boufa06
Executive Chef
This article just came in from Reuters. Thought it might interest you.
Greeks toast EU ruling that ouzo belongs to them
Thu Oct 26, 8:33 AM ET
Greece said on Wednesday it had won the right to call its trademark anise-flavored aperitif ouzo as an exclusively Greek product after negotiations with the European Union.
The country's Agriculture Ministry said several alcoholic drinks made from grapes or raisins, including ouzo, had been granted geographical protection by the EU. "The minister succeeded after difficult negotiations to register the Greek drinks of ouzo, tsipouro and tsikoudia as geographically protected," it said in a statement following an EU agriculture ministers meeting in Luxemburg. Tsipouro and tsikoudia, are also strong, clear spirits made in Greece. "This means that nobody outside Greece can make ouzo and call it that," a ministry official told Reuters. "Only Greece can make ouzo and use the name."
The official said Greece has also granted fellow EU member Cyprus the right to make ouzo when it joined in 2004. Cyprus is divided along ethnic lines since 1974 and its Greek-Cypriot government is the only one recognized internationally.
The EU has previously granted brand protection to other drinks and food products such as Cognac and Champagne from France and Italy's Gorgonzola and Parmesan cheeses.
Greeks toast EU ruling that ouzo belongs to them
Thu Oct 26, 8:33 AM ET
Greece said on Wednesday it had won the right to call its trademark anise-flavored aperitif ouzo as an exclusively Greek product after negotiations with the European Union.
The country's Agriculture Ministry said several alcoholic drinks made from grapes or raisins, including ouzo, had been granted geographical protection by the EU. "The minister succeeded after difficult negotiations to register the Greek drinks of ouzo, tsipouro and tsikoudia as geographically protected," it said in a statement following an EU agriculture ministers meeting in Luxemburg. Tsipouro and tsikoudia, are also strong, clear spirits made in Greece. "This means that nobody outside Greece can make ouzo and call it that," a ministry official told Reuters. "Only Greece can make ouzo and use the name."
The official said Greece has also granted fellow EU member Cyprus the right to make ouzo when it joined in 2004. Cyprus is divided along ethnic lines since 1974 and its Greek-Cypriot government is the only one recognized internationally.
The EU has previously granted brand protection to other drinks and food products such as Cognac and Champagne from France and Italy's Gorgonzola and Parmesan cheeses.