CELEX: 31971R1539
Language: en
Date: 1971-07-19
Title: Regulation (EEC) No 1539/71 of the Commission of 19 July 1971 determining Community methods for the analysis of wines

552                                    Official journal of the European Communities
21.7.71                                Official Journal of the European Communities                         No L 163 /41
                             REGULATION (EEC) No 1539/71 OF THE COMMISSION
                                                       of 19 July 1971
                                 determining Community methods for the analysis of wines
THE    COMMISSION        OF      THE   EUROPEAN      COM­         procedures ; whereas, however, in view of commercial
MUNITIES,                                                         requirements and limitations, a restricted number of
                                                                  simplified procedures should be permitted enabling
Having regard to the Treaty establishing                the       the requisite factors to be . determined rapidly and
European Economic Community;                                      with reasonable accuracy;
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No                      Whereas generally recognised methods should be
816/701 of 28 April 1970 laying down additional                   used ; whereas, therefore, maximum use should be
provisions for the common organisation of the market              made of the methods formulated under the 1954
in wine, as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No                   International Convention for the Unification of
2612/702 and in particular Article 20 (4) and Article             Methods for the Analysis and Appraisal of Wines ;
39 thereof;
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No                      Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation
817/703 of 28 April 1970 laying down special                      are in accordance with the Opinion of the
provisions for quality wines produced in specified                Management Committee for Wine ;
regions, and in particular Article 11 (4) thereof;
Whereas Article 39 of Regulation (EEC) No 816/70                  HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :
provides for the adoption of detailed rules necessary
for implementing the provisions of Annexes I and II
and in particular the adoption of ' methods of                                             Article 1
analysis ;
Whereas Article 11 ( 1 ) of Regulation (EEC) No                   1 . The methods of analysis for the application of
817/70 provides for an analytical test, including an              Regulations (EEC) Nos 816/70 and 817/70 shall be
assessment of the . characteristics, as listed in the             those set out in the Annex to this Regulation.
Annex to that Regulation, of the quality wine p.s.r. in
question; whereas paragraph 3 of that same Article                Except where expressly stated in that Annex, such
envisages the adoption of Community methods ;                     methods shall be applied as directed in the Annex to
                                                                  the Compendium of International Methods for the
Whereas the provisions relating to > oenological                  Analysis of Wines, prepared and supplemented under
processes and conditions for release to the market                the 1954 International Convention for the Unification
call for an effective control of the products in                  of Methods for the Analysis and Appraisal of Wines.
question; whereas the uniform application of such
control    and   the    verification     of    documentary
                                                                  2.      For the items for which both standard methods
particulars of products call for the introduction of
uniform methods of analysis to ensure that accurate               and simplified methods are laid /down, results
and comparable information is obtained; whereas,                  obtained from the standard methods shall prevail.
consequently, these methods should be compulsory
for all commercial transactions and all verification
                                                                                           Article 2
1 OJ No L 99, 5.5.1970 , p . 1 .
2 OJ No L 281 , 27.12.1970 , p. 6.                                This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 September
3 OJ No L 99, 5.5.1970 , p . 20.                                   1971 .
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This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member
States .
Done at Brussels, 19 July 1971 .
                                                                          For the Commission
                                                                             The President
                                                                        Franco M. MALFATTI
                                                  ANNEX
 1 . For determining specific gravity and density :
     (a) the standard method shall be measurement by a pycnometer
     (b) the simplified method shall be measurement by a hydrometer.
     These methods are described under A 1 (c) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
     Article 1 .
 2. For determining the actual alcoholic strength :
     (a) of wines :
         ( aa) the standard method shall be double distillation and measurement of the specific
                 gravity of the distillate by a pycnometer ;
         (bb) the simplified method shall be simple distillation of the neutralised liquid and
                 measurement of the alcoholic strength by a hydrometer ;.
     (b) of must and must in fermentation with an actual alcoholic strength not exceeding 6° :
         (aa) the standard method shall be the measurement of alcohol by chemical means,
         ( bb) the simplified method shall be that given under ( a) ( bb).
     These methods are described under A 2 (c) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
     Article 1 .
 3 . The total dry extract shall be measured by a densimeter and calculated indirectly from the
     specific gravity of the residue without alcohol.
     This method is decribed under A 3 (c) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in Article 1 .
 4. The reducing sugar content shall be determined as follows :
     (a) by clarification :
         — of red wines : with lead subacetate,
         — of other products : with zinc ferrocyanide ;
     (b) by allowing the clarified wine to react with a fixed quantity of an alkaline copper salt
         solution , and measuring the excess of copper ions by iodometry.
     These methods are described under A 4 (d) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
     Article 1 .
 5 . For determining the sucrose content :
     (a) the standard method shall be :
         (aa) for qualitative testing : thin layer chromatography and paper chromatography,
         (bb) for measurement after inversion ; method outlined under 4 ;
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         (b) the simplified method shall be :
              (aa) for qualitative testing : colorimetry.
              (bb) for measurement after inversion : method outlined under 4.
         These methods are described under A 5 (f) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in.
         Article 1 .                                        ^                                                -
         Where the result obtained from the measurement of the sucrose content is less than 1 g/1 for
         dry wines or 2 g/1 for sweet wines, a qualitative test shall be carried out. If this gives a negative
         result, it is not attributable to the sucrose.
     6." Ash content shall be determined by incinerating the dry extract at between 500 °C and 550 °C
         until complete combustion of the carbon has taken place.
         This method is described under A 6 (a) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
         Article 1 .
     7. The methods of determining the alkalinity of the ash shall be :
         (a) in respect of total alkalinity : back titration with sulphuric acid after heating using methyl
              orange as an indicator to which, if necessary, a drop of methylene blue may be added ;
         (b) in respect of partial alkalinity : back titration with sulphuric acid in the presence of a small
              excess of cerous ions using a colour indicator changing at pH 4-5.
         Those methods are described under A 7 (a) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
         Article 1 .
     8 . For determining the total acidity :
         After first removing the carbonic acid and sulphur dioxide :
         (a) the standard method shall be. potentiometric titration,
         ( b) the simplified method shall be titration with bromothymol blue to indicate the end of the
               reaction .
         The total acidity shall be expressed in milli-equivalents per litre.
         These methods are described under A 10 (a) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
         Article 1 .
     9. The volatile acidity shall be determined by separation of the volatile acids by steam distillation.
         The colour indicator used shall be phenolphthalein.
         The volatile acidity shall be expressed in milli-equivalents per litre.
         This method is described under A 11 (a) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
         Article 1 .
    10. The non-volatile acidity shall be determined by calculating the difference between the total
         acidity and the volatile acidity.
    11 . For determining tartaric acid :
         (a) the standard method shall be colorimetric measurement of the tartaric acid—isolated by
              means of an anion exchange column—by means of the red coloration which it gives with
              vanadic acid ;
         (b) the simplified method shall be acidimetric measurement of the tartaric acid precipitated in
              the form of potassium acid tartrate under conditions which reduce solubility to a minimum.
         These methods are described under A 12 (g) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
         Article 1 .
    12. Citric acid shall be determined with the other acids by an anion exchange resin. The citramalic
         acid is separated by fractional elution. The citric acid is converted by oxidization into acetone
         which is separated by distillation. The acetone is measured by iodometry.
         This method is described under A 29 (e) . in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
         Article 1 ,
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13 . For determining sulphur dioxide :
     (a) the standard method shall be measurement of the total sulphur dioxide, carried over by a
          current of air or nitrogen into a standard solution of sodium hydroxide ;
     (b) the simplified method shall be :
          (aa) in the case of free sulphur dioxide, direct iodometric titration with a blank titration of
                 the same wine in which the free sulphur dioxide has been combined by an excess of
                 ethanal or propanal ;
        . (bb) in the case of combined sulphur dioxide, iodometric titration after double alkaline
                 hydrolysis of the wine where the free sulphur dioxide has been oxidized in the course
                 of the iodometric titration ;
          (cc) in the case of the total sulphur dioxide, by adding the results obtained in the two
                 analyses referred to in (aa) and (bb)
     These methods are described under A 17 (c) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
     Article 1 .
14. The pH value of the wine and that of the must shall be determined by measuring the difference
     in potential between two electrodes dipped in the liquid under examination. One of these
     electrodes has a potential which is a certain function of the pH of the liquid, the other has a
     fixed and known potential and constitutes the reference electrode.
     This method is described under A 31 (f) in the Annex to the Compendium referred to in
     Article 1 .