ECJ says Aldi product, which is no longer for sale, did not take undue advantage of wine’s EU protected designation of origin

Crack open the bubbly: the European court of justice has ruled that if a sorbet really tastes like champagne, then that is what it can be called.

In time for the festive season, the court issued its judgment in a case in which France’s committee of champagne producers was seeking a ban on the German Aldi supermarket chain selling champagne sorbet.

Even though the ECJ left the ultimate decision to a German court, it did say that the name could be used if the frozen dessert “has, as one of its essential characteristics, a taste attributable primarily to champagne”.

Aldi’s champagne sorbet, which is no longer on sale, contained only 12% champagne. The court said the quantity of the sparkling wine in the product was “a significant but not, in itself, sufficient factor”.

The five-year-old case started when Aldi Sud sold the sorbet in its German stores marketed as “champagner sorbet”. But that was a step too far for industry lobbying group Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne (CIVC), which asked a German court for an injunction to stop the sale, claiming that the sorbet was free-riding on the quality and prestige of the real thing.

The court subsequently asked the Luxembourg-based ECJ to clarify the commercial use of the European Union’s protected designation of origin. This designation gives protection to hundreds of local delicacies, including Greek feta cheese, English stilton cheese, Italian Parma ham and rioja wine from Spain. Champagne can only be made in the region of Champagne in eastern France.

The ECJ said the sorbet did not exploit this rule.

“A sorbet may be sold under the name champagne sorbet if it has, as one of its essential characteristics, a taste attributable primarily to champagne. If that is the case, that product name does not take undue advantage of the protected designation of origin ‘Champagne’,” it said in its judgment. The court’s adviser had backed the CIVC in a non-binding opinion in July.

In a statement, Aldi’s German head office said: “We had the champagne sorbet product in our assortment as a one-time promotion for Christmas in December 2012. This product has not been available for sale in our stores ever since. However, the final ruling by the federal court of justice is still pending.”