on a functional label which is therefore, legally, the “front label”. However, when the bottle is on the shelf, the label with the attractive design will face outwards - even though it is, by strictest definition, the back label.