Wine Law

BRIEF NOTES ON VENEZUELAN WINE LAW 521 Standard 54 , wine “is the alcoholic beverage resulting from the total or partial alcoholic fermentation of fresh grapes or their musts. Its natural graduation may not be less than 7° Gay-Lussac nor greater than 14° Gay-Lussac” [Art. 3(3)]. According to the same CONVENIN Standard, wine can be fine or special, whose specific characteristics are given by the grapes from which it comes, the production techniques and the specific oenological practices [Art. 3(3)(1)]. It could be a liquor, when it has an alcoholic strength greater than 14° Gay-Lussac, without exceeding 20° Gay-Lussac, coming from the alcoholic fermentation of the grape juice or must, with or without ethyl alcohol [Art. 3(3)(2)]. It can also be dry wine, which contains up to 5 g/l of residual sugars [Art. 3(3)(3)] or semi- dry or doomed if it contains from 5 g/l to 55 g/l of residual sugars [Art. 3(3)(4)] and sweet or generous if the content of residual sugars exceeds 55 g/l [Art. 3(3)(5)]. Wine can be composed, when it is made by mixing wine, in a proportion of no less than 75% of the total volume of the species and alcohol with vegetable distillates, macerations, infusions of the same mixtures, grape musts or juices and other concentrated or non-concentrated vegetables, sugars and other substances approved by the competent health authority. The actual strength of this wine must be greater than 14° Gay-Lussac, without exceeding 20° Gay-Lussac. It is Vermouth or Quinine wine [Art. 3(3)(6)]. The COVENIN Standard also refers to champagne as a wine whose carbon dioxide comes exclusively from a second fermentation of added sugars, introduced as “tirage liquor” 55 , which is carried out in the bottles that reach the consumer (Champenoise method), acquiring a pressure not less than 4 atmospheres at 20° C for not less than four months and adding or not the so- called “expedition liquor” 56 [Art. 3(3)(6)]. This Standard uses the term “ champaña ” in Spanish, and it reserves the name “Champagne” for the beverage produced in France, in the Champagne region. Finally, the Standard refers to sparkling wine, whose carbon dioxide comes exclusively from a second fermentation of added sugars, introduced as tirage liquor, with the optional addition of the so-called expedition liquor, which is made in large containers (Charmat method), with its final container having a level of pressure of not less than 3 atmospheres at 20° C [Art. 3(3)(8)]. Additionally, the Standard refers to semi-sparkling wine, Petillant or Frizante, a 54 Source : http://www.sencamer.gob.ve/sencamer/normas/3342-97.pdf. 55 Article 3(3)(7)(1): “Tirage liqueur: it is the product resulting from the mixture of base wine with sugar and yeast and other authorised oenological products. It is added to produce the second fermentation of the champagne and sparkling wine”. 56 Article 3(3)(7)(2): “Expedition liquor: it is the natural product of origin and composition that is added to typify champagne and sparkling wines”.