66 WINE LAW fortified wines, and from the Venetian Prosecco to red wines of the Chianti district in Tuscany. Thanks to the achievements of the EU Regulations, the Italian national legal system tries to actively support and enhance this impressive cultural and economic heritage. In particular, in this connection, a significant role is played by intellectual property, which constitutes a fundamental instrument for enhancing the local excellences’ protection and for attributing the due value to the relevant products. Namely, because of intellectual property, it is possible to protect trade secrets and know-how alike, very important complementary assets in the wine field, necessary to strengthen the fight against misappropriation and the unlawful exploitation of IP titles, which help the identification of wines. Nowadays, trademarks have acquired another role, other than indicating the source of origin of goods, since they are also important communication tools, apt at conveying different messages, for instance, traditional values, inherent to wine industry. This principle is even more accurate for collective trademarks, which spread their effects to every member of the relevant association, i.e. the brand owner. Then, besides individual and collective trademarks, it is worth mentioning the so-called “quality brands” and, especially, the designations of origin and the geographical indications, which mainly play a guarantee function of the geographic origin, concerning the nature and the quality of certain products. 2. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS AND DESIGNATIONS OF ORIGIN Geographical Indications (GIs) and Designations of Origin (DOs) identify the production of certain regions, with precise qualitative and productive characteristics and strict requirements, in order to promote and preserve the quality of wine productions, while, at the same time, protecting consumers in their daily choice, thus allowing them to consciously select among different products. Indeed, wines bearing a geographical indication or a designation of origin are recognised by consumers as valuable products, with significant qualitative characteristics, which largely depend on the territory of origin. The regulation of geographical indications and designations of origin comes from an active and fruitful interaction between EU Regulations and Directives and national laws, which have been trying to adapt the general EU rules to the specific and unique features of the wine sector in Italy. In particular, article 5 of Regulation (EU) No. 1151/2012 provides for the legal definition of DOs and
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