Publication of a communication of approval of a standard amendment to a product specification for a name in the wine sector referred to in Article 17(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33

(2020/C 437/13)

This communication is published in accordance with Article 17(5) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 (1).

COMMUNICATION OF STANDARD AMENDMENT MODIFYING THE SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘RIBERA DEL GUADIANA’

PDO-ES-A1295-AM03

Date of communication: 29.9.2020

DESCRIPTION OF AND REASONS FOR THE APPROVED AMENDMENT

1. New wine type names

AMENDMENT:

Whites, rosés and reds made without the use of wooden casks are now to be labelled joven (‘young’).

Unlike all the other wines, no name was given for these types of wine in previous versions of the product specification. Therefore, so that all of the types of wine made can be labelled with a descriptor, the term joven has been introduced for whites, rosés and reds not aged in wooden casks.

The term vino de guarda (denoting a ‘keeping wine’, suitable for bottle-ageing) has replaced otras elaboraciones en barrica (‘other cask wines’) as a type of red wine.

This amendment affects Sections 2 and 3 of the product specification and points 4 and 5(a) of the single document.

This is considered a standard amendment because it does not fall into any of the cases defined in Article 14(1) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 of 17 October 2018 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards applications for protection of designations of origin, geographical indications and traditional terms in the wine sector, the objection procedure, restrictions of use, amendments to product specifications, cancellation of protection, and labelling and presentation.

JUSTIFICATION:

The use of the term joven is a way of distinguishing these wines from those that have spent any amount of time ageing in wooden casks.

As for the vino de guarda term, since the product specification was first drawn up in 2011, barely any wines have been certified as otras elaboraciones en barrica due to a lack of understanding of this label among operators, even though there is market demand for wines with less wood influence than the other wood-aged types.

2. Changes to alcoholic strength, sugar content and volatile acidity

AMENDMENT:

This amendment consists of the following changes:

— For white wines of the joven (‘young’) type: — Total alcoholic strength by volume is set at 9 %-15 %. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 10 % to 9 %.

— For white wines made using wooden containers: — Total alcoholic strength by volume is set at 9 %-15 %. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 10 % to 9 % for the fermentado en barrica (‘cask-fermented’) type. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 12,5 % to 9 % for the crianza (aged at least 18 months), reserva (aged at least two years) and gran reserva (aged at least four years) types. — The ‘total reducing sugars’ parameter has been replaced by ‘total sugar’. — A new ‘semi-dry’ sub-type has been added and its values have been set. — Maximum volatile acidity is now calculated based on total alcoholic strength by volume.

— For rosé wines: — Total alcoholic strength by volume is set at 9 %-15 %. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 11 % to 9 %. — The ‘total reducing sugars’ parameter has been replaced by ‘total sugar’. — ‘Semi-dry’, ‘semi-sweet’ and ‘sweet’ have been added as sub-types and their values have been set.

— For red wines of the joven (‘young’) type: — Total alcoholic strength by volume is set at 11 %-15 %. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 12 % to 11 %. — The ‘total reducing sugars’ parameter has been replaced by ‘total sugar’. — ‘Semi-dry’, ‘semi-sweet’ and ‘sweet’ have been added as sub-types and their values have been set.

— For red wines made in wooden casks: — The otras elaboraciones en barrica (‘other cask wines’) type has been renamed vino de guarda (denoting a ‘keeping wine’, suitable for bottle-ageing). — Total alcoholic strength by volume is set at 11 %-15 %. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 12 % to 11 % for the fermentado en barrica (‘cask-fermented’) and tinto roble (‘oak-aged red’) types. — The minimum value for actual alcoholic strength by volume is reduced from 12,5 % to 11 % for the crianza (aged at least two years), reserva (aged at least three years) and gran reserva (aged at least five years) types. — The ‘total reducing sugars’ parameter has been replaced by ‘total sugar’. — A new ‘semi-dry’ sub-type has been added and its values have been set. — Maximum volatile acidity is now calculated based on total alcoholic strength by volume.

This amendment affects Section 2 of the product specification and point 4 of the single document.

This is considered a standard amendment because it does not fall into any of the cases defined in Article 14(1) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 of 17 October 2018 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards applications for protection of designations of origin, geographical indications and traditional terms in the wine sector, the objection procedure, restrictions of use, amendments to product specifications, cancellation of protection, and labelling and presentation.

JUSTIFICATION:

Wine markets have changed considerably since the product specification was first drawn up in 2011, and there is now increasing demand for lower-alcohol wines and new wine types with a higher overall sugar content.

The operators using this Designation of Origin would also like most of the analytical limits established in the product specification to be brought into line with the legal requirements, allowing individual operators to set more stringent requirements if wished.

Finally, the maximum permitted sulphur dioxide content for all the new sub-types has been established at the maximum amount permitted under EU law (for their sugar content).

3. Changes to organoleptic descriptions

AMENDMENT:

As the control body has been accredited under standard UNE EN 170025 (standard ISO/IEC 17025 as adopted in Spain), there have been changes to the organoleptic testing method, requiring the following amendments:

— The ‘flavour’ parameter is now called ‘aroma’.

— The ‘balance’ parameter is now called ‘flavour-balance’.

— ‘Floral’ and ‘fermentation-derived’ have been added to the lists of odours and aromas.

— For semi-dry, semi-sweet and sweet wines, the possibility of there being some sweetness has been added within the ‘flavour-balance’ parameter.

— New hues have been added.

— The parameter describing the intensity of colour has been renamed from intensidad to capa [a Spanish term, literally meaning ‘cape’, commonly used to refer to intensity of colour].

This amendment affects Section 2 of the product specification and point 4 of the single document.

This is considered a standard amendment because it does not fall into any of the cases defined in Article 14(1) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 of 17 October 2018 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards applications for protection of designations of origin, geographical indications and traditional terms in the wine sector, the objection procedure, restrictions of use, amendments to product specifications, cancellation of protection, and labelling and presentation.

JUSTIFICATION:

On 31 July 2015, the Regulatory Board for the ‘Ribera del Guadiana’ Designation of Origin (Vincal Laboratorios) was accredited for the organoleptic testing of wine under standard UNE-EN ISO/IEC 17025.

This accreditation has led to the following changes:

NEW NAMES FOR THE PARAMETERS USED TO ANALYSE THE DIFFERENT ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS

In order to obtain this accreditation, the body had to develop a testing method. According to the technical information annexed to that method, the values analysed under the ‘flavour’ parameter (‘sweet’, ‘acidity’, ‘alcoholic’, ‘carbonic’) fell under the ‘balance’ heading in the previous version of the product specification.

Similarly, the descriptors analysed in the parameter now known as ‘aroma’ (‘fruity’, ‘floral’, ‘fermentation-derived’, ‘woody’ and ‘toasty’) came under the ‘flavour’ parameter in the previous version.

This has led to the following changes:

— The ‘flavour’ parameter has been renamed ‘aroma’.

— The ‘balance’ parameter is now known as ‘flavour-balance’.

ADDITION OF NEW ORGANOLPETIC DESCRIPTORS

In the accredited testing method, ‘odour’ and ‘aroma’ are assessed separately. As a result, ‘floral’ and ‘fermentation-derived’ odours and aromas – descriptors that were not included in the previous version of the product specification – have been identified as recurring characteristics in wines made from certain varieties.

This has led to the following changes:

— The descriptors ‘floral’ and ‘fermentation-derived’ have been added as possible odour characteristics of whites, rosés and reds made without the use of wood.

— The descriptors ‘floral’ and ‘fermentation-derived’ have been added as possible aroma characteristics of whites, rosés and reds made without the use of wood.

ADDITION OF ORGANOLEPTIC CHARACTERISTICS FOR THE NEW SUB-TYPES IN THE WINE CATEGORY

Organoleptic characteristics had to be defined for the new sub-types of wine that have been added, i.e. semi-dry, semi-sweet and sweet, for the different wine types.

4. Changes to wine-making practices

AMENDMENT:

— Production procedures have been added for the new sub-types (semi-dry, semi-sweet and sweet).

— The starting date for the ageing process has been added in order to standardise ageing times for the fermentado en barrica, tinto roble, vino de guarda, crianza, reserva and gran reserva types (i.e. the types of wine that spend different lengths of time ageing in wood).

— In order to standardise the sizes of the containers used for ageing the wines, their sizes have been increased to the legal maximum for the tinto roble and vino de guarda types.

— The reference to ‘partial fermentation’ for whites and reds of the fermentado en barrica type has been removed.

This amendment affects Section 3 of the product specification and point 5(a) of the single document.

This is considered a standard amendment because it does not fall into any of the cases defined in Article 14(1) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 of 17 October 2018 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards applications for protection of designations of origin, geographical indications and traditional terms in the wine sector, the objection procedure, restrictions of use, amendments to product specifications, cancellation of protection, and labelling and presentation.

JUSTIFICATION:

The product specification previously only included the ‘semi-dry’, ‘semi-sweet’ and ‘sweet’ sub-types for young white wines, stating that these should be made in compliance with the applicable rules. Now that these sub-types have been extended to other types of wine, it makes sense to specify what those rules actually are.

The product specification did not contain any rule on when the ageing period started for wood-aged wines, although the Regulatory Board had an internal one establishing a start date for the ageing process, which was based on the usual harvest period in the production area (normally August or September). It is a logical step to make this rule standard and include it in the product specification.

Since the Designation of Origin scheme has been running – i.e. since 2011, when the product specification was first drafted – operators have been demanding that the container size rules be brought into line with the legal limits.

The possibility of making partially cask-fermented wines has been removed because all wineries that practise cask fermentation keep the wines in the oak casks for the entire fermenting process and never blend them with non-cask-fermented wines.

5. Types of guarantee label

AMENDMENT:

This amendment consists of establishing the types of guarantee label to be used for each type of wine.

It affects Section 8 of the product specification and point 9 of the single document.

This is considered a standard amendment because it does not fall into any of the cases defined in Article 14(1) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 of 17 October 2018 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards applications for protection of designations of origin, geographical indications and traditional terms in the wine sector, the objection procedure, restrictions of use, amendments to product specifications, cancellation of protection, and labelling and presentation.

JUSTIFICATION:

Each type of wine needs to be allocated a specific type of guarantee label. Therefore, this amendment:

— assigns a guarantee label type to the fermentado en barrica wine type, which does not currently have one,

— establishes that the guarantee label type to be used on joven wines is the cosecha (‘vintage’) label, in order to eliminate confusion between the two terms.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

1. Name of the product

Ribera del Guadiana

2. Geographical indication type

PDO – Protected Designation of Origin

3. Categories of grapevine product

1. Wine

4. Description of the wine(s)

WHITE WINE

Appearance

Clarity: clear or containing some tartrates Hue: yellow to golden hues

Nose

Smell: presence of fruity odours and/or floral odours and/or fermentation-derived odours and/or woody and toasty odours

Palate

Aroma: presence of fruity aromas and/or floral aromas and/or fermentation-derived aromas and/or woody and toasty aromas

Flavour-balance: balanced alcohol-to-acidity ratio, possibly some sweetness Finish: long aromatic aftertaste

* Maximum sulphur dioxide limit for wines with a sugar content of 5 g/l or more: 240 mg/l

* For whites made using wooden containers, maximum volatile acidity is 1 gram per litre up to 10% alcohol by volume, plus an additional 0,06 grams per litre for each percentage point of alcoholic strength in excess of 10, up to a maximum limit of 1,08 grams per litre. General analytical characteristics Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume): 15 Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume): 9 Minimum total acidity: 4,5 in grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre): 10 Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre): 180

ROSÉ WINE

Appearance

Clarity: clear or containing some tartrates Hue: ranging from pink to orange, including reddish tones

Nose

Smell: presence of fruity odours and/or floral odours and/or fermentation-derived odours and/or woody and toasty odours

Palate

Aroma: presence of fruity aromas and/or floral aromas and/or fermentation-derived aromas and/or woody and toasty aromas

Flavour-balance: balanced alcohol-to-acidity ratio, possibly some sweetness Finish: long aromatic aftertaste

* Maximum sulphur dioxide limit for wines with a sugar content of 5 g/l or more: 240 mg/l General analytical characteristics Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume): 15 Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume): 9 Minimum total acidity: 4,5 in grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre): 10 Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre): 180

RED WINE

Appearance

Clarity: clear or containing some tartrates or colouring substances Hue: violet to brick-red; good intensity of colour

Nose

Smell: presence of fruity odours and/or floral odours and/or fermentation-derived odours and/or woody and toasty odours

Palate

Aroma: presence of fruity aromas and/or floral aromas and/or fermentation-derived aromas and/or woody and toasty aromas

Flavour-balance: balanced alcohol-to-acidity ratio, possibly some sweetness Finish: long aromatic aftertaste

* Maximum sulphur dioxide limit for wines with a sugar content of 5 g/l or more: 190 mg/l

* For reds made using wooden containers, maximum volatile acidity is 1 gram per litre up to 10% alcohol by volume, plus an additional 0,06 grams per litre for each percentage point of alcoholic strength in excess of 10, up to a maximum limit of 1,2 grams per litre. General analytical characteristics Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume): 15 Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume): 11 Minimum total acidity: 4 in grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre): 13,33 Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre): 150

5. Wine-making practices

a. Specific oenological practices

Specific oenological practice

When extracting must/wine and separating it from the pomace, suitable pressure must be applied to ensure that the extraction rate does not exceed 70 litres of wine per 100 kilograms of harvested grapes.

White and red fermentado en barrica wines are to be fermented in oak containers with a capacity of up to 600 litres.

Tinto roble wines must be aged for 90 days, at least 60 of them in oak containers with a capacity of up to 600 litres.

Vino de guarda wines must be aged for 365 days, at least 60 of them in oak containers with a capacity of up to 600 litres.

These ageing periods begin on 1 October of the harvest year.

b. Maximum yields

White varieties

12 000 kilograms of grapes per hectare

84 hectolitres per hectare

Red varieties

10 000 kilograms of grapes per hectare

70 hectolitres per hectare

6. Demarcated geographical area

— TIERRA DE BARROS: Aceuchal, Ahillones,Alange, Almendralejo, Arroyo de San Serván, Azuaga, Berlanga, Calamonte, Corte de Peleas, Entrín Bajo, Feria, Fuente del Maestre, Granja de Torrehermosa, Higuera de Llerena, Hinojosa del Valle, Hornachos, La Morera, La Parra, Llera, Llerena, Maguilla, Mérida (left bank of the River Guadiana), Nogales, Palomas, Puebla del Prior, Puebla de la Reina, Ribera del Fresno, Salvatierra de los Barros, Santa Marta de los Barros, Solana de los Barros, Torre de Miguel Sesmero, Torremegía, Valencia de las Torres, Valverde de Llerena, Villafranca de los Barros and Villalba de los Barros.

— MATANEGRA: Bienvenida, Calzadilla, Fuente de Cantos, Medina de las Torres, Puebla de Sancho Pérez, Los Santos de Maimona, Usagre, Valencia del Ventoso and Zafra.

— RIBERA ALTA: Aljucén, Benquerencia, Campanario, Carrascalejo, Castuera, La Coronada, Cristina, Don Álvaro, Don Benito, Esparragalejo, Esparragosa de la Serena, Higuera de la Serena, La Garrovilla, Guareña, La Haba, Magacela, Malpartida de la Serena, Manchita, Medellín, Mengabril, Mérida (right bank of the River Guadiana), Mirandilla, Monterrubio de la Serena, La Nava de Santiago, Navalvillar de Pela, Oliva de Mérida, Quintana de la Serena, Rena, San Pedro de Mérida, Santa Amalia, Trujillanos, Valdetorres, Valverde de Mérida, Valle de la Serena, Villagonzalo, Villanueva de la Serena, Villar de Rena, Zalamea de la Serena and Zarza de Alange.

— RIBERA BAJA: La Albuera, Almendral, Badajoz, Lobón, Montijo, Olivenza, La Roca de la Sierra, Talavera de la Real, Torremayor, Valverde de Leganés and Villar del Rey.

— MONTÁNCHEZ: Albalá, Alcuéscar, Aldea de Trujillo, Aldeacentenera, Almoharín, Arroyomolinos de Montánchez, Casas de Don Antonio, Escurial, Garciaz, Heguijuela, Ibahernando, La Cumbre, Madroñera, Miajadas, Montánchez, Puerto de Santa Cruz, Robledillo de Trujillo, Salvatierra de Santiago, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Santa Marta de Magasca, Torre de Santa María, Torrecilla de la Tiesa, Trujillo, Valdefuentes, Valdemorales, Villamesías and Zarza de Montánchez.

— CAÑAMERO: Alía, Berzocana, Cañamero, Guadalupe and Valdecaballeros.

7. Main wine grape variety(ies)

CABERNET SAUVIGNON

CAYETANA BLANCA

GRACIANO

MACABEO - VIURA

MERLOT

PARDINA - JAÉN BLANCO

SYRAH

TEMPRANILLO - CENCIBEL

TEMPRANILLO - TINTO FINO

8. Description of the link(s)

Whites

The characteristics of the wines are shaped by the area’s prevailing Mediterranean climate.

The white wines are notable for their very distinctive character – fruity and aromatic – combined with fairly high acidity.

The fact that there is little rainfall at crucial times in the grape cultivation cycle reduces the risk of fungal diseases, which has a direct impact on the quality of the resulting wines.

Rosés

The characteristics of the wines are shaped by the area’s prevailing Mediterranean climate.

These conditions result in wines that are rich in tannins and colouring substances, with good alcoholic strength and a suitable level of acidity. The ripeness of the grapes gives the wines a distinctive aromatic profile.

The fact that there is little rainfall at crucial times in the grape cultivation cycle reduces the risk of fungal diseases, which has a direct impact on the quality of the resulting wines.

The red varieties that are not native to the local area have adapted to its characteristics, resulting in distinctive wines.

Reds

The characteristics of the wines are shaped by the area’s prevailing Mediterranean climate.

These conditions result in wines that are rich in tannins and colouring substances, with good alcoholic strength and a suitable level of acidity. The ripeness of the grapes gives the wines a distinctive aromatic profile.

The fact that there is little rainfall at crucial times in the grape cultivation cycle reduces the risk of fungal diseases, which has a direct impact on the quality of the resulting wines.

The red varieties that are not native to the local area have adapted to its characteristics, resulting in distinctive wines.

9. Essential further conditions (packaging, labelling, other requirements)

Legal framework:

In national legislation

Type of further condition:

Additional provisions relating to labelling

Description of the condition:

Any packaging used to market ‘Ribera del Guadiana’ Designation of Origin wines must be labelled with the protected name in compliance with the applicable EU legislation.

The packaging must also bear a numbered guarantee label, using the specific type of guarantee label for the wine type in question. These guarantee labels, issued by the Regulatory Board, certify the product and enable wines to be traced once they have entered the market.

The types of guarantee labels to be used for each wine type are as follows:

Cosecha (vintage) labels are to be used for the joven and fermentado en barrica types.

Tinto roble labels are to be used for the tinto roble type.

Vino de guarda labels are to be used for the vino de guarda type.

Crianza labels are to be used for the crianza type.

Reserva labels are to be used for the reserva type.

Gran reserva labels are to be used for the gran reserva type.

Link to the product specification

http://www.juntaex.es/filescms/con03/uploaded_files/SectoresTematicos/Agroalimentario/Denominacionesdeorigen/PliegoCondiciones2.pdf

(1) OJ L 9, 11.1.2019, p. 2.