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Step 1
If you have a dense wine label such as a heavy paper or a plastic coated or metallic material, try this method first. Fill the bottle with hot water and put a cork back in it. Then use a hair dryer to warm the label. Then gently use a razor blade to get under the edge. If the wine label is held on with sticky glue, this will soften it and the label should be easy to peel off.
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Step 2
If the label is a softer paper with water soluble glue, this method will work the best. This works for most wine bottle labels. Fully submerge the bottle in warm water for 30 minutes. If the water is too warm, you may damage the wine label. At this time, the label should either be floating in the water or be free enough to pull from the bottle. If it isn't, give it about two more hours to work on the glue and it should be free.
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Step 3
If neither of these methods works to remove the wine label, you may need to do it the hard way. Dry the label by patting or pressing it with a paper towel. Fill the bottle with hot water to help release the glue and put a cork in it. Slowly work along the long edge of the wine label with a razor blade. Work along the side about a quarter inch at a time from top to bottom until the label is completely released.
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Step 4
Allow the wine label to dry completely. At this time you can press it into a book or between two pieces of flat wood to remove any creases and to flatten them out. You can also try ironing them on low heat. In any case, beware of residual glue as you may just cause the label to stick to a new surface.
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Step 5
Once the labels are flat, they can be stored in files or in scrapbooks. A great way to store them is by putting a 3x5 note card in with them with details about the wine. Labels can also be glued to the back of the note card and stored in recipe card boxes for easy access and organization.
