Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) amending Regulation (EEC) No 823/87 laying down special provisions relating to quality wines produced in specified regions
Date: 1998-02-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU law, bottling, product quality, quality control of industrial products, wine of superior quality

C 108/138

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

7.4.98

Proposal  for  a  Council  Regulation  (EC)  amending  Regulation  (EEC)  No  823/87  laying  down
special  provisions  relating  to  quality  wines  produced  in  specified  regions

(98/C 108/19)

COM(98)  86  final  —  98/0053(CNS)

(submitted  by  the  Commission  on  20  February  1998)

THE  COUNCIL  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  UNION,

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European
Community,  and  in  particular  Article  43  thereof,

Whereas transitional measures are necessary if established
intra-Community trade flows in quality wines psr are not
to  be  suddenly  interrupted,

HAS  ADOPTED  THIS  REGULATION:

Having  regard 
Parliament,

to 

the  opinion  of 

the  European

Article  1

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee,

Having  regard  to  the  proposal  from  the  Commission,

Whereas  Council  Regulation  (EEC)  No  823/87 (1)  lays
down  special  provisions  relating 
to  quality  wines
produced  in  specified  regions;  whereas  the  bottling  of
certain  quality  wines  psr  in  the  specified  region  of
production is one of the measures applied by agricultural
regions  to  safeguard  and  enhance  the  quality  of  their
products;  whereas 
expertise  and
know-how  necessary  to  safeguard  the  characteristics  of
such  wines  and  their  typicality  are  normally  more
common  in  the  regions  of  production  of  such  wines;

the  oenological 

Whereas  transporting  quality  wines  psr  in  bulk  is  likely
to affect the wine’s distinctive characteristics; whereas the
risk  of  dangerous  or  even  fraudulent  operations  likely  to
affect  the  characteristics  of  the  wine  is  greater  where  a
high  number  of  operators  is  involved;  whereas  provision
should  accordingly  be  made  for  certain  restrictions;

Whereas  concentrating  all  the  operations  relating  to  the
product  within  a  limited  area  simplifies  checks  on  the
authenticity and typicality of wine and makes it easier to
lay  down  and  implement  measures  to  enhance  the
reputation  of  the  quality  wine  psr  in  question;

Whereas  all  these  factors  justify  provision  being  made  in
Community  legislation  for  compulsory  bottling  in  the
region  of  production;  whereas  the  impact  of  such  a
measure  on  the  sector  as  a  whole  calls  for  certain
objective conditions to be met, in particular regarding the
technical  justification  of  the  measure  and  its  compliance
with  the  general  will  of  the  producers  affected;

(1) OJ  L  84,  27.3.1987,  p.  59.

The  following  Article  is  hereby  inserted  in  Regulation
(EEC)  No  823/87:

‘Article  6a

1.
The Member States may make it compulsory for
quality  wines  psr  defined  in  Article  1(2)  to  be  bottled
within  the  specified  region  of  production  where  they
demonstrate  that  the  measure  is  justified,  i.e.  by
showing  that  the  bottling  of  one  or  more  of  the
quality wine psr categories concerned in the region of
production  imparts  special  characteristics  to  wine
originating  in  that  region  such  as  to  set  it  apart  or
that  bottling  in  the  region  of  production  is  an
important 
specific
characteristics  which  that  quality  wine  psr  has
acquired.

preserving 

factor 

the 

in 

In  addition,  the  Member  States  may  only  apply  the
possibility  provided  for  in  the  first  subparagraph
where:

— any existing joint-trade organisation recognised by
the  national  authorities  decides,  in  accordance
with  its  own  operating  methods,  to  make  bottling
in  the  specified  region  of  production  compulsory
for  the  quality  wine  psr  in  question,

— if  no  recognised  joint-trade  organisation  exists,  at
least  90 %  of  the  grape  producers  entitled  to  use
the  name  of  the  specified  region  concerned  and
accounting  for  at  least  80 %  of  production  of  the
quality  wine  psr  in  question  choose  to  bottle  the
quality  wine  psr 
in  the  specified  region  of
production.

2. Where  the  Member  States  make  bottling  in  the
specified  region  of  production  compulsory  for  one  or
more  of  the  quality  wine  psr  categories  concerned,
they must permit the bottling of the quality wines psr
concerned to continue, for a transitional period of five
years, outside the specified region in question by those
operators  who  have  been  bottling  such  quality  wines
psr  outside  the  specified  region  for  three  years  prior
to  the  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation.  That
transitional  period  shall  commence  once  bottling
in  the  region  of  production  has  become  compulsory.

7.4.98

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C 108/139

for
The  Member  States  may  make  provision 
supplementary  internal  checks  of  such  quality  wines
psr  bottled  outside  the  specified  region.

3.
The  Member  States  shall  in  due  course  forward
detailed  information  to  the  Commission  concerning
the  conditions  referred  to  in  paragraphs  1  and  2.
Bottling  in  the  region  of  production  may  only  be
made  compulsory  once  the  Commission  has  noted
that  the  abovementioned  conditions  have  been  met.’

Article  2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day
following  its  publication  in  the  Official  Journal  of  the
European  Communities.

This  Regulation  shall  be  binding  in  its  entirety  and
directly  applicable  in  all  Member  States.