Appelations

July 24, 2009 | Geographic Indicators

Despite (or perhaps because of) the traditional importance of appellations for wine, there has been little harmonization of national provisions within the European Union. Member States delimit the specified areas of production and determine the rules and appellations that apply: the European Commission restricts itself to publishing the information provided by the Member States. Appellations are usually the geographical name of the area in which the wine is produced, although there are some historical exceptions: muscadet and blanquette in France, cava and manzanilla in Spain and vinho verde in Portugal. The appellations are not necessarily unique: Cava may refer either to a quality sparkling wine psr produced in Spain or to a Greek table wine which has been aged