A two-year-old agreement between the European Union and Australia over wine labelling finally comes into force next month and means Australia will soon no longer be able to call its sparkling wine "champagne".
From September 1st, Australia has agreed to phase out the use of European names and classifications on its wine labels, and from September 2011 will entirely stop using words like "champagne", "port" and "sherry" to describe wines it produces.
The agreement is a big deal for the European Union, which has long been intent on protecting the regional skills and expertise of its 27 member countries, particularly when it comes to food, wine and other artisanal produce.
Australian wine exports to the European Union were worth more than €640 million in 2009 - almost 10 times more than the value of EU wine exports to Australia.
The EU's concern was that by using terms such as "champagne" and "port" - which refer to an area of northern France and the Portuguese city of Porto, respectively - Australian producers were misrepresenting the origin of their product.
"This agreement provides important safeguards for EU wine interests," said Dacian Ciolos, the EU commissioner in charge of agriculture and rural development.
"Crucially, we have obtained the commitment that Australian wine producers will phase out the use of key EU geographical indications and traditional expressions for wine. This is of utmost importance for European producers."
For its part, Australia has secured pan-EU recognition of more than a dozen Australian winemaking techniques - such as using oak chips or resin to add scent and flavour - and there will be simpler arrangements for approval of any techniques developed in the future.
More than 100 Australian geographical indications will also receive protection in the Europe Union, according to a statement from the Australian government.
The new labelling agreement, which took more than six years to negotiate, replaces a now-expired 1994 accord.
Reuters