Facing a wall of unfamiliar cans in a Brooklyn bottle shop? Here’s how to read a beer label: find the style words, then the alcohol percentage, then notice what the label leaves out.
For the wider picture of the local scene, see the overview of brooklyn craft beer.
| Label element | What the TTB pages say |
|---|---|
| Class designation (ale, lager, stout and so on) | Mandatory; the type designation is optional |
| Alcohol by volume statement | Optional, unless flavors or other added ingredients contribute alcohol |
| Precision at 0.5% alcohol by volume or more | Nearest one-tenth of one percent |
| The abbreviation “ABV” | Not allowed on the label |
| “Low alcohol” or “reduced alcohol” claim | Only below 2.5% alcohol by volume |
| Class names for products below 0.5% alcohol by volume | Malt beverage, cereal beverage or near beer |
These figures come from the TTB’s malt beverage label tool and its alcohol content page. Rules can change and state law can add its own requirements, so check the source before you rely on them.
Start with the brand name and the style words
The front of a can usually gives you a brand name first. That is the name under which a beer or a line of beers is marketed, and the TTB says it may not mislead you about the age, origin, identity or other characteristics of the product.
Next comes the class designation. The TTB lists ale, lager, beer, malt liquor, stout, porter and malt beverage as acceptable class designations, and says a class designation is mandatory while a type designation is optional.
A style name alone cannot be the brand. The TTB tool notes that a class or type word such as “ale” or “stout” standing alone may not be used as the brand name, so a can called simply “Stout” would not pass.
Here is what to look for on the front and back, in the order that tends to help most:
- Brand name: who or what the beer is sold as.
- Class and type: the plain-language category, such as ale or porter.
- Distinctive or fanciful name: a descriptive name or phrase added to the brand to further identify a product, often used to separate flavors within one brand.
- Graphics: optional, and still subject to rules against creating a misleading impression.
Some beers do not fit a familiar category. The TTB says those must carry a distinctive or fanciful name plus a statement of composition, which is why an unusual can may spell out what is inside.
How to read a beer label’s alcohol percentage
Many drinkers say ABV, but the TTB says that abbreviation is not allowed on a malt beverage label. Instead, look for wording such as “alcohol percentage by volume” or “alc/vol”, as the Brewers Association describes the retained rules in its January 2025 summary.
The statement is often optional. According to the TTB, an alcohol by volume statement is required when a beer has any alcohol from added flavors or other added nonbeverage ingredients containing alcohol (other than hops extract), and otherwise it is optional unless state law requires or prohibits it.
A few formatting rules help you spot a compliant label:
- The number is stated to the nearest one-tenth of one percent when the beer has 0.5 percent or more alcohol by volume, per the TTB alcohol content page.
- It cannot be a range, a maximum or a minimum value.
- It may sit on any label panel, so check the back and the side as well as the front.
Some labels add alcohol by weight too. The TTB permits it only alongside the volume statement, and its example label shows 5% by volume with 4% by weight, so a lower weight figure is normal and not a sign of a weaker beer.
What do “low alcohol” and “non-alcoholic” mean on a beer?
The TTB reserves “low alcohol” and “reduced alcohol” for malt beverages containing less than 2.5 percent alcohol by volume. A beer at or above that level cannot use those words, even with a tolerance.
“Non-alcoholic” has its own condition. The term may be used only if the statement “contains less than 0.5 percent (or.5%) alcohol by volume” appears immediately adjacent to it, in readily legible printing, on a completely contrasting background.
Products below 0.5% alcohol by volume have a narrower vocabulary. They must use “malt beverage,” “cereal beverage” or “near beer” as the class designation, and the TTB says they may not be labeled “beer,” “lager,” “ale,” “porter” or “stout.”
Where do IBU and hazy-style terms fit?
The TTB pages behind this guide do not address IBU, the bitterness number some brewers print. Treat any IBU figure as the brewer’s own description rather than a regulated statement, and compare it with how the beer actually tastes.
Style words on the front can be looser than the class designation. If a can promises haze or juice, the explainer on what is a hazy ipa shows what that term usually signals before you buy.
A quick checklist before you buy
- Find the class: ale, lager, stout, porter, beer, malt liquor or malt beverage.
- Read any fanciful name and the style words around it.
- Look for the alcohol percentage on every panel, remembering it may be optional.
- Check whether a “low alcohol” or “non-alcoholic” claim comes with the wording the TTB requires.
- Notice any flavor mention, since added flavors can make the alcohol statement mandatory.
Once you have decoded the can, the guide on how to taste beer helps you check the label’s promises against what is in the glass.
What labels may look like if proposed rules go ahead
On January 17, 2025, the Brewers Association reported that the TTB would publish two proposed rules on alcohol beverage labels. They were proposals, not final rules, so check the TTB for their later status.
Under the proposed “alcohol facts” statement, labels would show:
- Serving size and number of servings per container
- Alcohol content and ounces of pure alcohol per serving
- Calories per serving
- Grams per serving of carbohydrates, fat and protein
The proposal would set 12 ounces as the standard serving for malt beverages below 7% ABV. In the Brewers Association’s example, a 6% ABV beer in a 16-ounce can would list its figures per 16 ounces. The proposal also keeps the existing refusal to recognize “ABV” as an acceptable term, according to the same summary.
Frequently asked questions
Does every beer label have to show the alcohol percentage?
Show answer
Not under the TTB page used here. An alcohol by volume statement is required when added flavors or other added nonbeverage ingredients contribute alcohol, and it is otherwise optional unless state law says differently.
Can a beer label say “ABV”?
Show answer
The TTB says the abbreviation “ABV” is not allowed. Only “alc.” and “vol.” may abbreviate the words alcohol and volume.
What is near beer?
Show answer
It is one of three class designations the TTB allows for malt beverages with less than 0.5% alcohol by volume, alongside “malt beverage” and “cereal beverage.” Both words must appear in the same size and style of type, color of ink and background.
Can a label give an alcohol range, like 5 to 6 percent?
Show answer
No. The TTB says alcohol content statements may not be expressed as a range or as maximum or minimum values.
Will beer labels show calories and nutrition?
Show answer
They were proposed as part of an “alcohol facts” statement in a rulemaking the Brewers Association summarized on January 17, 2025. Check the TTB for the latest status before assuming they are required.
