August 2000 - Nr. 8
International Icewine Agreement
…between Canada, Germany, Austria
MAINZ, Germany - An international agreement on the production and quality standards for Icewine/Eiswein between the wine industries in Germany, Austria and Canada was announced today by the Deutsches Weininstitut, the promotion board for German Wines. The agreement takes effect August 1, 2000.
In an effort to preserve and protect the time-honoured natural production traditions involved in the making of these rare and intensely flavoured specialty wines, the Deutscher Weinbauverband (German Wine Growers Association), the Canadian Wine Institute and the Österreichischer Weinbauverband (Austrian Wine Growers Association) pursued an agreement that focused on protecting consumers everywhere from the production of fake icewines and wines falsely labelled as Icewine. The Deutsches Weininstitut initiated these discussions.
The wine grower associations of the three countries, also agreed to promote among their respective governments and multilateral organizations, the Icewine standards they have mutually established. To this end, this successful agreement will be tabled at the bilateral negotiations on the imports and exports of wine currently underway between the European Union (EU) and Canada.
For Canada, the international standards for Icewine defined and agreed to by the wine grower associations, clears a major hurdle for Canadian Icewine to be marketed in Europe.
Armin Goring, Director of the Deutsches Weininstitut, Mainz,
noted that part of the charm of Icewine/Eiswein is the natural production
process and the risks that it entails for the producer. The harvesting and
pressing conditions contribute to its unique taste, persona and its price
given the intense nature of its production and relatively limited supply.
