It’s as easy as ... AOC or WwGI,
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It used to be so simple. Walk into a supermarket and the bottles (sometimes plastic) with ghastly labels on the bottom shelf were cheap, occasionally barely drinkable examples of wine. This was Vin de table, the lowest category for wine designation in the quality scale, and it looked and tasted like it.
Something has happened! These wines have largely disappeared, the bottom shelf is no longer the preserve of the inexpensive wine, packaging is smarter with more innovative labels and a real mix of price points, some cheap but also some premium examples. This is due to a sea change in wine quality. Everybody has moved up a gear but some of the most exciting developments are happening in the table wine category.
The picture painted above existed in many European markets 20 years ago when there were three distinct tiers of wine quality. Wines from delimited areas of origin e.g. AOC in France, DOC in Italy, Vin de pays and table wine. The common perception was of a pyramid with AOC at the top and table wine at the bottom and by and large this hierarchy was true, with some occasional notable exceptions such as Sassicaia in 1968 and Mas de Daumas Gassac in 1978.
These were wines that did not follow the local appellation rules. In these days only two designations existed and if the wine could not be labelled DOC or AOC it had to be table wine.
So we had the beginnings of a crazy situation: some countries’ best and most famous wines were labelled table wine as they were being made with grape varieties that were not authorized.
There are other reasons why a wine might be labelled as table wine:
Geographical regions may be very large or yields of grapes are too high for Vin de pays or AOC.
Grapes could come from outside an appellation zone. Grapes could be blended across regions or zones which are not permitted for “quality wine designations.” Use of unauthorized grape varieties.
Wine that has been de-classified, failed an approval tasting, and been “demoted” to the table wine category. This famously happened to Château Valandraud in 2002 after the owner Jean-Luc Thunevin put plastic sheeting around the vines to prevent water damage from the impending rains.
The big change came in August 2009. The European Union restructured the wine designations across the continent in a bid to standardize the terminology across all countries and to make it easier for consumers to understand. AOC was renamed AOP, vin de pays became IGP and vin de table became WwGI (wine without geographical indication). The term table wine was outlawed and replaced with just “wine,” though France decided to expand it to vin de France.
What impact does this have for the average wine consumer? No real difference for AOC or IGP but a big difference for WwGI, the new replacement for table wine. Grape variety and vintage are now permitted on the labels. It now means that at first sight it is difficult to tell on the shelf whether the wine is “table wine,” IGP or even AOC. Some quality wine producers have now taken advantage of this new legislation and switched. It may also be cheaper for them in terms of costs and levies paid to the governing bodies.
Net result is that the previous quality demarcation lines have become blurred. While in terms of pure volume the new WwGI category may still be home to much inexpensive wine, it is no longer always true that AOC is better than IGP or even WwGI.
Table wine has come of age, reached respectability. They may have lost their original champion Sassicaia, as the Italians realized that they could no longer swim against the Super Tuscan tide that uses non-Italian varieties and in the end created a DOC (Bolgheri) for this “non-conformist” Cabernet based wine.
New European producers have taken up the challenge. Many see it as the only way to really experiment under the strict European framework, now the stigma of being labelled table wine has gone. Many also enjoy the less onerous bureaucracy and controls that go with the WwGI category and it is also considerably less expensive. Who knows, with this new found respectability for wine’s lowliest category we may find out whether Syrah can work in Bordeaux or Assyrtiko in Provence? Albarino is already showing good results in the Languedoc as the wines of Laurent Miquel and Foncalieu testify, demonstrating that table wine is also proving to be the new vehicle for innovation. If the experiment works it may become more mainstream and incorporated into a “higher” category.
Although many are enjoying the increased reputation and new found freedom, there is still a huge amount of mediocre wine produced under this designation. Whilst anything goes in terms of grape varieties and winemaking, maximum permitted yields (120hl/ha) are higher than IGP and AOC wines. Hence the traditional rump of table wine will still be at the cheap end and that position will not change.
So where does this all leave us? Sure, there is still a large bulk of wine made under this category, inexpensive and affordable for the mass wine drinking public. Many in a fairly simplistic style, that offer immediate enjoyment for a very cheap price.
However, the packaging may well look smarter, slighter better labels now with a grape variety and vintage clearly visible on the bottle. The category has gone upmarket, the EU has even done away with the term “table wine.” It has opened the door for the wine innovators who can truly push the boundaries and make a wine that doesn’t follow the rules. So if you want to make a Grüner Veltliner in the South of France or a Touriga Nacional in Sicily you could go ahead.
Next time you reach for that bottle in the supermarket or wine store, check out the label as you may be surprised to see that it isn’t AOC or IGP. Oh, and it may no longer be restricted to the bottom shelf!
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