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 432/09
Date: 2020-12-14
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Champagne-Ardenne, France, consumer information, designation of origin, labelling, product designation, quality control of agricultural products, rosé wine, still wine








C_2020432EN.01001901.xml










14.12.2020   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 432/19






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 432/09)
This notice is published in accordance with Article 17(5) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 (1)

COMMUNICATION OF STANDARD AMENDMENT MODIFYING THE SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘ROSÉ DES RICEYS’


PDO-FR-A1363-AM02


Date of communication: 1.10.2020

DESCRIPTION OF AND REASONS FOR THE APPROVED AMENDMENT
1.   Geographical area

Under point IV(1) of Chapter I of the specification, relating to the geographical area, a reference to the Official Geographic Code for 2019 has been introduced.
The date of approval of the geographical area of the designation by the competent national committee of the National Institute of Origin and Quality has also been added.
These amendments do not constitute a change in the geographical area.
The new wording ensures that the municipalities in the geographical area continue to be clearly identified in the specification.
The single document has been updated under ‘Demarcated geographical area’.
2.   Other crop-related practices

Under point VI(2)(c), a rule has been inserted, worded as follows: ‘the use of pre-emergent herbicides within the rows is prohibited’.
The aim is to limit the use of inputs, reduce pollution of water resources and encourage operators to diversify their practices, by focusing on grazing or mechanical weeding techniques.
The single document is not affected by this amendment.
The rule under (c) in the previous version of the specification is retained and marked as (d) in the new version.
3.   Transitional measures

Under point XI, the transitional measure has been deleted as the deadline has expired.
The single document is not affected by this amendment.
4.   Main points for checking and evaluation methods

Under point I of Chapter III of the specification, the table containing the main points to be checked and the corresponding evaluation methods has been updated to add key points and to specify some of the evaluation methods.
The single document is not affected by this amendment.
5.   Additional provisions relating to labelling – additional names

Supplementary information has been added to the single document under ‘Additional provisions relating to labelling – additional names’.
The previous wording of the special labelling provision referred to the specification for information on the provisions.
It has been replaced by the provisions set out in the specification. These are unchanged from the previous version of the product specification.
SINGLE DOCUMENT
1.   Name of the product

Rosé des Riceys
2.   Geographical indication type

PDO – protected designation of origin
3.   Categories of grapevine product







1.


Wine




4.   Description of the wine(s)


Analytical characteristics

The wines are still rosé wines.
The wines have a minimum natural alcoholic strength by volume of 10 %.
After enrichment, the wines’ total alcoholic strength by volume must not exceed 13 %.
The wines have a fermentable sugar (glucose and fructose) content not exceeding 3 grams per litre.
Visually its luminous and intense colour varies from light salmon to madder red. It is a fine and delicate wine with good persistence in the mouth. When young, the wine may have red fruit aromas. After several years of ageing, it develops a complex bouquet frequently characterised by aromas of dried fruit and spices, sometimes candied fruit, depending on the vintage. Generally speaking, the wine is characterised by its finesse, balance of flavour and harmony.
The standards provided for in general regulations apply to the maximum total alcoholic strength, the minimum actual alcoholic strength, the minimum total acidity, the maximum volatile acidity and the maximum total sulphur dioxide content.






General analytical characteristics




Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume)


 




Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume)


 




Minimum total acidity


in milliequivalents per litre




Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre)


 




Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre)


 




5.   Winemaking practices

a.   Specific oenological practices

Oenological practices
Winemaking restriction
It is forbidden to use charcoal, whether alone or mixed in preparations, for oenological purposes.
The use of wood chips is prohibited.
During the enrichment process, the increase in the volume of the fermenting grape must used must not exceed 1,12 % for every 1 % increase in the alcoholic strength.
In addition to the above provisions, all winemaking practices followed must also comply with the requirements laid down at EU level and in the Rural and Maritime Fishing Code.
Planting density
Cultivation method

General provisions

The vines are planted so that the spacing between rows does not exceed 1,50 metres.
The spacing between plants in the same row ranges from 0,90 to 1,50 metres.
The sum of the spacing between rows and the spacing between plants in the same row may not exceed 2,50 metres.

Special provisions

In order to allow the passage of suitable machinery, parcels with






—


either a slope of more than 35 %










—


or a slope of more than 25 % and a cant of more than 10 %




may have alleys 1,50 to 3 metres wide for every sixth row at the most. In this case, the sum of the spacing between the other rows and the spacing between plants in the same row may not exceed 2,30 metres.
Pruning rules
Cultivation method
Plants may not overlap each other nor may branches overlap fruit.
The number of buds may not exceed 18 per square metre.
Pruning is carried out at the latest before phenological stage (F) (Lorenz stage 12), or four unfolded leaves.
The vines are pruned according to the following techniques:






—


Royat cordon pruning










—


single Guyot, double Guyot or asymmetric Guyot pruning




b.   Maximum yields

15 500 kilograms of grapes per hectare
6.   Demarcated geographical area

All stages of the production must take place within the geographical area approved by the National Institute of Origin and Quality at the meeting of the relevant national committee on 12 February 1969.
The perimeter of this area, on the date of approval of this specification by the relevant national committee, comprises the territory of the following municipalities, based on the 2019 Official Geographic Code:






a)


The grapes are harvested and the wines made, developed and aged on the territory of the following municipality of the department of Aube: Les Riceys.










b)


The wines are made, developed and aged also on the territory of the following municipalities of the department of Aube: Avirey-Lingey, Bagneux-la-Fosse, Balnot-sur-Laignes, Bragelogne-Beauvoir, Gyé-sur-Seine, Mussy-sur-Seine, Neuville-sur-Seine.




7.   Main wine grape variety(-ies)

Pinot noir N
8.   Description of the link(s)



Link with the geographical area



Information on the geographical area


Description of the natural factors relevant to the link

The geographical area extends over eight municipalities in the south of the department of Aube. The landscape of Les Riceys belongs to the geological sequence of the Côte des Bar. The Kimmeridgian makes up most of the geological substrate, deeply carved in the centre by the Laignes Valley and a number of peripheral dells. The Kimmeridgian, characterised by alternating marl and calcareous banks, is the source of the best soils of the vineyards, which are composed of grey clay-limestone colluviums covering the slopes and enclose a multitude of small stones that help warm the ground. The vines, planted in precisely demarcated parcels, are located on the steepest, highest and sunniest east- and south-facing hillsides. The northern location means a rather cold climate, but the circular layout of the vineyard, which is embedded in the dells, provides it with a very favourable mesoclimate.

Description of the human factors relevant to the geographical link

The attested origin of the Les Riceys vineyard can be traced to the 8th century using documents proving that vines grew on the territory of the municipality. At the beginning of the 18th century, Les Riceys wines started being sold on a large scale to the Netherlands, Belgium, the Paris region and northern France, as can be seen from the shipment statistics drawn up by the treaty offices of the province of Champagne. In 1875 the vineyard was prosperous. Les Riceys wines were marketed by nearly 35 traders. That prosperity was weakened by the Phylloxera crisis and the rise of the textile industry in Aube, which absorbed the rural workforce. The vineyard rebuilt itself in part when Aube was integrated in the wine-growing Champagne region in 1927, but the situation remained difficult. A few ‘handlers’ remained, and their perseverance was rewarded when the ‘Rosé de Riceys’ protected designation of origin was recognised on 8 December 1947. With the establishment of a number of young winegrowers in the 1960s, winemaking operations picked up and wine started being produced once again. The winemakers’ union Syndicat des Producteurs de l'AOC Rosé des Riceys was founded on 26 September 1968.

Information on the quality and characteristics of the product

‘Rosé des Riceys’ is a still wine with an obligatory indication of vintage. Visually its luminous and intense colour varies from light salmon to madder red. It is a fine and delicate wine with good persistence in the mouth. When young, the wine may have red fruit aromas. After several years of ageing, it develops a complex bouquet frequently characterised by aromas of dried fruit and spices, sometimes candied fruit, depending on the vintage. Generally speaking, the wine is characterised by its finesse, balance of flavour and harmony.

Causal interactions

The stony soils of the most exposed south- and east-facing slopes and of the steepest slopes have an optimal light level and warm up well, thus enabling early plant growth in the spring, optimising photosynthesis and guaranteeing the ripening of the berries. The high altitude of the winegrowing hillsides prevents contact with the cold air stagnating at the bottom of the dells, and the forest covering the upper parts of the slopes and the numerous pockets of trees throughout the territory offer good protection against the masses of cold air arriving from the plateaus. The incline of the winegrowing slopes ensures optimal natural drainage, which is also guaranteed by the crack formation in the Kimmeridgian limestone. The marl found between the calcareous banks supplies the necessary water in the summer, mainly in warm and dry years. Finally, the warm summer temperatures together with the heat from the sun’s rays reflected by the Kimmeridgian stones give the wine its typical notes of candied fruit and spices as it ages. The grape variety pinot noir N was considered the best variety for making Les Riceys wine already by Jules Guyot in the 19th century. The entire crop of grapes must be placed in the vat in order to fully respect the aromas of the grape variety pinot noir N and, in particular, their development during vatting, the duration of which is determined with precision by the skilled and experienced winemakers. According to V. RENDU, ‘aux Riceys, on réserve les plans fins pour les premières cuvées. On évite les longues cuvaisons afin de conserver à ce vin la finesse et la franchise de goût qui caractérise le vin des Riceys’. In other words, the first cuvées of Les Riceys wine are prepared with care, avoiding lengthy vatting so as to protect the finesse and pronounced flavour of this wine.
9.   Essential further conditions (packaging, labelling, other requirements)

Reference to the vintage
Legal framework:
National legislation
Type of further condition:
Additional provisions relating to labelling
Description of the condition:
Indication of the vintage is obligatory in the presentation of the wines.
Additional names
Legal framework:
National legislation
Type of further condition:
Additional provisions relating to labelling
Description of the condition:
The labels of wines eligible for the controlled designation of origin may bear the name of a smaller geographical entity, provided that:






—


it is the name of a place in the land register










—


it appears on the harvest declaration.




A place name may be indicated only if all the grapes used for the production of the wines are grapes from the named place in question.

Link to the product specification

https://info.agriculture.gouv.fr/gedei/site/bo-agri/document_administratif-0e6797aa-7711-4406-975b-1ca510a31f66


(1)  OJ L 9, 11.1.2019, p. 2.