Wine Alcohol Content: Average ABV, Glass and Bottle

Most wine contains between about 12% and 15% alcohol by volume (ABV), and a typical glass of table wine holds about one US standard drink. Light, sweet styles such as Moscato d’Asti sit far lower, at around 5%, and fortified wines such as Port far higher. This guide gives the typical alcohol content by style, works out how much alcohol is in a glass and a bottle, and explains how exact the number on the label is and why it varies. If you are looking for the strongest wines, see our guide to high alcohol wine.

What ABV means

Alcohol by volume is the share of a drink that is pure alcohol (ethanol). The NIAAA, the US National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, explains that a wine labeled 12% is 12% pure alcohol, and stresses that the figure varies within each type of drink, so the size of a glass alone doesn’t tell you how much alcohol you’re getting.

Wine Folly notes that alcohol content in wine “tends to follow the style and vintage closely”. That is why a few style groups cover almost every bottle you’ll find.

Typical alcohol content by style

These ranges come from Wine Folly’s guide to alcohol in wine, except where another source is named.

Group	Typical ABV	Examples
Very light	Under 10%	Moscato d’Asti (5–6.5%), German Riesling (7–8%)
Light	10.5–12.5%	Most American, Austrian and Australian Riesling (10.5–12%), Lambrusco (11.5–12.5%)
Moderate	12–13.5%	Most Pinot Grigio (12–13%), Sauvignon Blanc and Beaujolais (12.5–13%)
Medium-full	13–14.5%	Most Pinot Noir and red Bordeaux (13–14%), Chardonnay (13–14.5%), Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese and French Syrah (13.5–14.5%)
Full	13.5–15.5%	Malbec (13.5–15%), Shiraz and American Syrah (14–15%), Grenache (14–15%), Zinfandel (14–15.5%)
Sweet dessert	About 14.5–15%	Sauternes (14.5%), Muscat (15%)
Fortified	17–21%	Port, Madeira, Sherry

In our view, the easiest way to remember it is by color and weight: light, crisp whites tend to sit at the bottom of the range, rich reds from warm places at the top. For the strongest wines in each group, and the official ranges for Port, Sherry and Madeira, see our guides to high alcohol wine and fortified wine.

Note: These are typical ranges, not rules. Two wines from the same grape can differ by a couple of points, so check the bottle in front of you.

How much alcohol is in a glass of wine?

The NIAAA defines one US standard drink as any drink containing 0.6 fluid ounces (14 grams) of pure alcohol. For wine, that is:

• 5 fluid ounces of table wine at about 12% ABV;
• 3 to 4 fluid ounces of fortified wine, such as Sherry or Port, at about 17% ABV.

The NIAAA adds that standard drink amounts “may not reflect customary serving sizes”. Many wines are stronger than 12%, and many pours are bigger than 5 ounces. To work out your own glass, multiply the ounces poured by the ABV:

Wine	ABV	Pour	Pure alcohol	Standard drinks
Moscato d’Asti	5%	5 oz	0.25 oz	About 0.4
German Riesling	8%	5 oz	0.40 oz	About 0.7
Typical table wine	12%	5 oz	0.60 oz	1.0
Pinot Noir or Chardonnay	13.5%	5 oz	0.68 oz	About 1.1
Zinfandel or Shiraz	14.5%	5 oz	0.73 oz	About 1.2
Typical table wine, generous pour	13.5%	8 oz	1.08 oz	About 1.8
Port	20%	3 oz	0.60 oz	1.0

We calculated these from the NIAAA definition (ounces poured × ABV ÷ 0.6). The ABVs are examples within Wine Folly’s ranges.

How much alcohol is in a bottle of wine?

A standard 750 ml bottle holds about 25.4 US fluid ounces. The NIAAA’s chart of common containers counts a regular bottle of 12% table wine as five standard drinks. Here is how the alcohol in a full bottle changes with strength:

Bottle ABV	Pure alcohol in 750 ml	Standard drinks
5%	37.5 ml (1.3 oz)	About 2.1
8%	60 ml (2.0 oz)	About 3.4
12%	90 ml (3.0 oz)	About 5.1
13.5%	101 ml (3.4 oz)	About 5.7
14.5%	109 ml (3.7 oz)	About 6.1
20%	150 ml (5.1 oz)	About 8.5

So a bottle of 14.5% Zinfandel holds about 20% more alcohol than a bottle of 12% white, and close to three times as much as a bottle of Moscato d’Asti. For half bottles, magnums and boxes, multiply the volume by the ABV the same way.

Note: Standard drinks are a way to compare alcohol, not a target or a health guideline. If you have questions about how much alcohol is right for you, ask your doctor.

How exact is the number on the label?

Not very. The TTB (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau), which regulates US wine labels, allows a tolerance:

Labeled alcohol	Allowed difference	TTB example
14% or less	±1.5 percentage points	“12% ALC. BY VOL.” for a wine of 10.5% to 13.5%
Over 14%	±1 percentage point	“18% ALC. BY VOL.” for a wine of 17% to 19%

There is one limit: the actual strength can’t cross into a different type of wine. The TTB’s example is a still table wine labeled 13.5%, which is acceptable at 12% to 14%, but not at 14.5%, because at that strength it would become a dessert wine for label purposes.

A few other TTB rules explain what you see on bottles:

• A numerical alcohol statement is mandatory over 14%. Between 7% and 14%, a label may say “table wine” or “light wine” instead of a number.
• A label may show a range instead of one figure: up to 3 points wide for wines of 14% or less (such as “9%–12%”) and up to 2 points above 14%.
• The abbreviation “ABV” isn’t allowed; only “alc.” and “vol.” may be abbreviated.

Our guide on how to read a wine label covers the rest of the label.

Why wine alcohol content varies

Sugar in the grapes

Yeast turns grape sugar into alcohol, so the more sugar the grapes carry at harvest, the stronger the wine can be. The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) puts it simply: riper fruit contains more sugar, which can lead to high alcohol.

Climate and vintage

The AWRI says hot summers and long hours of sunshine make it hard for Australian producers to keep alcohol in check, which helps explain why warm-climate reds sit at the top of the table. Vintage matters too, which is why Wine Folly ties alcohol to both style and vintage. Economists Julian Alston, Kate Fuller, James Lapsley and George Soleas, writing in the Journal of Wine Economics (2011), found that the sugar content of California wine grapes had increased significantly over the previous 10 to 20 years, implying a matching rise in wine alcohol; they examined both climate change and producers’ responses to consumer demand as explanations.

When the grapes are picked

Picking early keeps alcohol low. Wine Australia notes that Australian Semillon is often harvested early to preserve its natural acidity, and describes Hunter Valley Semillon as a high-acid, low-alcohol, unoaked white.

When fermentation stops

If fermentation is stopped before the yeast finishes, some sugar stays in the wine and the alcohol stays low. The Consorzio dell’Asti, which oversees Moscato d’Asti, says its fermentation is halted at about 5% by chilling the wine, and the yeast is then removed by centrifuge or filtration. Fortified wines go the other way: grape spirit is added, which raises the alcohol. At the extreme, the rules for Hungary’s very sweet Tokaji Eszencia allow only 1.2% to 8% alcohol, as our Tokaji guide explains.

Lower-alcohol options

If you want wine with less alcohol, in our view the simplest choices are:

• Moscato d’Asti, at about 5%, lightly sparkling and sweet.
• German Riesling, often 7% to 8% according to Wine Folly.
• Riesling from the US, Austria or Australia, typically 10.5% to 12% per Wine Folly.

For wine with almost none, see our guide to non-alcoholic wine.

The short version

• Most table wine: about 12% to 15%.
• One 5-ounce glass at 12%: one standard drink; at 14.5%, about 1.2.
• One 750 ml bottle at 12%: five standard drinks; at 14.5%, about six.
• The label can be off by up to 1.5 points for wines of 14% or less.

Wine is for adults of legal drinking age (21 in the US). Please drink responsibly, and never drink and drive.