EN Official Journal of the European Union C 391/11

Publication of an application pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs

(2017/C 391/08)

This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1).

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘AMÊNDOA COBERTA DE MONCORVO’

EU No: PGI-PT-02235 — 28.10.2016

PDO ( ) PGI ( X )

1. Name

‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’

2. Applicant country(ies)

Portugal

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1. Type of product

Class 2.3. Bread, pastry, cakes, confectionery, biscuits and other baker’s wares

3.2. Description of the product to which the name in (1) applies

‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ refers to the confectionary product obtained from sweet almonds (Prunus dulcis, (Mill) D. A. Webb) that are peeled, roasted and covered with a sugar paste, made according to the product specification. Three versions of ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ may be placed on the market: white or standard; dark or chocolate; uncoated.

‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ takes the form of an almond kernel, with a slightly larger size due to the formation of the sugar coating. The standard version is white on the outside and shows the typical nozzles of sugar formed during the period of confection. In view of its size, the product has a maximum of 40 kernels per 100 g. The dark version differs from the standard version only by the use of chocolate syrup in the final phase of its confection, which gives it a brown or chocolate exterior. The uncoated version has a whitish colour on the outside, resulting from a fine dusting of sugar which does not give it the nozzles of sugar which are characteristic of the other versions. In view of its smaller size, the product has a minimum of 40 kernels per 100 g.

3.3. Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ is made solely from:

— shelled, whole, undamaged sweet almonds with a minimum size of 12 mm,

— white refined cane sugar,

— water,

— egg white (optional ingredient),

— chocolate or cocoa powder (only for the dark version).

3.4. Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

The following production phases must take place in the identified geographical area:

— roasting the almonds,

— preparing the sugar and chocolate syrups,

— coating the almonds.

3.5. Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product to which the registered name refers

—

3.6. Specific rules concerning labelling of the product to which the registered name refers

On the ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ label, the name of the product description must be followed by the words ‘Indicação Geográfica Protegida’ (Protected Geographical Indication) or ‘IGP’ (PGI).

The label must identify which version of ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ it contains (except in the case of the standard or white version, where this identification is optional).

The label must include the symbol ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’, reproduced below.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area

The geographical area for the production/processing of ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ is confined to the municipality of Torre de Moncorvo.

5. Link with the geographical area

The link between ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ and the area is based on the product’s renown.

Due to its production process, the ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ has a distinctive appearance which makes the product readily identifiable and distinguishable from other candied almonds. This production process originated in Torre de Moncorvo, and it has been maintained in this municipality on a constant and uninterrupted basis over the centuries, with a strong link to Easter and other festivals. The 1908 publication Ilustração Transmontana documents the activity of the ‘enrobers’ (cobrideiras), the name by which the ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ producers have been known since at least that date. The 1936 Grande Enciclopédia Portuguesa e Brasileira also notes that ‘the covered almonds of Moncorvo are famous in Portugal’.

Similarly, in the 1942 Livro do Segundo Congresso Transmontano, there is an account of the existence of a small ‘almond coating’ industry in Torre de Moncorvo that is ‘very interesting because of its originality’ and that has a ‘characteristic appearance known to almost everyone’. The same book gives the following description of the production method for ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’. ‘The almonds are treated as follows: after peeling (a process of using hot water to remove the skin), they are lightly roasted. After roasting, they are tossed onto large copper trays which are constantly heated over a low heat. Once on these trays, they are sprinkled with sugar and kept moving by the “enrobing hands” (name given to the women who perform this task), who repeat this movement patiently and continually for several hours until the almonds are completely done, with the characteristic appearance that almost everyone knows’. This production method is similar in every respect to that still in use today.

The book goes on to say: ‘They make various types of almonds, but for me the best are the “uncoated” ones. This variety has the most sugar and is, furthermore, undeniably the most pleasing to the taste.’ The book thus testifies to the traditional production of various types of almond, a practice which has continued to this day. This is confirmed, for example, by an article from the Jornal de Notícias, which notes that ‘the coated almond is one of the well-known local delicacies, [available] in three varieties: white, dark and uncoated’ (‘Torre de Moncorvo: o Concelho’, 7 February 2008).

In the O Homem e a Cidade documentary devoted to Torre de Moncorvo, shown on Radio Televisão Portuguesa (RTP) in 1996, it was noted that ‘with no significant industrial resources, Torre de Moncorvo lives mainly from one or another — almost inevitably tradition-based — particular initiative. This is the case for the production of the covered almonds, an appealing regional confectionery speciality. The long-standing and patient art of the process of producing these traditional sweets is the fruit of a centuries-old knowledge’.

Maria de Lurdes Modesto and Afonso Praça, in their book Festas e Comeres do Povo Português, published in 1999, refer to the existence in Portugal of ‘hand-roasted almonds that deserve a special mention — the “covered almonds” of Moncorvo. They are a village speciality, but everyone in the region knows these almonds, because the “Moncorvo confectioners” set up stands promoting them at festivals and sites of pilgrimages.’

These authors also draw attention to the 1954 book Paisagens do Norte by Cabral Adão, which refers to an ‘almond enrober’ in the following terms: ‘I remember seeing her sitting in front of a great brazier, where very hot coals were burning, legs spread under a skirt to the ankles, stirring and tossing the half-made almonds on a copper tray, protecting her fingers with thimbles so as not to burn her fingertips on the hot plate when she put her hands in to turn the little balls of sugar over, the noise a terrible and continuous roar that forced her to speak very loudly to explain the making of the delicacy to me’.

In an article published in the proceedings of the ‘Moncorvo — From tradition to modernity’ (Moncorvo. Da tradição à modernidade) workshop held in 2007, Virgílio Tavares, historian and researcher at the Centre for Population, Economics and Society Studies (Centro de Estudos da População, Economia e Sociedade — CEPESE) included the production of covered almonds from Moncorvo in the range of typical handicrafts that attract tourists and visitors and which is an established feature of the Moncorvo identity.

There are references to ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ in diverse and prestigious publications on regional and national gastronomy, such as Cozinha Transmontana by Alfredo Saramago (which provides photographic documentation of the three types of ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’), and Cozinha Tradicional Portuguesa by Maria de Lurdes Modesto.

In Torre de Moncorvo in recent years various training sessions have been developed to allow this expertise to be passed on to new ‘enrobers’, awakening the interest of the younger generation in an activity traditionally associated with persons more advanced in age.

Its quality, originality and the tradition of its consumption have brought the ‘Amêndoa Coberta de Moncorvo’ great fame and renown, as demonstrated by countless references in the media, wherein it is often noted as one of the hallmarks of Torre de Moncorvo.

Some examples of the countless references in the media: ‘Os segredos de uma cobrideira de amêndoas’ (Jornal do Nordeste, 27 February 2007), ‘Às voltas com a amêndoa’ (Jornal do Nordeste, 16 October 2007), ‘As amêndoas’ (Público, 30 March 2013), ‘Amêndoa coberta de Moncorvo é especialidade da Páscoa transmontana’ (SIC, 20 April 2014), ‘Produzir amêndoa coberta em Torre de Moncorvo tem que se lhe diga’ (RTP, 5 April 2015), ‘Páscoa para lá do compasso’ (Correio da Manhã, 28 March 2016).

Reference to publication of the specification

(the second subparagraph of Article 6(1) of this Regulation)

http://tradicional.dgadr.pt/images/prod_imagens/doces/docs/CE_Amendoa_Coberta.pdf

(1) OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1.