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 32/10)

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

COMMUNICATING THE APPROVAL OF A STANDARD AMENDMENT

‘Brachetto d’Acqui / ACQUI’

Reference number: PDO-IT-A1382-AM04

Date of communication: 25 September 2019

DESCRIPTION OF AND REASONS FOR THE APPROVED AMENDMENT

1. Description of the wines

Description and reasons

For ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ still and sparkling wines, the minimum total acidity has been changed from 5 g/l to 4.5 g/l.

For the sparkling wine (Spumante), the minimum sugar-free extract has been reduced from 18 g/l to 17 g/l.

Reasons:

Changes in climate conditions have affected the phenological stages and grape ripening which often occurs early, in addition to which the acidity of the must and therefore of the wines obtained from it, is reduced. It was thus considered appropriate to reduce the minimum total acidity by 0.5 g/l.

The reduction of the sugar-free extract by one gram per litre constitutes a formal amendment, in relation to the official method, to the previous value for the minimum net dry extract.

This amendment concerns section 1.4 of the Single Document and Article 6 of the Product Specification.

2. Wine-making and bottling area

Description and reasons

(a) the provisions on the wine-making and bottling area and related derogations have been reworded, grouping all operations already provided for under Article 5(1) and (11) of the Product Specification, under Article 5(1) and (2);

(b) in accordance with the derogation provided for in the current EU legislation, all wine-making/production operations are permitted throughout the entire Piedmont Region, rather than being limited to the provinces of Asti, Cuneo and Alessandria;

(c) for ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ and ‘Acqui’ Spumante with an extra-brut to demi-sec sugar content only, the second fermentation process can take place within the administrative area of the neighbouring regions of Liguria, Lombardy, Emilia Romagna and the Valle d’Aosta, in accordance with the derogation provided for in current EU legislation.

Reasons:

(a) and (b) these are formal amendments that describe the provisions on winemaking/production and bottling as well as the relevant derogations for the different types of wine in an organic way and in line with the EU legislation in force;

(c) the purpose of widening the area in which wine-making operations are authorised by derogation, for certain types of sparkling wine only, is to create new opportunities for producers in relation to new marketing needs.

The amendments concern point 1.9 (Further conditions) of the Single Document and Article 5 of the Product Specification.

3. Labelling

Description and reasons

In the name and presentation of ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ and ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ Spumante labelled ‘Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita’ [‘Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin’ or DOCG], the sugar content need not be indicated in different characters to those used for the name.

Reasons: a restriction is removed, giving producers greater freedom to choose the design of the label.

The amendments concern point 1.9 (Further conditions) of the Single Document and Article 5 of the Product Specification.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

1. Name of the product

Brachetto d’Acqui

Acqui

2. Geographical indication type

PDO – Protected designation of origin

3. Categories of grapevine product

1. Wine

6. Quality aromatic sparkling wine

4. Description of the wine(s)

‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’

Wine produced from Brachetto grapes, with a characteristic and outstanding aroma which is more or less prevalent depending on the wine-making method used. The grapes are grown within a well-defined area in Piedmont, in 26 municipalities across the Provinces of Asti and Alessandria.

Characteristics on consumption:

Colour: ruby red of medium intensity, tending towards clear garnet or pink or rosé;

Aroma: distinctive, very delicate, sometimes fruity, tending towards spicy in the version with a lower sugar content;

Taste: delicate, characteristic, from dry to sweet;

Minimum total alcoholic strength by volume: 11.50%,

with an acquired alcohol level of at least 5%;

Minimum sugar-free extract: 18 g/l.

General analytical characteristics Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume) Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume) 5 Minimum total acidity 4.5 grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre) Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre)

‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ Spumante

Wine produced from Brachetto grapes, with a characteristic and outstanding aroma which is more or less prevalent depending on the wine-making method used. The grapes are grown within a well-defined area in Piedmont, in 26 municipalities across the Provinces of Asti and Alessandria.

Characteristics on consumption:

Foam: fine, long-lasting;

Colour: ruby red of medium intensity, tending towards clear garnet or pink or rosé;

Aroma: distinctive, delicate, sometimes fruity, tending towards spicy in the version with a lower sugar content;

Taste: delicate, characteristic, from extra brut to sweet;

Minimum total alcoholic strength by volume: 12%, with an acquired alcohol level of at least 6%;

Minimum sugar-free extract: 17 g/l.

General analytical characteristics Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume) Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume) 6 Minimum total acidity 4.5 grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre) Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre)

‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ Passito

This sweet aromatic wine is made from grapes grown within a well-defined area in Piedmont, in only 26 municipalities across the Provinces of Asti and Alessandria.

Characteristics on consumption

Colour: ruby red of medium intensity, sometimes tending towards garnet;

Aroma: a very delicate musky aroma typical of the Brachetto variety, sometimes with hints of wood;

Taste: sweet, musky, harmonic, smooth, sometimes with hints of wood;

Minimum total alcoholic strength by volume: 16%;

Minimum sugar-free extract 20 g/l.

General analytical characteristics Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume) Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume) 11 Minimum total acidity 4.5 grams per litre expressed as tartaric acid Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre) Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre)

5. Wine-making practices

a. Essential oenological practices

NONE

b. Maximum yields

‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’, incl. Spumante and Passito

8,000 kg of grapes per hectare

6. Demarcated geographical area

The grapes used in the production of ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ DOCG wines must be grown in the Piedmont Region, in the 26 municipalities located across the Provinces of Asti and Alessandria, which are listed below:

Province of Asti:

the entire administrative territory of the following municipalities: Vesime, Cessole, Loazzolo, Bubbio, Monastero Bormida, Rocchetta Palafea, Montabone, Fontanile, Mombaruzzo, Maranzana, Quaranti, Castel Boglione, Castel Rocchero, Sessame, Castelletto Molina, Calamandrana, Cassinasco, and Nizza Monferrato (only the territory located on the right of the Belbo river);

Province of Alessandria:

the entire administrative territory of the following municipalities: Acqui Terme, Terzo, Bistagno, Alice Bel Colle, Strevi, Ricaldone, Cassina, Visone.

7. Main wine grape variety(ies)

Brachetto N.

8. Description of the link(s)

‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ DOCG

‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ DOCG wine mainly owes its qualities to the production area, the Alto Monferrato. The area spreads across 26 municipalities in the Provinces of Asti and Alessandria, and has clay soils in the Nizza Monferrato area, and sand and lime soils in the area in and around Acqui Terme. The olfactory qualities of the grapes, and of the wines produced from them, are to a large extent determined by these growing conditions.

The area’s suitability for wine growing, with its particular morphology and climate conditions and its wine-making skills and traditions, has made it possible to ‘select’, over the years, Brachetto as the grape variety best suited to the surroundings.

In 1817, the naturalist Gallesio described it as a ‘VINO CELEBRE’ [‘famous wine’], classifying it as an alcoholic, pale-coloured dessert wine that began to taste like port or sherry as it aged. He reported that Brachetto wines, both sweet and sparkling, were well known and sold well in South American markets: this suggests that production at that time must have been considerable. The first official definition was written in 1922 by Attilio Garino Canina, the true scientific classifier of this grape: ‘Brachetto belongs to the deluxe category of sweet, aromatic red wines. It is a wine with a specific aroma, with moderate alcohol and sugar content, not highly coloured, which is often consumed as a semi-sparkling or sparkling wine ...’

Of the various historically significant accounts Canina gave, one of the most interesting ones is that although Brachetto was particularly popular in the district of Acqui and Nizza Monferrato, market production was only 500 hl.

What had caused the ‘disappearance’ of a wine which, only 50 years previously, had been exported in large quantities?

The advent of the phylloxera had devastated vineyards by the end of the First World War: when it came to replanting the vines, winemakers chose other grape varieties over Brachetto, because they were better suited to market trends than the latter variety which required special care and attention. This is what led to its demise. Its revival is recent history: Around the 1950s, in the hills of southern Piedmont where Brachetto was still being produced by a small band of loyal fans, Arturo Bersano, a producer who, while respecting tradition, was forward-looking, developed a sparkling Brachetto processed in an autoclave using the Charmat method. From then on Brachetto has continued to feature among the great aromatic wines, distinguished by its special qualities and the fact that it is appreciated by the most refined connoisseurs. But Brachetto also has a tradition of non-sweet wines, attested by the production of non-sweet types of Brachetto still wine from the early 20th century on, in the areas of Strevi, Alto Monferrato and Acqui Terme and the Brachetto demi-sec produced by Cantine Spinola, which was selected in wine-making competitions (Brachetto d’Acqui demi-sec rosé of 1987 and Brachetto dry of 1964). The wine was mentioned in a 1985 issue of Barolo & Co. which described Brachetto as a ‘typically local variety that comes in a dry version which can also be placed on the market’. Reference is also made to it in a historical account about the Brachetto dry of Carlo Lazzeri, the owner of the Enoteca Regionale di Acqui ‘Terme e Vino’ [Acqui Regional Wine Shop ‘Spa and Wine’], ‘around about the 1980s they served glasses of Brachetto dry produced by Cantine Spinola’, especially as an aperitif which was very popular because of its light and not-too-sweet taste. During those years, Brachetto dry was also selected at wine-making competitions in Acqui Terme.’ From 2008, after experimentation, a dry, sparkling aromatic wine was produced from 100% Brachetto grapes; this wine was claimed to be a ‘product which is appreciated and consumed locally, as well as being exported as a niche product to Japan, South Korea and the USA’.

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

Derogation from production in the demarcated geographical area

Legal framework:

EU legislation

Type of further condition:

Derogation from production in the demarcated geographical area

Description of the condition:

Grape-drying, pressing, winemaking and second fermentation are permitted not just within the demarcated production area but throughout the entire territory of the Piedmont Region.

In addition, for ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ Spumante wines that range from extra-brut to demi-sec in terms of sugar content, the second fermentation process may take place in the administrative territory of the regions of Liguria, Lombardia, Emilia Romagna and Valle d’Aosta, in accordance with the EU legislation in force.

Bottling within the demarcated geographical area

Legal framework:

EU legislation

Type of further condition:

Bottling within the demarcated geographical area

Description of the condition:

Bottling must take place within the production area, including in areas where winemaking/production is exceptionally permitted.

The reason for this provision, in accordance with European Union legislation, is to safeguard the quality and image of ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ and ‘Acqui’ PDO wines, guarantee their origin and ensure the effectiveness and timeliness of the relevant checks. These conditions are better ensured if bottling takes place within the area, as the application of and compliance with all the technical rules concerning transport and bottling are entrusted to holdings in the production area.

In addition, the control system operated by the competent body, which operators must comply with at all stages of production, is more effective in the demarcated area.

Labelling indications

Legal framework:

National legislation

Type of further condition:

Additional labelling requirements

Description of the condition:

In the name and presentation of ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ and ‘Brachetto d’Acqui’ or ‘Acqui’ Spumante labelled ‘Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita’ [‘Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin’ or DOCG], the sugar content must not be indicated on the same line as the name of the wine; in addition, the sugar content must be presented in a smaller font size than that used for the name.

Link to the product specification

https://www.politicheagricole.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/14376

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