Even in ancient times, attempts were made to prevent the misuse and adulteration of wine quality through appropriate laws and regulations. There is written evidence of this from many authors in the relevant literature. The oldest wine law in this regard, with strict penalties for non-compliance, was passed by the Babylonian ruler Hammurabi (1728-1686 BC), whose empire at the time covered almost the whole of Mesopotamia. The law of the Roman Republic also regulated the sale (especially the wholesale trade) of wine and defined in the individual laws what guarantee of quality the buyer could expect and how the wine could be marketed. In the "Lex Salica"(Salic Law) issued by the Merovingian King Clovis I (466-511), viticultural matters were also regulated, as viticulture was already widespread in what is now Germany at this time. Quality criteria and classes were already introduced in the individual countries in the early Middle Ages. Emperor Charlemagne (742-814) issued corresponding laws.
In the 17th century, there were the following four wine quality levels in Burgenland(Austria): Vinum Nobile (noble wine, wine made from dried grapes), Vinum Bonum (quality wine made from the varieties Furmint, Weißer Augster, Blauer Augster and Muskateller), Vinum Mediocre (wine of medium quality) and Vinum Cibale (food wine or table wine). In the Austrian capital of Vienna in the 18th century, there were the quality levels Herrschaftswein (only for the court table), Offizierswein and Soldatenwein. At that time, starting in Spain (Rioja), Portugal (port wine) and Italy (Chianti), wines were divided into two quality classes, namely higher quality wines with and lower quality wines without a clearly defined geographical origin. This subsequently gave rise to the concept of Romanesque wine law.
From the end of the 19th century, strict laws were introduced in all wine-growing countries, particularly in Europe, in order to ensure or improve wine quality and protect against wine adulteration. At that time, however, there were of course still major differences in the individual countries. Finally, from the 1930s onwards, the origin-orientated appellation system was established in France as a model for most European countries. A comprehensive body of laws and regulations was created within the European Union on the basis of these provisions. The laws of the member states are based on this, although there are country-specific deviations in detail.
The standard work in Germany is "Weinrecht" (Walhalla-Verlag, Wilhelm Schevardo and Josef Koy), which comprises 4,570 pages plus CD-ROM in the edition published in December 2019. It covers the wine law of the EU, the Federal Republic and the federal states. Another work is the "Wine Law" online platform published by the German Wine Institute (DWI) (digital successor to the "Wine Law Commentary" by Prof Dr Hans-Jörg Koch). The standard work in Austria is the "Weingesetz" (Manz-Verlag, Hannes Mraz and Hans Valentin), which comprises 816 pages in the 5th edition published in 2018. It offers a comprehensive presentation of the entire wine law, including all regulations and EU provisions. There is also the electronic database RIS (Legal Information System), which contains, among other things, wine law issues.
Depending on the climatic conditions and therefore different scenarios, Europe is divided into three main zones A, B and (with subzones) C. There are different requirements or exemptions for certain winemaking processes in each wine-growing zone. Each EU member state can authorise certain oenological processes or treatments for experimental purposes. The restriction for such wines is that the entire "trial" within a member state may not last longer than three years (a one-off extension to a further three years is permitted). However, the wine treated in this way may not be sold in other EU member states.
In addition to the EU regulations, there are additional or often even stricter country-specific regulations, which usually vary from region to region, growing area to individual vineyards or even specific wines. In addition to those mentioned above, these regulations also govern points such as certain forms of cultivation, regulations regarding winemaking, special bottle shapes (such as the Bocksbeutel), minimum ageing periods for wines (barrel and/or bottle), wine designations and the earliest time of marketing. The inspection of these rules by official bodies is also defined. The exact regulations are listed under the respective countries.
In the New World, on the other hand, wine laws are usually far less strictly regulated. In most countries, the normative power of the factual applies. The focus is very much on consumer wishes, which also leads to a certain standardisation of wine styles. In this context, the term Coca-Cola wines has emerged, especially in the USA. In most cases, there is only a distinction between wine, dessert wine and sparkling wine with minimum alcohol limits. Yield restrictions and grape variety specifications are not common. Enrichment with sugar is often prohibited, for example in Australia, Chile and South Africa, and acidification is obligatory due to climatic conditions, especially in many southern countries. The wine trade agreement concluded between the EU and the USA in 2005 and the EU wine market organisation adopted in 2006 brought extensive changes.
In December 2005, the EU agriculture ministers took a momentous decision that led to strong reactions. They signed a wine trade agreement with the USA that had been under discussion since 1983. It came into effect at the beginning of 2006 and regulates the mutual recognition of production standards in winemaking. All processes that were approved in the USA or the EU on or before 14 September 2005 are now mutually approved. However, this only applies to the marketing of products in the respective other area; what is permitted in the USA may very well be prohibited in the EU. This ended a long-standing dispute between American and European winegrowers.
The USA is now also allowed to import wines into the EU that have been processed using certain "modern technologies". Critics believe that this will flood the market with so-called Coca-Cola wines. In return, the USA recognised protected European designations of origin. The previously misused designations such as Bordeaux, Champagne, Chianti or Tokaj are no longer used on the labels. When assessing the agreement, which was immediately controversial and criticised after it was signed, it should be noted that the USA is the largest export market for European wine. EU wine exports to the United States are around five times the volume of US wine exports to EU countries. If no agreement had been reached, this would probably have led to severe losses for the EU in the wine trade as a result of restrictions imposed by the USA.
The new processes include cellar techniques that have long been used on a large scale in the USA in particular, but some of which are already in use in Europe. These can be used to change the flavour of a wine. These are, for example, devices that remove water from the wine by means of filtering, freezing or vapour processes, thereby concentrating the ingredients. Spinning Cone Column (SCC) is a process that has long been used in the oil industry but is new to winemaking. In simple terms, the wine is broken down into certain components and these are then reassembled in such a way that a different flavour is produced in terms of alcohol content and aromas.
One particularly criticised application is the addition of water to dilute a must that has grown under the hot sun and is too concentrated. Another is the addition of tannin or wood flavours in various forms. This does not refer to barrique ageing, which is used worldwide, but to less complex and less expensive methods such as the use of wood chips (pieces of oak wood) or the addition of aromatic oak extracts. Wood chips have been permitted by EU regulation since the beginning of 2007. Oenological tannins and oenological enzymes are also partially permitted in the EU. All relevant substances are listed under the keyword " wine-making agents ".
The biggest point of criticism is that the agreement does not provide for mandatory labelling of the production process. The consumer therefore does not know how the wine was produced. Some of these techniques are referred to as wine adulteration (panting). It was feared that the EU markets would be flooded with cheaply produced artificial wines from the USA. However, some controversial techniques have also been used in Europe for some time and are authorised by the EU, at least for experimental purposes. These include, in particular, agents used during fermentation such as special yeasts, enzymes and nutrients, as well as processes such as osmosis (reverse osmosis) and the use of RCGM and concentrated grape must.
At the end of 2008, Australia followed the USA in agreeing to dispense with the European terms of origin such as Burgundy, Champagne, Port, Sherry or Sauternes, which have always been misused. In an agreement between the European Union and Australia, the use of these terms was reorganised. Australia has agreed to abandon these terms after a one-year transitional period from the beginning of 2010. In return, however, the right will be granted to export Australian wines with reduced alcohol to the EU, which was previously prohibited. These are products in which part of the alcohol has been removed, for example by osmosis (reverse osmosis)(reduced-alcohol wine).
In June 2006, the EU published a reform of the Common Market Organisation for wine. The aim was to take appropriate measures to counteract the downward trend in consumption (minus 750,000 hectolitres annually) and the sharp increase in imports of wine from third countries. Due to an estimated surplus production of 15% at the time, the member states were threatened with a drastic loss of income in viticulture. By 2011, a total of 160,000 hectares of vineyards had been eliminated through a grubbing-up programme. Planting rights were then reorganised in 2013.
In August 2009, the new CMO for wine (Common Market Organisation for Wine) came into force. This mainly affected wine labelling law, various oenological processes with changes to enrichment (increasing alcohol content), sulphurous acidity (limit values), sweetening (increasing residual sugar) and wood chips (oak chips). Within the EU, quality wines may no longer be bottled exclusively in bottles, but also in containers such as bag-in-boxes, PET bottles and Tetra Paks. The most serious change was the introduction of the internationally established principle of origin with the resulting new wine quality levels. This is described in detail under the heading " Quality system ".
Most of the legal provisions listed below are based on various EU regulations. Naturally, there are always changes and amendments. In detail, the regulations often differ depending on the wine-growing zone and/or wine quality level. In addition, the countries often have the possibility of obtaining exemptions or a certain amount of leeway, mostly due to climatic or traditional reasons:
For the production of alcoholic beverages, see Champagne (sparkling wines), Distillation (distillates), Speciality wines, Spirits (types) and Winemaking (wines and wine types). All work and tools in the vineyard during the annual vegetation cycle are listed under the heading vineyard care.
Weighing scales: by succo on Pixabay
Grapes and glasses: by Photo Mix from Pixabay
World map: by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay
For me, Lexicon from wein.plus is the most comprehensive and best source of information about wine currently available.
Egon Mark
Diplom-Sommelier, Weinakademiker und Weinberater, Volders (Österreich)