Publication of a communication of approval of a standard amendment to a product specification for a name in the wine sector, as referred to in Article 17(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 2023/C 208/11
Date: 2023-06-15
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: France, Grand Est, consumer information, designation of origin, labelling, product designation, quality control of agricultural products, rosé wine, still wine








C_2023208EN.01007501.xml










15.6.2023   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 208/75






Publication of a communication of approval of a standard amendment to a product specification for a name in the wine sector, as referred to in Article 17(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33
(2023/C 208/11)
This communication is published in accordance with Article 17(5) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 (1).
COMMUNICATING THE APPROVAL OF A STANDARD AMENDMENT

‘Rosé des Riceys’


PDO-FR-A1363-AM03


Date of communication: 19.4.2023


DESCRIPTION OF AND REASONS FOR THE APPROVED AMENDMENT

1.   Planting density

In point (1°)(a) of Section VI of Chapter I of the product specification, the general rules relating to density have been amended to allow the spacing between rows to be increased and the spacing between plants to be decreased when the vines are planted.
These new rules, which have been decided on after several years of experimentation, will make it easier for the vineyards to adapt to climate change and the agri-environmental practices in place. Reducing the minimum spacing between plants partly compensates for the lower densities on planting.
This change requires point 5 of the single document to be amended.
2.   Pruning rules

Under point (1°)(b) of Section VI of Chapter I of the product specification, the wording of the pruning methods – cordon (de Royat), single or double Guyot – has been amended to take account of the new density rules.
These amendments do not affect the single document.
3.   Other cultivation practices

Two cultivation practices have been added to point (2°) of Section VI of Chapter I of the product specification:






—


Naturally occurring or planted vegetation cover must be present between the rows from 30 November to 31 January of the following year.










—


The vines are planted and replaced with plants whose components (grafts and rootstocks) have been treated with hot water before grafting. Otherwise, the plants are treated with hot water before planting. The hot water treatment must be carried out at a station approved by FranceAgriMer.




These new rules have an agroecological objective.
These additions do not affect the single document.
4.   References to the inspection body

In Section II of Chapter III of the product specification, the address of the inspection body has been updated.
The second paragraph has been reworded and the third paragraph deleted in order to comply with the new drafting rules for Section II of product specifications.
The single document is not affected by this amendment.
SINGLE DOCUMENT
1.   Name(s)

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
BRIEF WRITTEN DESCRIPTION
The wines are still rosé wines. The wines have a minimum natural alcoholic strength by volume of 10 %.
The wines’ total alcoholic strength by volume must not exceed 13 % after any enrichment.
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)


13 




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.   Wine-making practices

5.1.   Specific oenological practices

1.   Oenological practices
Wine-making restriction
It is forbidden to use oenological charcoal, whether alone or mixed in preparations.
The use of woodchips 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 by volume.
In addition to the above provisions, all wine-making practices followed must also comply with the requirements laid down at EU level and in the Rural and Maritime Fishing Code.
2.   Planting density
Cultivation method






—


General provisions
The vines are planted so that the spacing between rows does not exceed 2 metres.
The spacing between plants in the same row ranges from 0,70 to 1,50 metres.
The sum of the spacing between rows and the spacing between plants in the same row must not exceed 3 metres.
Any transformation of parcels resulting in a change in planting density is prohibited until the parcels have been grubbed up.










—


Specific 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 must not exceed 2,30 metres.




3.   Pruning rules
Cultivation method
Plants must not overlap each other nor may branches overlap fruit.
The number of buds must 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:






—


cordon de Royat pruning










—


single Guyot, double Guyot or asymmetric Guyot pruning.




5.2.   Maximum yields

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

All stages of 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 and Neuville-sur-Seine.




7.   Wine grape variety(-ies)

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


Link with the geographical area

1° –   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 vineyards, which are embedded in the dells, provides them with a very favourable mesoclimate.










—


Description of the human factors relevant to the link
The attested origin of the Les Riceys vineyards 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 vineyards were 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 vineyards rebuilt themselves 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’ registered designation of origin was recognised on 8 December 1947. With the establishment of a number of young winegrowers in the 1960s, wine-making 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.




2° –   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.
3° –   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 wine-growing 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 plateaux. The incline of the wine-growing 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 name

Legal framework:
National legislation
Type of further condition:
Additional provisions relating to labelling
Description of the condition:
The labels of wines eligible for the registered 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 from the named place in question.

Link to the product specification

https://info.agriculture.gouv.fr/gedei/site/bo-agri/document_administratif-8082be37-91d9-4a88-9a29-b3ca9ea93d34


(1)  OJ L 9, 11.1.2019, p. 2.