Wine: authorised oenological practices

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/3085 of 30 September 2024 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/934 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards authorised oenological practices

Update

The EU has updated its list of authorised oenological practices (Regulation 2019/934) to align them to technical changes to standards adopted by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV). These include clarifications of permitted treatments (heat/cold treatments), purity and identification specifications, operator safety practices, and use of specific substances in wine.

Impacted Products

wine

What is changing?

Annex I of Regulation 2019/934 sets out authorised oenological processes (methods and treatments) permitted in the production of wine placed on the European market.

The new Regulation 2024/3085 updates these processes as follows.

Heat/cold treatments

To clarify which heat and cold treatments are permitted, references are inserted to the treatments included in files published by the OIV (Annex I, Part A, Table 1:2).

Updated requirements

In 2022 and 2023 the OIV adopted new resolutions relating to files referred to in Regulation 2019/934 (Annex I, Part A). The Regulation is now updated to reflect these new resolutions, including changes to prescriptions regarding:

• flotation (Table 1: 8; Table 2: 8–8.3)
• operator safety practices (Tables 1 and 2)
• membrane technology (Table 1: 18; Appendix 10)
• purity and identification specifications (Table 2)
• asorbic acid content (Table 2: 2.6)
• use of plant fibres (Table 1: 3.2)
• microcrystalline cellulose (Table 2: 4.1)
• addition of cellulose as a fermentation activator (Table 2)
• tannins (Table 2: 5.12, 6.4)
• gum arabic (Table 2: 6.8)
• enzymes (Table 2: 7.2–7.12)
• hemicellulose (Table 2: 7.5)
• betaglucanase (Table 2: 7.7)
• deletion of glycosidase (Table 2: 7.8)
• beta-glucanase (Table 2: 7.10)
• caramel additives (Table 2: 11.3).

In addition, there is a change to the prescription regarding sulphur dioxide (Annex I, Part B, A.2(c): second item on protected designations of origin).

Diammonium hydrogen phosphate

This substance is not an authorised EU food additive and was included in Regulation 2019/934 in error, so it has been deleted from Annex I, part A, Table 2: 4.2.

Spanish and Portuguese wines

The European Commission has also made a number of amendments specific to certain Spanish and Portuguese wines.

Why?

The oenological processes authorised by the EU are based on the methods recommended by the OIV. The Annexes to Regulation 2019/934 refer to specific files published by the OIV. The OIV regularly reviews and updates these files, and the changes are then incorporated into Regulation 2019/934.

Timeline

The new rules apply from 29 December 2024.

Background

Regulation 1308/2013 sets out the permitted categories of wine and oenological practices.

Regulation 2019/934, Annex I establishes the conditions and limits of these oenological practices, based on methods recommended by the OIV. Annex II lists the substances that may be used in wine production, also in accordance with OIV recommendations.

Resources

Sources