Wine Regulations

Abstract

This paper provides an overview and analysis of wine regulations in an international and historical comparative perspective. Wine is an excellent sector to study government interventions because for centuries wine markets have been subject to many government regulations that differ greatly within and between countries. Wine consumption taxes, for example, range from zero in some countries to more than 100% in others. The European Union has extensive quantity and quality regulations for wine, while other major producers such as Australia and the United States are much less regulated. After a general overview of current regulations and historical evolutions, we analyze three key wine regulations in more detail: consumption taxes, planting rights, and geographical indications. Most wine regulations reveal a tension between the public interest and vested private interests.

Explaining World Wine Exports in the First Wave of Globalization, 1848–1938

“…Furthermore, the Prohibition of wine consumption in the United States also affected the volume of exports. All this highlights the sensitivity of the wine trade to regulations (Meloni et al, 2019), particularly alcohol consumer tax and trade policies (Anderson, 2020), and the economic climate.…”

From Flasks to Fine Glasses: Recent Trends in Wine Economics

“…The wine sector has historically been subject to extensive public control and strict administration policies including production subsidies, price guarantees and market stabilizers, but also, in different time periods, different kind of constraints and production limitations such as plantation restrictions and explantation premia (Meloni et al 2019 ). Hence, it is not surprising that a great deal of attention in the field of economic studies has been devoted to the analysis of such policies and of their impacts on producers, consumers and trade, together with their consequences in terms of general welfare, public budget and taxpayers.…”

“…Hence, it is not surprising that a great deal of attention in the field of economic studies has been devoted to the analysis of such policies and of their impacts on producers, consumers and trade, together with their consequences in terms of general welfare, public budget and taxpayers. At the same time, the tensions arising among different groups of stakeholders with diverging interests became paramount and paradigmatic of the sector (Meloni et al 2019 ). Especially the EU wine policy—developed along many decades within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)—has been studied for long and compared to different policy approaches (i.e.…”

Reflections on the Political Economy of European Wine Appellations

“…1 This system was built over many decades on foundations laid in France in the early 1900s. The Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) system was introduced in France in 1935 to establish standards for wine production systems—imposing regulations on both wine products and the processes used to produce them within defined locations—and thereby to create and enhance collective reputations based on regions (Haeck et al 2019 ; Meloni et al 2019 ). These regions and their typical wines were to be distinguished from one another by their unique combinations of terroir, varieties, standards, and production methods.…”