Champagne does not want to mix appellation and non-appellation wines

We made the choice a long time ago to be a wine region that solely focuses on AOC Champagne”, stressed Maxime Toubart, chairman of the Champagne winegrowers’ organisation SGV at its AGM on April 11.  “We are opposed to vineyards designed to produce wines without a geographical indication being planted in our appellation area. But today, we no longer have the ability to enforce our policy”.

Over the past eight years, 0.1 hectare of vines without a GI are planted every year within the appellation area. “The total 0.8 hectare is not what matters”, continued Toubart. “It’s the threat to our wine region from the mixture of appellations and non-GIs, because non-GIs have no yield threshold and do not have to comply with specifications like we do. Last year, we tried to request a zero quota for non-GI vineyards on the grounds that we don’t want to mix the two. Our application was denied by the ministry which enforces European rules strictly”.

The issue of non-GI wines needs to be put into the context of the ongoing review of the appellation area. INAO’s commission of enquiry is due to present the SGV with its report in 2025. “The organisation’s board will then have to decide whether to go through with the project or not”, explained Toubart. “With no visibility over the recurrent issue of controlling our plantings, we will be faced with a challenging decision to make, and one that will inevitably be unsatisfactory”.

Toubart stressed the fact that the SGV needs to be able to continue to regulate production potential after 2045 and that it must have the ability to avoid becoming a wine region with both appellation and non-GI wines. With such uncertainty, the choice of whether to adopt or reject a new appellation area will be the major topic for 2025!