Fighting Fake Bordeaux

There’s no law to stop Chinese wineries from producing “Bordeaux;” the French are trying to change that

Suzanne Mustacich
Posted: November 8, 2011
Fake bottles of Lafite-Rothschild grab headlines, but according to Bordeaux’s wine trade council, only a small portion of wine fraud involves counterfeit labels of real châteaus. A much bigger worry for Bordeaux is wine labeled with fictitious châteaus using Bordeaux AOCs. “The main issue is the misuse of the name ‘Bordeaux,'” said Allan Sichel, a négociant and member of the Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux (CIVB), during a recent meeting at the French Consulate in Hong Kong.
But Bordeaux has little recourse against these Chinese-made Bordeauxs, because Bordeaux is not a protected geographic indication (GI) in China. The Bordelais are working to change that.
“Graves Pomerol,” “Château Margot,” “Chatreal Latour, Bordeaux”—all are fakes on the Chinese market that are easy to spot if you know Bordeaux, but not so easy if you’re a Mandarin-speaking customs inspector with little knowledge of wine.
Normally, trade agreements tackle this issue, but the European Union does not have an agreement with China that protects appellation names, and Bordeaux is losing business to Chinese-made fakes. China bought 42 million bottles of Bordeaux last year. The CIVB believes Chinese consumers could be buying more if every time they reached for Bordeaux they were getting the real thing.
But until China recognizes Bordeaux as a protected GI, there isn’t a lot of legal recourse. “The protection of geographical indications is notoriously insufficient,” said Georges Haushalter, CIVB president. Champagne and Cognac already have GI protection in China. “As China is our No. 1 export market, we launched a specific action with Chinese authorities.”
Last March, the CIVB took a member of the EU Trade Commission on a fact-finding mission to China, meeting with Chinese officials, and highlighted the issue for both sides. China signed a cooperation agreement with the CIVB, and sent their officials and investigators to wine school. “This way they know what to look for,” said Christophe Chateau of the CIVB. “They recognize the appellations and realize that you can’t make Champagne in Bordeaux.”
The trained inspectors will have an app—SmartBordeaux—on their handhelds, so they can quickly determine the authenticity of a label. The plan is that they will spot the fake Bordeaux, and pass on their findings to the authorities.
“But these actions won’t have a dissuasive effect if the appellation Bordeaux is not recognized as a geographical indication on Chinese soil,” said Haushalter. So last spring, Bordeaux increased pressure on the Chinese to recognize Bordeaux as a GI. But the Chinese wanted something in return. “They said, we’ll recognize one of your appellations if you recognize one of ours,” said Chateau. “They have about 20, we have 1,000. We said, sure, sure, but this is urgent.” While CIVB officials admit that they can’t completely stop fraud in China, they hope to win GI protection by 2012.
In the meantime, the CIVB is asking winegrowers to protect themselves by copyrighting their brand in China. Unfortunately, it costs between $800 and $1,100—too much for the smaller producers to pay when they are just starting to ship to China. Usually, once business picks up, they get out the paperwork.
“But then it’s too late,” said Chateau. “If you want to change your distributor, and your distributor has copyrighted your wine brand, which they do, then he owns it in China not you. I tell them: It doesn’t matter if your family has owned the château for 150 years. Whoever copyrights the brand first, owns it.”
http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/45968

Clark Wine Center was built in 2003 by Hong Kong-based Yats International Leisure Philippines to become the largest wine shop in Philippines supplying Asia’s wine lovers with fine vintage wines at attractive prices. Today, this wine shop in Clark Philippines offers over 2000 selections of fine wines from all major wine regions in the world. As a leading wine supplier in Philippines, Pampanga’s Clark Wine Center offers an incomparable breadth of vintages, wines from back vintages spanning over 50 years. Clark Wine Center is located in Pampanga Clark Freeport Zone adjacent to Angeles City, just 25 minutes from Subic and 45 minutes from Manila.

Things to do in Clark Philippines and Pampanga: do a little wine shopping at the famous wine shop outside of Manila called Clark Wine Center. One of the favorite places to visit in Pampanga Clark Freeport is the white building along M A Roxas highway of Clark which houses over 2000 selections of fine vintage wines. The Clark Wine Center is one of the places to visit, a tourist spot and a good shopping place for those staying in Angeles City, Subic or Clark Pampanga.

Residents of Pampanga Angeles City, Subic, Tarlac and Clark Philippines know of this wine shop as one of the best places in Clark, a good night out place and simply the best place to hang out, enjoy some good wine with cheese on the roof deck with good atmosphere, or just relax and unwind with friends and family in a cool place. This wine shop in Clark Pampanga is recognized by many to be one of the best places to buy fine vintage wine in the Philippines. Located near Mimosa Leisure Estate surrounded by golf courses, resorts and a casino, this well known wine shop is frequently visited for its good selection of wine not available in Manila or Subic. Clark Wine Center is open 7 days a week from 10am to 8pm. Private dinners, wine tastings and group gatherings can be organized by advanced reservation.

Foodies and wine lovers travel north from Manila to wine and dine at Philippines’ best fine dining restaurant in Pampanga Clark Freeport worth the 60-minutes drive for a memorable evening of good food with vintage wine at Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar. Most guests would stop by this famous wine shop called Clark Wine Center to bring home a few good bottles of fine vintage wine also. Other visitors may find the wine selections in some of the restaurants in Angeles City Pampanga to be less than interesting, so they stop by this wine shop near Angeles City Pampanga Clark Philippines, buy some good wines and bring these bottles of good vintage wines to the restaurants so they can enjoy the dinner.

Wines from Burgundy, Bordeaux, Rhone, Loire, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Austria, Alsace, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, South Africa, Chile and Argentina etc. are well represented in this Clark Wine Shop.

This is one of the frequently visited places for wine lovers from Manila and Angeles City to buy international wines in Pampanga.

http://www.ClarkWineCenter.com

Getting to this wine shop in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Philippines from Manila
Getting to the Clark Wine Center wine shop from Manila is quite simple: after entering Clark Freeport from Dau and Angeles City, proceed straight along the main highway M A Roxas. Clark Wine Center is the stand-along white building on the right, at the corner A Bonifacio Ave. From the Clark International Airport DMIA, ask the taxi to drive towards the entrance of Clark going to Angeles City. From Mimosa, just proceed towards the exit of Clark and this wine shop is on the opposite side of the main road M A Roxas.

Best place to buy wine in Clark Pampanga outside Manila near Subic and Angeles City Philippines is Clark Wine Center.

Click here to contact Clark Wine Center in Clark Pampanga for inquiries and orders.

Clark Wine Center
Bldg 6460 Clark Observatory Building
Manuel A. Roxas Highway corner A Bonifacio Ave,
Angeles Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga 2023
0922-870-5173 0917-826-8790 (ask for Ana Fe)

Wine@Yats-International.com

YATS Wine Cellars
Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 ask for Rea or Chay

Wedding couples looking for wedding reception venues and beach wedding venues can log on to this Philippines Wedding Venue web site for free information and assistance:

http://www.PhilippinesWeddingVenue.com

While in Clark, it might be a good idea to enjoy an evening of wine-and-dine in the fine dining Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar that features an award winning 2700-line wine list. Highly recommended fine dining restaurant in Manila for special occasion is Yats Restaurant & Wine Lounge located in the famous Mimosa Leisure Estate in Clark Pampanga. Situated near this popular restaurant in Clark is the Mimosa Golf Course as well as the Mimosa Clark Casino. This top rated restaurant near Angeles City Pampanga in Clark Philippines is frequently used for private parties and corporate functions such as board meetings and other gatherings. It is located in Mimosa Leisure Estate of Clark Freeport Zone. For more information, visit http://www.YatsRestaurant.com

YATS Leisure Philippines is a developer and operator of clubs, resorts and high-class restaurants and wine shops in Clark Angeles Philippines http://www.YatsLeisure.com

Looking for famous tourists spots, places to visit and see, relax and unwind in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines? You may want to check out these sites also:

http://www.LondonPubClark.com

Besides good restaurants to wine and dine near Manila, Subic or in Angeles City Pampanga, Clark Philippines, those requiring assistance for hotel and resort bookings in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines may log on to http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com for more information and reservations.

The lifestyle in Clark Pampanga is quite unique. For more information about shopping, sports, golf, leisure, hotel accommodation, where to see and visit, what to do, where to wine and dine and good places to hang out, relax, have a drink with friends, child-friendly establishments, log on to
http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com

Wine lovers looking for a special bottle or something that is of great value and special discounts might log on to this web site to shop for fine vintage wines
http://www.YatsWineCellars.com

Those visitors who plan to relax and unwind in Angeles City, Subic, Pampanga, Clark Philippines might make an effort to book a room at the famous beach and lake resort Clearwater Resort & Country Club. This famous hotel in Clark Pampanga is frequently visited by families with children looking for a good place in Clark to see, a good holiday destination for the family to relax and unwind in the beautiful outdoor facilities. For more information, log on to www.ClearwaterPhilippines.com