Wine advertising rules for wineries in the UK, France and the US

Wine advertising is allowed in the UK, France and the US, and on Google, Meta and TikTok, as long as the ad is aimed at adults and keeps the message on the wine. In the UK, the CAP Code says anyone shown drinking must be and look over 25, and an ad can’t run in any medium where more than 25% of the audience is under 18. France’s loi Évin limits what the ad can say to facts about the wine, its origin and its taste, with a health message. In the US, ads must name the responsible advertiser and target people aged 21 and over.

The rules at a glance

	UK	France	US
Youngest audience you can target	18	18	21
People shown drinking	Must be and seem over 25	Rarely shown, as content sticks to the wine	25 and over under the Wine Institute code
What the message can cover	Anything socially responsible	The wine’s facts, origin, terroir, awards, colour, aroma and taste	Anything truthful, with the advertiser’s name and contact details
Main rulebook	CAP Code section 18	Code de la santé publique, articles L3323-2 to L3323-4	27 CFR Part 4, Subpart G

The UK: the CAP Code

Every non-broadcast wine ad in the UK, from a Facebook post you pay to boost to a poster at the station, falls under section 18 of the CAP Code, enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority. The code is short and reads clearly. The rules that shape a winery’s ads most:

• Who appears. Anyone drinking or playing a significant role must be and seem over 25 (rule 18.16). Younger people can appear at a family meal, for example, as long as they obviously aren’t drinking.
• Who sees it. Ads must not appeal particularly to under-18s, and no medium can carry alcohol ads if more than 25% of its audience is under 18 (rules 18.14 and 18.15).
• What wine is linked with. Showing wine as sociable is fine (rule 18.3). Keep it apart from confidence, popularity, seduction, success at work or sport, and solving problems (rules 18.2 to 18.7).
• Strength. State the ABV as a fact. A wine strong for its style can’t make a feature of its strength. A low-alcohol wine can present its lower strength as a reason to choose it, with the ABV stated clearly (rule 18.9).
• Health. The only nutrition claims allowed are “low-alcohol”, “reduced alcohol” and “reduced energy” (rule 18.17).

Influencers count as advertising when you pay them, and a case of wine counts as payment. Their posts carry “#ad” or “Ad” upfront, and the over-25 rule applies to them as it does to models. The ASA has upheld a complaint against an influencer who was 25 but could have passed for younger, so pick people who clearly look the age.

Labels, packaging, point of sale and merchandise sit under the Portman Group code instead. It applies to wine as much as beer and spirits, and its rulings include several wines. A name or label that appeals to children or links wine with sex or bravado can be pulled from retailers’ shelves.

France: the loi Évin

French law takes the opposite approach to the UK. Instead of listing what an ad can’t do, the loi Évin lists what it can do, and everything else is off limits.

Where you can advertise. Article L3323-2 lists the allowed media: the press (except youth titles), radio at set times, posters, mailings and catalogues from producers and merchants, delivery vehicles, local wine fairs, tastings and courses, and online. Online ads are allowed except on sites aimed mainly at young people or run by sports bodies, and the ad itself can’t be intrusive or interstitial. TV and cinema aren’t on the list, and sponsorship is banned.

What you can say. Article L3323-4 limits the ad to the wine’s strength, origin, name, composition, producer, production method, terms of sale and how to drink it. You can also mention its terroir, appellation, awards, and objective references to its colour, aroma and taste.

The health message. Every ad carries a message that “l’abus d’alcool est dangereux pour la santé”. The familiar “à consommer avec modération” is optional. Personally addressed mailings and trade circulars are exempt.

Terroir and wine tourism. Since 2016, article L3323-3-1 says that content about a wine region, its heritage, its landscapes and its know-how isn’t advertising, for wines with a protected designation. That is what makes a domaine’s wine tourism content and harvest stories possible.

The US: TTB and the Wine Institute code

Federal rules from the TTB (27 CFR 4.62) require every wine ad to show the responsible advertiser’s name with a city and state, or other contact details such as a website. The ad also states the wine’s class or type as it appears on the label. Statements that mislead, including by omission, are banned.

Wine Institute members, mostly California wineries, also follow its code of advertising standards. Models shown drinking are 25 or older, ads run only where roughly three in four of the audience are 21 or over, websites ask visitors to confirm their age, and age is checked again at purchase. Many wineries outside the Institute follow the same standards because the platforms expect it.

Platform by platform

Platform	Wine ads in the UK, France and US	Minimum age	Points to know
Google Ads	Allowed, no certification needed	Legal purchase age	Show the ABV on the landing page. Gmail ads, Dynamic Search Ads and app install ads aren’t available for alcohol
Google Shopping	Allowed with limitations	18, or the local drinking age	Listings can’t target minors
Meta (Facebook, Instagram)	Allowed	18 in the UK and France, 21 in the US	Local law and industry codes apply on top
TikTok	Allowed through a TikTok sales rep	18 in the UK and France, 25 in the US	Age gate on the landing page, ABV and a responsible drinking line in the ad, nobody under 25 on screen
LinkedIn	Restricted, by agreement with LinkedIn’s sales team	Legal drinking age	Mainly useful for trade and supplier campaigns

Sources: Google Ads alcohol policy, Meta alcohol ad standards, TikTok alcohol ad policy and LinkedIn ads policy, checked October 2026.

Ads that sell within the rules

The rules push wine ads towards the things that sell wine anyway: the place, the people who make it, the vintage and the food it goes with. The campaigns I run for wineries are built around something specific, such as a release with a date, a harvest weekend or a tasting at the estate. A specific offer is what persuades a stranger to join your list, and it gives the ad a reason to exist.

1. Start with people who know you. Visitors to your site, your email list and past buyers convert best, and branded search keeps your own name yours when a retailer bids on it
2. Offer a place on the list rather than a discount. Early access to a release or an invitation to a tasting grows the list and keeps your prices intact
3. Give every campaign its own landing page. Show the ABV, ask visitors to confirm their age, and make the next step a single button
4. Cast over 25, clearly. For models, staff and influencers alike, choose people nobody would mistake for younger
5. Write the French version for France. A campaign that works in the UK needs rewriting around terroir, appellation and taste before it runs in France

A pre-launch check for every wine ad

1. Everyone drinking or featured is over 25 and looks it
2. The audience is set to 18 and over in the UK and France, and 21 and over in the US
3. The ABV is on the landing page, and strength is stated as a fact
4. Wine is shown as sociable, with no link to success, confidence or romance
5. In France, the content sticks to the wine, and the health message is in place
6. In the US, the advertiser’s name and contact details are on the ad
7. Paid influencer posts carry “#ad” upfront

For a closer look at organic and paid social, read wine social media marketing. If you’d like campaigns built and run for you, see Google Ads and social media for wineries, or start with a marketing audit.