(Wines&Vines) - Long before American drinkers learned how to pronounce Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc or—heaven forbid—Viognier, we all could say and order with confidence: Champagne. The famously festive tipple typically referred to white wine with bubbles.

As the world internationalized via travel and the Internet, however, the picture changed: Champagne, the region in France where the beverage originated centuries ago, became one of the first to attempt to protect its intellectual property by protecting its real estate. The Bureau of Champagne USA teamed with Napa Valley and other prominent world wine regions to establish regulations limiting use of the word “Champagne” to wines actually produced there.

In 2005, the Napa Valley Vintners signed a Joint Declaration to Protect Wine Place and Origin with Champagne, Oporto (Portugal) and Jerez (Spain) declaring wine as the “ultimate product of place that should be protected and respected worldwide,” according to Rex Stultz, NVV’s government relations director.

But numerous U.S. wineries continue to use “Champagne” on their labels, grandfathered in by the TTB. These are venerable long-established sparkling wine producers, including many giants: JFJ Bronco (founded 1973); Constellation’s Cook’s and J. Roget (1945); E. & J. Gallo’s Andre, Tott’s and Wycliff (1933); Emilio Guglielmo (1925); San Antonio (1917); Weibel Family Winery (1939) and Korbel Champagne Cellars (1882). In 2008, more than 3,200 cases of Gallo’s Andre encountered a roadblock when they were confiscated and smashed at their port of entry in Belgium. 

Napa checks in

Stultz at NVV pointed out that of 20-plus regions endorsing the “protect place” concept, fully one-third are American. “It’s not Europe vs. the U.S.A. It’s not ‘what does your government do for us?’”

“Maybe it’s time for our government say that we can stop doing this in 10 years. Research has shown that 98% of American wine consumers regarded truthful data to be important. What if we offered to phase out ‘place names’ in 10 years, and in return got some flexibility on traditional terms (and names) like Chateau or Clos?” he suggested.

Sam Heitner, known to some as the “Sheriff of Champagne,” is director of the Bureau of Champagne U.S. in Washington, D.C., one of Champagne’s 14 international offices. “Our general philosophy is that wine is a product of where it comes from. The majority of wine consumers and producers support this; more than 110 countries protect this concept,” he said.

Heitner noted that Korbel is required to change its labels on exports to both Mexico and Canada. “This has no impact on their sales,” he said. The recent popularity of two other, geographic-based sparkling wines, Prosecco and Cava, brings further proof that U.S. consumers are attuned to multiple names based on location.

With wine production and consumption rising around the world, “It’s no longer the EU vs. the U.S. People know that wine is not a melon: The only way to differentiate it is by the label. We’re living in a world where more people know this.” It’s about clarity and truth in labeling, Heitner argued, not just for current but future consumers. “It’s integral to the growth of all wine producers and educated consumers,” he said. “Wine is not a short-term business.”

Hailey Trefethen wears multiple hats at Trefethen Family Vineyards in Napa, in addition to serving on the NVV Board.

She has witnessed the growth of Napa Valley and the wine industry in general, and acknowledged that although it’s changed, “The wine industry has always been very international.” She recalled that when French-based Champagne vintner Domaine Chandon first came to Napa Valley, its first sparkling wines were produced at Trefethen.

“We all learn from each other,” she said. “When Napa was first getting on the map in the 1960s and ’70s, we looked to France.”