A number of studies have highlighted the usefulness of carbon footprint (CF) to report environmental results in the wine sector, due to its common use by stakeholders and its favourable acceptance by the general public. The main aim of this study was to calculate the CF of 9 different types of wine in three different European nations (Italy, Luxembourg and Spain) under the same life-cycle methodological assumptions, to determine the main reasons for varying CF results. Moreover, the consequences that these discrepancies can cause in CF reporting were explored. Results demonstrated relevant differences in CF values depending on the appellation and on the type of wine. These were linked to a variety of factors, such as wine ageing, optimization of inputs, harvest yields, data quality or agricultural practices (i.e. organic vs. conventional). In fact, these differences, linked to the differing niche markets of the wines assessed, indicate the difficulty in standardizing specific mechanisms for GHG emissions communication in the wine sector. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.