France furious as Russia’s labels imported champagne ‘sparkling wine’
- Moscow wants the label put on all foreign bottles, enraging French producers who assert that only products from Champagne region should sold as champagne
- France’s government says it may refer Russia to the World Trade Organization over the matter
Moscow has adopted legislation requiring the “sparkling wine” label be added to bottles of foreign fizz, while Russian producers of the local version, “shampanskoye”, do not have to add the label.
Denying the Champenois the right to use the name ‘champagne’ in Cyrillic is scandalous: it is our common heritage and the apple of our eye
Producers from France can still use the word in French, but will also have to write “sparkling wine” in Cyrillic on the back of bottles – a heresy for brands that say nothing on Earth can match their drink.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said during a session of parliament that government was mulling a course of action.
The WTO has a mechanism for resolving trade disputes between member states.
“We will act in the coming days with Russian authorities, on the bilateral and European level, to defend our producers’ interests and above all the interests of our geographical indications,” Le Drian said.
