France will ban rosé made from mixing white and red wine, even if the EU sanctions the practice, French agriculture minister Michel Barnier has said.
On 27 April, the European Commission is expected to ratify a change in legislation that would permit rosé to be produced by mixing red and white wine, as part of a package of winemaking reforms.
'I am absolutely opposed to this insane idea of authorising artificial wines,' said Barnier on Sunday in an interview with RTL radio. He added that he would demand a Europe-wide prohibition on mixing.
'In any case, if other countries want to produce such artificial wines, we will maintain a ban on such production on our territory out of respect for the consumer and out of respect for the efforts made by French vineyards for quality and tradition,' said Barnier.
The world's leading rosé producer, French winemakers make still rosé by briefly macerating red grapes and removing the juice before it becomes heavily coloured. Many are furious that this process will be undermined by permitting production by mixing, a practice allowed in other regions.
EU Agricultural Commissioner Mariann Fischer-Boel has indicated that she plans to keep the agreement on reform of the wine sector intact.
Winemakers already have rebuffed a proposed compromise to allow French rosé labels to carry a special designation indicating production by 'traditional' methods.
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Perhaps Msr. Barnier should get his facts in order first. Champagne has long upheld the practice of mixing red and white wines to make rosé.
Mark Ryan, Los Angeles, California, USA
Minister Barnier does not seem to know the subtleties of this dossier - or so he pretends. The Brussels proposal only concerns non-appellation wines, so nothing prevents Côtes de Provence or other AOCs from banning coupage, or blending if that is what they wish. And as concerns non appellation wines, a ban is ridiculous: blending would just mean that they could at last compete with SA ou Chilean rosés at the lowest price segment level on export markets. One does not speak here about heritage wines, or even terroir wines, so authenticity is not relevant. Price is.
And I repeat myself: let us taste and judge if all Cotes de Provence are really better that blended rosés.
Another surprising mistake by M. Barnier: doesn't he know that Champagne rosés have been using white -red blending for years, so are they artificial? Un-authentic? Will he ban them also?
Bah, this is only a political stand. Mr. Barnier is about to resign so that he can lead the UMP list for the European elections and he may wish to leave the impression that he has done something for the winegrowers - curiously enough, he was nowhere to be haerd in the recent debate about wine & cancer. What a pity.
By the way, the French representative at Brussels did vote in favour of the Brussels proposal, which means that there was an agreement amongst French winegrowers at the time - negotiations did take place at the French national level, and the ministry knew it.
This is a-only a smokescreen. But it won't improve France's credibilty in Europe.
Hervé Lalau
There are lots of arguments playing out here. It's clear, for one thing, that rosé Champagne's not being discussed, and no one's trying to "ban it," so let's not worry there.
Let's also allow that in any wine producing country, the number of bad wines is greater than the number of "good." However, France and it's insistence on "authenticity" in "appellation" wines is entirely correct.
Competing against "food-processed" imitations of wine is not the point, and frankly, France, Italy, and Germany should get out of that "segment" of the business. It's unsustainable as a business model, as food processing techniques, and "flat-land" farming of grapes become more efficient, there will always be someone (or country) that can come along and do it more cheaply, and consistently.
Better that these three countries focus on, and encourage the production of "authentic" wines reflective of the cultures in which they arise - unique, and not replicable using food-processing techniques. As for the "price point," it's arguable that a jar of Ragu (r) "tomato sauce" is no bargain, as it isn't what it purports to be - particularly when compared to the "real" thing.
David Moore
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