Publication of an application pursuant to Article 17(6) of Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the definition, description, presentation, labelling and the protection of geographical indications of spirit drinks and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 1576/89 2021/C 351/13
Date: 2021-09-01
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Bavaria, Germany, consumer information, designation of origin, labelling, liqueur, product designation, quality control of agricultural products








C_2021351EN.01002801.xml










1.9.2021   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 351/28






Publication of an application pursuant to Article 17(6) of Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the definition, description, presentation, labelling and the protection of geographical indications of spirit drinks and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 1576/89
(2021/C 351/13)
This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 27 of Regulation (EU) 2019/787 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1).
MAIN SPECIFICATIONS OF THE TECHNICAL FILE
‘BAYERISCHER BLUTWURZ’


EU No: PGI-DE-02581 – 7 June 2019

1.   Geographical indication to be registered

‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’
2.   Category of the spirit drink







32.


Liqueur




3.   Description of the spirit drink







Physical, chemical and/or organoleptic characteristics


‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ is a liqueur which is made in Bavaria, predominantly in the Bavarian Forest region, traditionally from the root of the tormentil plant (Potentilla erecta (L.) Raeusch). The root of the tormentil (Blutwurz) plant is sometimes referred to colloquially as Blutwurzel for short.






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Actual alcoholic strength of the ready-to-drink spirit: at least 35 % by volume










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Minimum sugar content: 100 g/litre of finished product, expressed as invert sugar










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Clarity: clear










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Colour: typically reddish-brown colour imparted mainly by the tormentil root. Other ingredients, such as herbs, fruit juices, etc. used, where appropriate, to round off the taste may also give the liqueur its colour.










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Odour and taste: tangy to tart-bitter taste of tormentil










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Ingredients used: extracts (macerates) of tormentil root and, where appropriate, additional herbs using ethyl alcohol or distillate of agricultural origin, sugar or other sweetening products and water for reduction to drinking strength. Other ingredients such as fruit juices may also be used to produce the macerate.








Specific characteristics (compared with spirit drinks of the same category)








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‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ differs from other liqueurs in that use is made predominantly of a macerate of the root of the tormentil plant (Potentilla erecta (L.) Raeusch). This macerate gives the product its bitter taste and typical reddish-brown colour.










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Unlike some other liqueurs marketed as Blutwurz, some steps in the production of which take place in different regions of Germany, the entire production process of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’, including in particular the maceration of the ingredients used, is carried out in the geographical area.










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‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ is a high-quality product, so a macerate of the tormentil root is always used in the production process. There is no simple blending of low-quality flavourings or the like.










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No colourings or other food additives are used in the production process either.








4.   Geographical area concerned

‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ is produced in many regions of Bavaria, particularly in regions with lean soils. Bayern (NUTS area DE2) is therefore designated as the defined geographical area.
5.   Method used to obtain the spirit drink







Title – Type of method


Production of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’




Method


The first step is to comminute the tormentil roots, possibly with the addition of other ingredients, such as herbs, fruit juices, etc., and water. If other ingredients are mixed with the tormentil roots, care is taken to ensure they do not impair the predominant Blutwurz flavour.
The second step is then to macerate the comminuted tormentil roots and any additional ingredients using ethyl alcohol or distillate of agricultural origin.
The alcohol macerate obtained is sometimes stored or matured in suitable containers for an unspecified period.
Sugar or other sweetening products are then stirred into the alcohol macerate.
The final step to complete the production process consists of the following:






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reduction of the high-percentage alcohol extracts to drinking strength using water,










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bottling or decanting into other suitable sale containers, and










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labelling and packaging.




In order to ensure quality, all the above production steps must take place in the geographical area. After reduction to drinking strength, the essential oils contained in the product quickly volatilise, which can impair the quality of ready-to-drink ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’. In order to maintain quality, rapid bottling in the geographical area, shortly after reduction to drinking strength, is therefore necessary. ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ is also held in high regard because of its quality. Traceable, rapid bottling in the geographical area is particularly important for the reliability and monitoring of the promise of that quality.




6.   Link with the geographical environment or origin







Details of the geographical area or origin relevant to the link


The Bavarian Forest is one of the main areas of traditional production of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’, because of the natural presence of the character-imparting ingredient there. It is, however, also produced in the Bavarian Prealps, the Alpine Foreland and the other Mittelgebirge (upland) regions of Bavaria because the ingredient is also found there.
That tradition arose in the aforementioned areas because tormentil (i.e. the plant whose roots, or rhizomes, are used to make Blutwurz) grows there and, as such, has always been available as a raw material to be used in medicines and consumables.
The geography of the aforementioned upland regions of Bavaria is characterised by mixed forests, heaths, lean meadows and, in some cases, fens with mildly acidic soils. In conjunction with the prevailing cool, humid climate typical of the eastern uplands, these regions have optimum geographical and climatic conditions for the tormentil plant. The plant is generally considered to be an indicator of lean soils.




Specific characteristics of the spirit drink attributable to the geographical area


The link between ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ and the geographical area is based mainly on the reputation of the product.
On account of the good geographical and climatic conditions and the associated abundance of the tormentil plant, there have traditionally been a number of producers of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ in the aforementioned upland regions. This regional concentration has allowed the individual producers, by constantly exchanging ideas, to refine their ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’-making skills.
The production tradition dates back to the 17th century. ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ was used as an aqueous alcoholic solution, particularly for medicinal purposes but also as a consumable. Many references to the tradition can also be found in historical records.
The mere fact that most bars and restaurants in the Bavarian Forest, the main production region, and elsewhere have ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ on their (spirit) drinks menu is testimony to its status as a well-established part of the cultural heritage of Bavaria.
The local press reports regularly on the production of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ by traditional producers.
The use of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ is also referred to in cookbooks such as Anna M. Fraunhofer’s Das Original Bayerischer Blutwurz Kochbuch (ISBN: 978-3896820822).
The first Bavarian schnapps museum, which includes an exhibition on the traditional production of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’, is located in Hauzenberg, in the Bavarian Forest region. The fact that the production of Blutwurz is rooted in that region is one of the reasons why two places have been officially recognised as gastronomic centres. Blutwurz, as a traditionally made product, was thus included in the two entries ‘Kulinarisches Schaufenster Zwiesel’ (‘Zwiesel: a culinary showcase’) and ‘Viechtach’ in the state-wide competition ‘100 Genussorte Bayern’ (‘100 gastronomic centres of Bavaria’) and was as a result taken into account in the expert panel’s assessment (www.100genussorte.bayern). ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ is listed as a traditional Bavarian speciality in the Bavarian specialities database (www.spezialitaetenland-bayern.de). In order to be included in the database, a product, dish or drink must meet a number of requirements. The speciality must have been produced or grown in the region for at least 50 years. It must also have a (production) story that demonstrates that the product is closely linked to the region where it is produced or processed. Last but not least, consumers must perceive the product as being typically Bavarian or typical of a region within Bavaria.




7.   European Union or national/regional provisions

8.   Applicant







Applicant name and title


Bundesministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft, Referat 414 (Wein, Bier, Getränkewirtschaft) [Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Unit 414 (Wine, beer, beverages sector)]




Legal status, size and composition (in the case of legal persons)


Public-law body forming part of the Federal Government




Nationality


German




Address







Rochusstraße 1




53123 Bonn








Country


GERMANY




Telephone


+49 22899529-0




Email(s)


poststelle@bmel.bund.de; 414@bmel.bund.de




9.   Supplement to the geographical indication


Specific labelling rules

a)   Basic rules on supplements to the geographical indication ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’
Under current Union spirit drinks legislation, the name ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ may be supplemented only by:






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the terms specified under (b), or










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terms other than those specified under (b) which can be shown to have been in common use on 20 February 2008.




b)   Supplements with non-geographical terms
If details concerning maturation, ageing or storage are added to the name ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’, the products must be stored or matured for at least 6 months.
Indications of age are subject to the following rules:
Products matured for at least 6 months may be labelled as ‘mature’.
Products matured for at least 1 year may be labelled as ‘old’ (placed in conjugated form, ‘alter’, before the commercial name ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’).
If quality terms (e.g. ‘feiner’ [fine], ‘Edel-’ [premium] or ‘Tafel-’ [table]) are added to the name ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’, the products must be of significantly higher quality than standard products. Examples would be the use of a larger quantity of tormentil roots relative to the quantity of alcohol used in maceration, or maturation in containers made of oak or other (stoneware or earthenware) materials.
Products produced entirely, i.e. macerated, diluted to drinking strength by adding water and bottled, at a single plant may also be labelled with the additional words ‘Produced and bottled at the distillery’, for products produced at a distillery, or else ‘Produced and bottled on site’.
c)   Addition of words such as ‘Likör’ (‘liqueur’) or ‘Kräuter-Likör’ (‘herbal liqueur’)
In order to make it clear to consumers – in particular those outside the Bavarian Forest, the main marketing area – that ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ – unlike Bärwurz and other low-extract spirit drinks also made from tormentil root – is in all cases a ‘liqueur’, producers of ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ may place words such as ‘Likör’, ‘Kräuter-Likör’ or similar terms after the commercial name ‘Bayerischer Blutwurz’ on the label of their products.


(1)  OJ L 130, 17.5.2019, p. 1.