18.3.18 Wine Origins Launch DO Protection Campaign in US

The Consejo Regulador and Wine Origins (of which it is a member) have spent the last week campaigning to increase protection for Denominations of Origin in the United States. There, many European wines, such as Sherry, Port and Champagne, among others, are considered “semi-generic” and these names continue to be used legally for imitations produced in America. On 1^st March 2016 the European Union and the United States signed the Wine Accord in an attempt to deal with this, but unfortunately American producers with labels already registered with these names were allowed to continue to use them.

Representatives of the various Wine Origins Denominations. Cesar Saldana from Jerez is at back centre (foto:CRDO Jerez)

The problem is that American consumers have to try to distinguish between the real thing and locally produced imitations which give a false impression of the real thing. Wine Origins is an alliance of classic wine production areas in Europe, the United States and Australia which is campaigning to protect the names of their wines’ origins. Many American producers have joined the alliance, and research shows that 94% of American consumers support the idea. Thecampaign involved much lobbying of senators, congressmen and the media, and the results have been very positive - with the help of the occasional tasting. Only the large corporations which are members of the California Wine Institute stand in the way, but it was felt that their armour had been breached. Most of the world’s great wines are named after their place of origin, and the real thing can only be produced there, so it is vital to protect them.