Tables 1 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
The four Tables to the Alcoholic Beverages Regulations, 2018 carry the numbers that the product standards in Parts 1 to 4 refer to: ethyl alcohol, residue on evaporation, higher alcohols, methyl alcohol, metals and, for beer, pH, carbon dioxide and microbial counts. Annexure-1 lists traditional Indian liquors and the Table each must comply with.
The text is read as amended up to 19 November 2025 (FSSAI Compendium Version V dated 04.12.2025). FSSAI compendia are reference consolidations and the Gazette text prevails. Later notifications should be checked on fssai.gov.in. Producers who need to match a product to a Table usually do so when scoping a central FSSAI licence.
Table 1 covers distilled beverages (referred to from regulation 2.1), Table 2 wine and fruit wine (regulation 3.1), Table 3 beer (4.1), and Table 4 requirements for alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages (previously low alcoholic beverages other than wine and beer; regulation 1.3.9). Each Table has numbered characteristics down the side and product categories across the top, with a maximum or range per cell. Annexure-1 maps each named traditional beverage to a Table and serial number.
How to read any of the Tables
Each Table is a grid. The first column is a serial number, the second is the characteristic with its unit, and the remaining columns are the products. Most entries are maxima ("Max"); some are ranges; a dash means "Not Applicable". Footnote marks such as an asterisk qualify an entry. The limits are quoted below only as printed; no figure is computed or compared.
Table 1: distilled alcoholic beverages
Table 1 has thirteen numbered characteristics and fifteen product columns: Brandy (grape brandy and blended brandy), Country Liquor (plain and blended, now also Indian liquors), Fenny (cashew and coconut), Gin, Liqueur or Cordial or Aperitif, Rum, White Rum, Vodka, Whisky (malt or grain or single malt, and blended) and Pot Distilled Spirits. The columns for country liquor carry a substitution said to come into force on 1 January 2026. Sample rows as printed:
| Sr. | Characteristic | Sample entries |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ethyl alcohol content at 20 degrees C (per cent by volume), Max | for example 36 to 50 for brandy; 19 to 43 for country liquor |
| 2 | Residue on evaporation per cent (m/v), Max* | 2.0 for grape brandy; 1.0 for plain country liquor |
| 9 | Arsenic mg/l, Max | 0.25 across the listed products |
| 10 | Cadmium mg/l, Max | 0.01 across the listed products |
| 11 | Copper mg/l, Max | 5.0 across the listed products |
| 12 | Lead mg/l, Max | 0.2 across the listed products |
| 13 | Mercury mg/l, Max | 0.25 for some products; "-" for others |
The asterisk on serial 2 reads: for flavoured or premix rum, vodka, whisky, gin and for low alcoholic beverages, the maximum limit of residue on evaporation shall be 25 per cent (m/v). Serials 3 to 8 cover volatile acids, higher alcohols, methyl alcohol, total esters, furfural and aldehydes, each expressed in grams per 100 litres of absolute alcohol; they differ product by product and should be read in the Table itself.
Table 2: wine
Table 2 has columns for table wine (white and red), wine with carbon dioxide, fortified wine, fruit wine (other than grape wine, with honey wine added by amendment), cider, perry, and wine from other agricultural and plant sources. It has fourteen characteristics.
| Sr. | Characteristic | Sample entries |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ethyl alcohol content at 20 degrees C, % by volume | 7.0 to 15.5 for table wine; 15.0 to 24.0 for fortified wine; 1.5 to 8.0 for wine from other plant sources |
| 3 | Volatile acids as acetic acid g/l, Max | 1.2 |
| 5 | Total acids expressed as tartaric (g/l of wine), Max | 10.0 |
| 6 | Methyl alcohol (mg/l of wine), Max | 250 or 400 depending on the product |
| 13 | Lead (mg/l), Max | 0.2 |
| 14 | Ochratoxin A (ug/l), Max | 20 |
Serial 2, the residual extract, is stated on a basis that excludes sugar. A footnote says wine-based beverages comply with the standards of table wine according to their ethyl alcohol content. Serial 7 (esters) has an amended entry shown with a date of 1 June 2026.
Table 3: beer
Table 3 has columns for beer, draught beer and craft beer, each as regular and strong. Its characteristics include pH (3.3-4.8), carbon dioxide v/v minimum (1.8-3.6), methyl alcohol (50.0 mg/l max), copper, iron, lead, arsenic, cadmium, total plate count, coliform count, wild yeast and moulds, and brewer's yeast. The coliform count, wild yeast and moulds are shown as "Absent" for every category. Total plate count is shown as less than 10 or less than 100 cfu per ml depending on the column, with an amendment substituting the row. Brewer's yeast is "Absent" for beer and shown with an asterisk, "limit not prescribed", for draught and craft beer. A footnote says the brewer's yeast limit does not apply to secondary fermented beer, which shall be declared on the label as secondary fermented beer.
Table 4: alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages
Table 4 is a single-column list. The heading originally read "Requirements for Low Alcoholic Beverages other than wine and beer"; an amendment substitutes "Requirements for Alcoholic Ready-to-drink beverages", and the ethyl alcohol entry changes from ">0.5 to 8.0" to ">0.5 to <15.0" per cent by volume. The other entries as printed: residue on evaporation 25.0 per cent (m/v) Max; total acids as tartaric acid 1.0 per cent (m/v) Max; methyl alcohol 25.0 g/100 l of absolute alcohol Max; sugar 20.0 per cent (w/v) Max; pH 2.0 to 5.0; copper 1.0 mg/l Max; iron 5.0 mg/l Max; lead 0.2 mg/l Max; arsenic 0.25 mg/l Max; cadmium 0.1 mg/l Max.
Annexure-1: traditional Indian liquors
Annexure-1, inserted by amendment (said to come into force on 1 January 2026), has three tables. Each row gives the product, its raw materials and starter, and "product category to comply".
| Table in the Annexure | Entries | Category to comply | Sample entries |
|---|---|---|---|
| I: Indian Liquors (distilled) | 27 | Table 1 (5) | Madda feni (cashew fruit); Mahua (dried corollas of Madhuca longifolia and ranu); Toddy liquor (distilled palm sap) |
| II: Indian Liquor (undistilled) | 3 | Table 2 | Angoori or kinnauri (grapes; White Wine (3) and Red Wine (4)); Chulli (apricot; Table 2 (7)) |
| III: Indian Liquor (low alcoholic beverage) | 51 | Table 4 | Apong or ennog (rice, Apoppitha); Chhang (finger millet or barley and phab); Pachwai (rice, bhakar) |
A Note says that products specified in Tables 1, 2 and 3 of the Annexure, governed by any other Act and Regulations, are exempted from the provisions of these Regulations. The list of raw materials in regulation 2.2 is described as "not exhaustive".
An invented example: Himalaya Fruit Brewers makes an apricot drink fermented from the fruit. The Annexure lists "Chulli" with apricot as the raw material and refers it to Table 2 (7), the fruit wine column. A distiller of a rice liquor named "Basi" would look to Table 1 (5).
Where these Tables are referred to
Each distilled standard ends with "Table-1" (brandy to rum; vodka, liqueur and whisky); wine refers to Table-2 (Part 3); beer to Table-3 (Part 4); and Part 1 refers to Table-4 for ready-to-drink and low alcoholic beverages (Part 1).
Need help with a product category?
Choosing the right Table decides which limits a lab report is judged against. Our central FSSAI licence team can help place each variant in the correct category before testing.
Key takeaways
- Table 1: distilled beverages; Table 2: wine; Table 3: beer; Table 4: alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages.
- Each Table lists characteristics by serial number with product columns; a dash means Not Applicable.
- Metals are stated in mg/l (arsenic 0.25 and lead 0.2 in most cells).
- Annexure-1 maps traditional beverages to a Table and serial number and was inserted by amendment.
Read next
- Part 1: definitions and general requirements
- Part 4: beer and draught beer
- Part 5: labelling of alcoholic beverages
- Alcoholic beverages regulation under FSSAI
Disclaimer: Based on the FSSAI regulations named above as consolidated in FSSAI's compendium versions or as published in the Gazette, with the later notifications the article names (consulted on fssai.gov.in on 2-3 October 2026). Later notifications and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 provisions referred to should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.