"Appellation" Explained

Paso Robles in California is the stated place of origin on the Broadside Cabernet Sauvigon, while Saint-Estephe is the appellation name for the Château de Pez from the region of Bordeaux in France

​Morning
Wine Education Notes for Everyone...

Knowing where a wine comes from is one criterion we have to meet: understand that wine, be able to explain it to a guest, and perhaps make qualified food-and-wine pairing recommendations.

But how do we know where a wine comes from, let alone the grape(s) used to make the wine, and other techniques used in the production of the wine that affect its style, and even the quality in the glass? 

This is easily done by knowing and understanding the appellation of the wine. But what is an appellation, and how can it tell us all this info?

Appellation is a term that essentially refers to the geographical place where the wine grapes were grown. But depending on the place, the appellation can provide additional information.

The wine world is often divided into two broad systems when it comes to labeling practices and the info an appellation will tell us: classic European wine regions, and everywhere else. 

It is well understood that modern winemaking really has its origins in Europe, where wine has been grown and made for thousands of years. Throughout this history, wine was almost always associated with the place it was made, and the wines were often referred to by that place name. If you went to the city of Bordeaux in France, you would drink Bordeaux wine. If you went to the village of Barolo in Italy, you drank Barolo. People appreciated the wines from certain regions and would order them or promote them by the place names, and over time the best quality wines and regions became famous. We still know many of these regions today as they appear on our wine lists. We call them the classic wine regions, or classic appellations.

As wine production spread beyond Europe, the wine villages and classic appellation names were no longer used to identify the wines. This coincided with a more accurate understanding of the grapes being grown in Europe and taken to other parts of the world, and wine was often referred to by the grape name - no matter where it was grown and made. This is how we have Chardonnay from California, Chile, Australia, and so on. But Chablis (made from Chardonnay grapes) only comes from one small region in France.

So, for the rest of the world, the grape became the major identifier for any wine, but we still wanted to know where it was produced. As such, most labels will state a geographical place of origin for the wine - such as Napa Valley, Mendoza, Willamette Valley, etc. These place names are effectively the appellation: they tell us where the wine comes from, but not much else. 

Sometimes these places can be quite broad - "California," for instance, which means the grapes used in the wine can be grown/sourced/blended from anywhere in the appellation, which is the entire state of California. Or appellations can be as small as one single vineyard - DeCarle Vineyard, for instance, which is used by Nickel & Nickel on one of their wines. All of the grapes must be sourced only from that vineyard, if it is stated on the label. Generally speaking (but not absolutely always the case), the more specific the appellation, the more unique and also often the higher quality the wine will be.

There is one other big difference between the classic European appellations and the rest of the world appellations, and that is that in Europe they have additional regulations (or protections) attached to the use of the appellation name. The regulations help to define the wines from these regions, ensure that they are maintaining style traditions or winemaking standards that establish a minimum quality level for the wines in the regions, and protect against fraudulent use of the appellation name to promote wines from outside the region. Essentially, this is like a trademark to protect the producers in specific regions AND to ensure that the buyer of the wine is getting what they are paying for.

Many European regulations will not only state a place of origin, but also the grape or grapes used in the wine, the total volume of grapes a producer can make from a certain area of vineyard (yield), as well as winemaking practices, use of oak aging, and even release dates and labeling guidelines. It is a system that has been revised for more than 100 years in places like France, Italy, and the rest of Europe, and it is very much adhered to. Breaking the rules is considered fraud, and violators can be prosecuted.  

At the end of the day, place often does matter with wine. Knowing the origin of the wine through the appellation can tell us a lot about the bottle before we ever taste it - especially for classic European wines. Knowing the cuisine of the same region can be a huge help in making suggestions for pairing. But even if you don't know or sell the regional cuisines of certain wine regions, it is possible to make recommendations for food styles that may be similar. We will cover some of these food & wine pairing basics in future notes, but for today just understand that:

- Appellations are stated on all labels,

- Appellations refer to the place a wine is grown, and that if you are in Europe, you can get more info about the wines by knowing the guidelines for the appellation,

- In Europe, the appellation may not say the grapes outright on the label, but it will tell you the country, region, town, or even vineyard a wine was grown in,

- In the rest of the world, appellations simply tell you the place of origin for the wine, and the more specific the place, often the more unique and (for the most part) the higher quality the wine will be.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Brian Mitchell

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