Denominación de origen

'designation of origin')[note 1] is part of a regulatory geographical indication system used primarily for foodstuffs such as cheeses, condiments, honey, and meats, among others.

Food and wine are inseparable from Spanish culture, historically bound to the social, economic, literary and even mystical fabric of society over thousands of years, so it is perhaps not surprising that attempts to regulate and normalise activities related to them have proven highly elusive.

Food regulation waited even longer, until Spain's entry into the EU and signing up to the Common Agricultural Policy during the latter part of the twentieth century.

Following the establishment of the Rioja as the first Spanish denominación in 1925, the Estatuto de vino ('wine statute') of 1932 coincided with national and international recognition of the sherry-producing region of Jerez.

A new Estatuto, the Ley del Vino y de los Alcoholes (25/1970) came into place in December 1970 but was again undermined, this time by two important events: the new Spanish Constitution (inaugurated in 1978) that restated geographical considerations with the Estado de las Autonomías, and Spain's pending membership of the European Community (1986) that brought about a rapid classification of all Spanish produce in line with other member states.

[1] This has coincided with a rise in the perceived quality of Spanish produce generally and has been widely acclaimed, although some areas, like the super-strict denominación de pago, remain controversial and liable to future amendment.

[2] Denominaciones de origen status can be applied to a wide range of foods and condiments, specifically: Quality foods may be designated a range of classifications, of which denominación de origen is the recognition of superior quality, with identifiable characteristics and specific ingredients, derived from an identifiable and verifiable source.

[5] The Spanish appellation hierarchy was most recently updated in 2016, and is as follows: DOP – denominación de origen protegida ('protected denomination of origin'), is the mainstay of Spain's wine quality control system.

DOCa – denominación de origen calificada ('denomination of qualified origin'), is the highest category in Spanish wine regulations, reserved for regions with above-average grape prices and particularly stringent quality controls.

VC – vino de Calidad con indicación geográfica ('quality wine with geographic indication'), a category formed in 2003 along with VP.