Wine Law

9 the brand on which the product is branded, through the way it is marketed for other products of which they are also consumers. Thus, depending on the nature of the goods in question and the trademark applied for, it may be necessary, for the purposes of assessing whether the trademark is or is not devoid of distinctive character, to consider a broader area 16 . If the sign consists exclusively of the shape, or another characteristic, which results from the nature of the goods themselves, which is necessary to obtain a technical result or which gives substantial value to the good, it will be refused registration [Art. 7.1(e)]. Therefore, a basic or functional shape or a shape consisting of the design of the product itself will not be considered as distinctive. 3D trademarks are often refused registration, when they consist only of a shape without additional elements. In the wine sector, 3D signs generally consist of the shape of bottles or containers for the goods, since drinks cannot be sold as they are and require packaging, which also has a convenient function. On 1 January 2020, 148 three-dimensional EUTMs were registered and came into force for wines in class 33. As an example, the following have been considered as valid trademarks for wines and spirits in class 33:  a particular shape of amphora, its combination of elements, which individually are common, is distinctive and differs from common bottles on the market. The validity of this trademark was assessed under Article 7.1(b).  the shape of bottle saying “collio”, together with the reflective pink/golden colour, the capital letter "B" and the design of a flame with a satin finish 1718 . 16 TEU 24 September 2019 Fränkischer Weinbauverband T68/18, §20. 17 TEU 8 May 2019 Sandro Bottega T-325/18. 18 Ibidem .