Class 33: Wine, Spirits, Cider & Alcoholic Drinks
Class 33 covers alcoholic drinks other than beer: wine, spirits, liqueurs, cider, alcoholic cocktails, hard seltzers and ready-to-drink mixes. It’s the 29th most used of the 45 classes, with 14,247 UK registrations between September 2021 and September 2026, which is about 55% fewer registrations than the average class. It’s a smaller class, but craft gin, rum and wine brands have made it a busy one for names, and many of them sound alike.
What class 33 covers
This is the official Nice heading, in full:
Alcoholic beverages, except beers; alcoholic preparations for making beverages.
The heading is short, and the important word in it is “except”. Beer has its own home in class 32, so class 33 is every other alcoholic drink: wine and sparkling wine, gin, vodka, whisky, rum, brandy and liqueurs, cider and perry, and pre-mixed alcoholic drinks. It also covers the alcoholic bases and essences used to make drinks.
The mistake I see most often
The mistake is protecting the bottle and nothing around it. Modern drinks brands rarely stop at the liquid. They add a tonic or an alcohol-free version, a tasting room, an online shop and branded glassware, and each of those sits in a different class.
Take a craft gin brand. The gin is class 33. The tonic and any alcohol-free version are class 32, the distillery bar is class 43, the online shop is class 35 and the branded copa glasses are class 21. File only class 33 and the name is protected on the gin, but a competitor could open a bar or sell a tonic under a very similar name, and that’s often where confusion with customers starts.
You don’t need every class on day one. It’s worth listing what you sell now and what you’ll realistically add in the next couple of years, then filing for the classes that matter. A UK application can’t have classes added later.
When you definitely need class 33
- You distil gin, vodka, whisky, rum or another spirit
- You make or import wine or sparkling wine under your own label
- You produce cider, perry or fruit wines
- You sell canned cocktails, hard seltzers or other ready-to-drink alcoholic drinks
- You make liqueurs, cream liqueurs or flavoured spirits
When you might need class 33 without realising
The businesses I see miss class 33 usually think of the drink as a side line.
- Breweries adding a cider or a spirit. The beer is class 32, but cider is class 33, on 1,176 registrations, and so is any gin or whisky made from the same grain.
- Bars and restaurants with their own label. The venue is a class 43 service, but a house gin or a bottled cocktail you sell to take away is a class 33 product. Pre-mixed alcoholic beverages appear on 1,598 registrations.
- Gift and hamper brands. A branded bottle of sparkling wine or liqueur in a gift box is a class 33 product in its own right, whoever made the liquid inside.
- Influencers and celebrity brands launching a drink. A spirit or wine launched off the back of a personal brand needs class 33 for the drink, separately from any clothing or media classes the name already has.
Not sure whether your drink is class 33 or class 32? The free class tools below show you where businesses like yours actually file, or you can give us a call.
What businesses actually claim in class 33
These are the terms that turn up most often in recent UK class 33 registrations:
| Term | Marks using it | Share of class 33 | How common |
|---|---|---|---|
| wine | 2,977 | 20.9% | Most use this |
| alcoholic beverages (except beer) | 2,465 | 17.3% | Most use this |
| alcoholic beverages (except beers) | 2,382 | 16.7% | Most use this |
| liqueurs | 2,221 | 15.6% | Most use this |
| spirits | 2,205 | 15.5% | Most use this |
| alcoholic beverages, except beer | 2,193 | 15.4% | Most use this |
| whisky | 2,152 | 15.1% | Most use this |
| vodka | 2,044 | 14.3% | Most use this |
| alcoholic cocktails | 2,043 | 14.3% | Most use this |
| wines | 2,035 | 14.3% | Most use this |
Wine and the broad heading lead the table. Wine is claimed on 2,977 registrations, and the heading itself, alcoholic beverages (except beer), on 2,465, with several near-identical versions of the same wording close behind. Many applicants claim the broad heading to cover the whole class and then add the drinks they actually make.
The spirits follow: liqueurs (2,221), whisky (2,152) and vodka (2,044), with alcoholic cocktails (2,043) not far behind. That last one reflects how much of the market has moved into ready-to-drink cans and bottles.
What class 33 does not cover
Beer, mixers and alcohol-free drinks are class 32. Beer, lager and stout are class 32, and so are tonics, mixers and alcohol-free versions of drinks such as wine. Beers appear on 4,007 class 32 registrations and non-alcoholic cocktails on 1,367. A gin brand that launches its own tonic, or an alcohol-free version, is moving into class 32.
Bars, tasting rooms and hospitality are class 43. Making the gin is class 33. Serving it to customers is a class 43 service, where bar services appear on 4,435 registrations and wine bars on 1,008. A distillery with its own bar or a vineyard with a restaurant usually needs both.
Running a wine shop or online drinks store is class 35. The bottles are class 33, but the retail service of selling them, in a shop or online, is a class 35 service. A wine merchant that also has its own-label range usually needs both: class 33 for the wine and class 35 for the shop.
Glasses, decanters and cocktail shakers are class 21. A gift set with branded glasses, or a cocktail kit with a shaker, includes class 21 goods. Wine glasses appear on 1,246 class 21 registrations and cocktail shakers on 1,473. If the barware carries your brand and is sold separately, it needs its own class.
Where these terms actually live
| Term | Belongs to | Marks using it |
|---|---|---|
| cocktail shakers | Class 21 | 1,473 |
| wine glasses | Class 21 | 1,246 |
| vinegar | Class 30 | 1,960 |
| beers | Class 32 | 4,007 |
| non-alcoholic cocktails | Class 32 | 1,367 |
| bar services | Class 43 | 4,435 |
| wine bars | Class 43 | 1,008 |
Each of these is a separate registration. A mark in class 33 does not cover any of them.
Is class 33 the right class for you?
If you make, import or sell wine, spirits, liqueurs, cider, hard seltzers or ready-to-drink alcoholic drinks under your own brand, class 33 is very likely yours. If you also brew beer, make mixers or alcohol-free drinks, run a bar or shop, or sell branded barware, look at classes 32, 43, 35 and 21 as well.
Our free class tools build a specification from wording already accepted on real UK filings, so you can see what businesses like yours claim before you commit.
Common questions about class 33
Are hard seltzers and canned cocktails class 33?
Yes. Hard seltzers, alcoholic seltzers and pre-mixed cocktails in cans or bottles are all alcoholic drinks that aren’t beer, so they’re class 33. That’s true even when they look and sell like soft drinks. The sparkling water used as a base is class 32, but once the drink contains alcohol, it’s class 33.
Answered by Jonathan Paton, Founder & CEOIs wine vinegar covered by class 33?
No. Vinegar is a condiment, so it’s class 30, where vinegar appears on 1,960 registrations, even when it’s made from wine. A vineyard selling its own wine and its own vinegar needs both classes. It’s a small point, but it’s exactly the kind of product that gets added to a range later and left off the original filing.
Answered by Jonathan Paton, Founder & CEOMy distillery runs tours and tastings. Which class covers that?
Tours and tastings are services, not drinks, so class 33 won’t cover them. Wine and spirit tastings run as education or entertainment are class 41, operating tours is class 39, and serving drinks to visitors at a bar is class 43. Most distilleries only need one or two of these, depending on what they actually offer, so it’s worth matching the wording to how you run your visits.
Answered by Jonathan Paton, Founder & CEOIs ‘spirits’ enough, or should I name gin or whisky?
Broad terms like spirits (2,205) cover a lot of ground, and plenty of brands use them. But naming the drink you actually make, such as gin, whisky or rum, gives you a specification that clearly matches your product, which is easier to rely on if you ever need to enforce it. Many applicants do both.
Answered by Jonathan Paton, Founder & CEOAbout these figures. Last researched 23 September 2026, from UK trademarks registered between September 2021 and September 2026 whose entry in this class is still active. That is current drafting practice rather than the historical register. Terms shown are those most frequently used in that period.
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