The European Union is seeking to limit wine labelled 'Prosecco' to the Veneto region in Italy as another international wine classification dispute engulfs local producers.
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If the EU succeeds in its bid to restrict the widely-used term, Australian winemakers will be forced to relabel and rebrand in a costly move.
Prosecco drinkers expect a rich sparkling wine made from the 'glera' grape, a style wineries like Dal Zotto, Brown Brothers and Pizzini in north-east Victoria's King Valley have built a reputation on.
However, the EU argues that restricting the term 'Prosecco' for use by Veneto-based winemakers allows the region to control the quality and authenticity of the wine.
Rutherglen winemaker Chris Pfeiffer was sceptical.
"This is a marketing move," he said.
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Mr Pfeiffer, the head winemaker of Pfeiffer Wine, has experience navigating international wine classification disputes.
"We went through this process three times, with port, sherry and tokaji," he said.
After drawn out negotiations, Pfeiffer Wine relabelled its styles 'tawny,' 'apera' and 'topaque.'
The winemaker warns renaming a style of wine can be a long and fraught process, particularly in copywriting.
The term 'apera' drew the most scrutiny, with Italian aperitif Aperol challenging the name in a two year court battle.
"We took a poll on a new name and only about four or five names were available," Mr Pfeiffer said.
Anna Houlahan
Anna Houlahan reports on crime and social issues affecting regional and remote Australia in her role as national crime reporter at Australian Community Media (ACM). She was ACM’s Trainee of the Year in 2023 and, aside from reporting on crime, has travelled the country as a journalist for Explore Travel Magazine. Reach out with news or updates to anna.houlahan@austcommunitymedia.com.au
