Whisky Label Decoder
The planned Whisky Label Decoder will help you separate what a whisky label says from what still needs checking. It is not yet available; this page explains the proposed inputs, method and limits.
[TOOL TO BUILD]
How to use the whisky label decoder
Copy the label wording exactly, keeping names, numbers, units and qualifying phrases together. Include text from the front and back labels where you can, and identify which part of the label each passage comes from.
Use these input fields:
- Names: the product name and any named producer, distillery, bottler or owner.
- Origin wording: any country, region, locality or other place mentioned.
- Category and description: the complete wording describing the spirit.
- Numbers: strength, volume, age wording, dates and any batch or cask identifiers.
- Other claims: statements about wood, production, filtration, colouring or bottling.
- Market: the country where the bottle is being sold, if known.
Leave an unreadable or absent field blank. Do not expand abbreviations, correct unfamiliar names or supply details from a retailer’s description without identifying that separate source.
What the results should show
The decoder should return three clearly separated layers: your original wording, an explanation supported by a verified reference, and anything that remains unresolved. It must preserve the difference between a statement printed on the label and an independently established fact.
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| Label text | A transcription supplied by you, not independently verified |
| Supported explanation | An interpretation tied to a cited rule or reference |
| Unknown | The supplied information does not establish an answer |
| Not verified | A claim has been identified but has not been checked |
Each supported explanation should display its source and checking date. Where a legal interpretation depends on the production country or sales market, the result should identify that jurisdiction rather than offer a universal answer.
A teaching example
Teaching example, not a real label
| Example field | Deliberately impossible placeholder |
|---|---|
| Distillery name | Example Distillery |
| Age wording | 00 years |
| Cask identifier | 0000 |
| Bottling year | Bottled 0000 |
This example demonstrates how the tool should separate fields, not how to describe a real whisky. Its impossible values must not be corrected into plausible ones, treated as production records or used to generate a fictional bottling.
For this input, the decoder should report the supplied name, age wording, identifier and year as separate entries. Any explanation requiring a real producer, valid date or applicable legal category should remain unresolved.
Method and sources
The proposed method is to extract the supplied wording, group it by field and match relevant terms against the site’s verified reference records. A match should produce an explanation only when the record supports that term in the relevant context; similar wording alone is not enough.
The decoder has not yet been built, and this page does not interpret labels or give legal conclusions.
Limits of the decoder
The planned tool is an aid to reading, not authentication or a replacement for the complete label. It should not declare a bottle genuine, establish an undisclosed production location or resolve a missing fact by guessing.
If a result cannot be supported, it should say “unknown” or “not verified” and explain what information is missing. A clear limit is more useful than a confident answer the evidence cannot sustain.
Sources
No external sources were supplied for this tool specification; no legal definitions or product records are reproduced here.
This page was prepared as a desk-based functional specification from the supplied editorial brief, without testing a working decoder.
Last checked: November 2026