CHAMPAGNE, Switzerland - A group of winemakers from the Swiss village of Champagne, in the canton of Vaud, have lost a legal battle to attach the town's name to locally-produced wine, a local official said Wednesday.
France has fiercely resisted the labeling of any wine as champagne unless it is from the region of France that produces the famous bubbly.
Marc-Andre Cornu, mayor of the village on the shores of Lake Neuchatel, said the Swiss winemakers lost their case at the European Court of Justice on a technicality, confirming a report in the Neue Zuercher Zeitung.
Village authorities are vowing to continue their fight to use the champagne label.
The Swiss winemakers insist on continuing the ancient custom of naming their wine after their village, which they say has been called Champagne - with variations on the spelling - since the earliest documents available in 885 A.D.
The vintners took their cause to the Luxembourg court after a government deal in 1999 banned them from using the name because it is reserved for the variety made in the northeastern French region.
Albert Banderet, president of a group fighting to retain the name, told Swiss radio he believes international law allows for exceptions to the rule in the case of identical names.
Local wine producers point out that wine, which does not have the traditional French fizz, has been made in the village since the 10th century, while France did not start producing its champagne until the end of the 17th century.
This is exactly why I stick to vodka
ReplyDeleteAnd why I stick to Beer!
ReplyDelete