182 WINE LAW Finally, labels may also contain negative claims51 (e.g. “without added sulphites” or “no synthetic chemicals used”), which are often used by organic and biodynamic producers. These claims particularly appeal to health-conscious customers and those culturally oriented towards artisanal wines. The general framework of wine labelling rules appears to be an overall compromise –hardly satisfactory, but not entirely unsatisfactory. While the difference between wine and general food labelling provisions is striking, it at least prevents the problem of information overload. Still, only the most expert consumers and most extreme producers can match useful information and a full understanding of a wine’s characteristics52. One may say that regulations in the wine sector encourage a segmentation of consumers much more than in other sectors53. 4. THE PROBLEM WITH WINE CLASSIFICATION: A CONSUMER PERSPECTIVE It is clear from the framework of legislation on wine labelling that not all significant details of single wines may be inferred from their label. It is also clear that individual producers may be able to inform consumers of the specific characteristics of their wines; however, such characteristics may or may not be useful to consumers. From this perspective, the regional classification of wines typically (but not uniquely) adopted in some regions of France certainly plays a significant role in making labels more informative. Nevertheless, while one can observe that regional classifications are typically only used for wines of superior quality that are purchased by knowledgeable consumers, some degree of confusion exists due to numerous contradictions among classifications. For instance, St. Emilion Grand Cru, an AOP (Appellation d’Origine Protégée) that differs from the “ordinary” St. Emilion only due to stricter rules regarding allowed yields and élevage, does not in itself guarantee superior quality. This could easily mislead the less experienced customer that knows about the (very different) value of the term “Grand Cru” in Burgundy. The same ambiguity also somehow affects the most prestigious 51 General rules for claims regarding food products are set forth in Regulation 1924/2006. 52 An interesting semiotic approach to wine labels (“seen, but not read”) can be found in Y. JEANNERET & E. SOUCHIER, L’étiquette des vins: analyse d’un objet ordinaire, in Communication & Languages, 1999. 53 It has been repeatedly demonstrated that consumers still rely on labels to buy wine: see L. DE MELLO & R. PIRES GONÇALVES DE BOROBIA, Message on a Bottle: Colours and Shapes in Wine Labels, http://academyofwinebusiness.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Message-on-a-Bottle_paper.pdf.
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