ALL YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT APPELLATIONS
by Murk D.O. Lels

In 1730, the Hungarians, proud of their sweet Tokay wines, were the first to introduce a vineyard classification system based on soil, sun exposure and the potential to develop botrytis cinerea. Not long thereafter, Portugal established an appellation control for Port wines in the Douro valley in 1756. It was not until 1935 that the French, in their zeal for perfectionism, decided on the “perfect solution” to certifying the origins of wines with their “Appellation d’Origine Controlée” (AOC), which translates roughly as “guarantee of origin.”

Each AOC has a control board that establishes and controls strict criteria defining geography, vineyard practices, choice of grapes, winemaking procedures, labeling, etc. AOCs can cover vast areas with varying climatic and soil conditions, or be confined to very small, uniform areas, often representing just one chateau or winery. There are also AOCs within AOCs, used to define special quality characteristics within the region. An example is the large Haut Medoc AOC in the Bordeaux region, which comprises several smaller but renowned AOCs such as Saint-Estèphe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien and Margaux.

A secondary geographical designation was created in 1973 in the form of “Vin de Pays” or “regional wine,” as in “Vin de Pays d’Oc” or “Vin de Pays du Val de Montferrand”. An intermediate category has been created for “Appellations-in-Waiting” the “Vins Délimités de Qualité Supérieure” usually referred to on the labels as “VDQS”. All three categories give the wines a geographical context for the French wine buyer who tends to identify his favorite wines by where they come from rather than by the grapes. But all these efforts to guide the consumer do not guarantee the quality of the wine. Regardless of how a French wine is classified, one can expect to find bottles anywhere from “pedestrian plonk” to treasures of outstanding quality!

Most wine-producing countries have instituted vineyard classifications similar to the French Appellation example. Spain created its first “Denominación de Origen” or DO (Denomination of Origin) in 1922 for the Rioja wines and a second one for the sherry-producing region of Jerez in 1933. But it was only in 1996 that Spain instituted a country-wide DO classification system. In recent years, two new categories have been created: The “Denominación de Origen Calificada” or DOCa, Spain’s highest wine distinction, so far only awarded to Rioja and Priorat, and the “Denominación de Pago” for individual bodegas (wineries).

Following the French example, a regional classification, “Vino de la Tierra,” was also set up. The two most important ones are “Vino de la Tierra de Castilla” and “Vino de la Tierra de Castilla y León.” Several bodegas now prefer the Vino de la Tierra designation, as it gives them greater freedom to experiment with grape blends and winemaking techniques not allowed under the DO control board rules. Once again, the Spaniards, not to be outdone by their neighbors to the north, decided they also needed an “Appellation-in-Waiting” designation, and the “Vinos de Calidad Producidos en Regiones Determinadas” (VCPRD) was born! It has made a lot of previously disgruntled vintners very happy; a few regions in this category have meanwhile been promoted to DO level.

In the 1960s, Italy started to develop its “Denominazione di Origine Controllata” (DOC) and “Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita” (DOCG).  The latter category gathers those wines considered the best (or the ones that garnered the support of a skillful politician...). In 1992 Italy restructured the wine classification system and added the lower-echelon “Indicazione Geografica Tipica” (IGT). It is interesting to note that many Italian DOCs, DOCGs and IGTs not only define the geographical area but also the wine variety. Portugal, one of the first to classify vineyards, revised its earlier regulations into a system similar to the one in Spain, and now has created its own “Denominação de Origem Controlada” (DOC), “Indicação de Proveniência Regulamentada” (IPR), the  Portuguese version of Appellations-in-Waiting, and “Vinho Regional”

Other wine-producing countries have also established geographical classifications. In the New World - Argentina, Australia, Chile, South Africa, United States - where wines are often identified by varietals, the geographical identification is of interest but rigorous classification often becomes somewhat less important. In the USA, the Appellation of Origin mostly covers entire states or very large regions. The classification by American Viticultural Area defines wine-growing areas with specific characteristics, and is more comparable to the French AOC.

Whatever you find on the label--AOC or no AOC, DOC, Vino de la Tierra, etc.—it may be helpful in identifying a wine, but says little or nothing about the most important factor:  TASTE.  So, don’t become an appellation “wine snob”—go for the flavor that appeals to you!