Wine – What is oenography ?

Wine is a universe of enthusiasts. You obviously have the hard core of oenophiles who love wine, but you have a multitude of other passions revolving around. Previously, we had made the discovery of the placomusophilie. Today, let's discover oenography together.

What is oenography ?

I do not teach you anything, but some wine labels are beautiful. Often, they represent what we are about to taste : classic, more Rock-n-Roll or even a real work of art ... For me, the perfect example are the wines of Aubert and Mathieu, in Languedoc. Their labels present the duality between modernity and tradition and echo the quality of the wines in their range.. They also won the "best wine design" prize at the Harpers Design awards 2019 ! Let's say it, a wine label can be a very good taste of what we are going to discover in our glass.

Copyright Aubert & Mathieu

Enography, also called oenosemiophilia, is the practice of collecting wine labels - while ethyllabellophilia is the collection of alcohol labels -. Like a stamp collector, the oenographile is applied to peel off the labels of wine bottles before putting them together, sometimes by theme, per year or even to remember the wines tasted.

Since when does wine have a label ?

The label is not as old as the wine, yet mankind has long sought to identify wines. However, the printed label did not arrive until the 18th century with the advent of the lithographic printing technique. This printing technique was invented in 1796 to reproduce a large number of copies by tracing in ink or pencil on a limestone.

Like any medium of expression, the label of a bottle of wine is anchored in its time and reveals trends. Leafing through a collection, it is possible to see eras and styles follow one another : artistic, representing the estate or the winegrower, sober or totally offbeat.

Why oenography ?

Like a stamp collector, there are many reasons to start collecting wine labels. Some will do it for the sake of the labels, others for the rarity of these. It can also be a great way to put together a tasting diary with the label as a way to remember the wine., then the context and the feelings thanks to the tasting notes.

So, oenography can be seen as an introspective act to remember beautiful oenological moments or as a way to join a group of amateurs. Indeed, there are online communities or even wine associations that exchange advice or meet to share their passion. Who knows ? Maybe there is an association near you ...

How to easily peel off a wine label ?

There are many ways to peel off wine labels while keeping them intact.. You have many tutorials on the Internet to peel off a label depending on the glue used.

In all cases, you can try to fill your empty bottle with boiling water first. After a few minutes, try to gently peel off the precious label. You can also leave your bottle 5 minutes in an oven at 150 ° C before taking off.

You are now ready to get started in oenography !

Jean-Nicolas Mouretin