EU approves amendments to nine Alsace grand cru wine PDOs

The European Commission has approved standard amendments to the product specifications of nine Alsace grand cru protected designations of origin (PDOs), in communications published in the Official Journal of the European Union (C series) of 28 August 2026. The approvals, dated 3 June 2026, were communicated by the French Ministry of Agriculture, Agri-food and Food Sovereignty under Article 24 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143.

The nine designations covered are Pfersigberg, Mandelberg, Mambourg, Rangen, Saering, Rosacker, Muenchberg, Praelatenberg and Pfingstberg. Each communication confirms that the changes qualify as “standard” amendments, since they do not alter the name, the category of product, the link to the geographical area, or impose further restrictions on marketing.

What the amendments change

The most significant change stems from the national recognition of still red wines for the designation ‘Alsace grand cru Vorbourg’, which is no longer reserved exclusively for still white wines. This affects the types of product, planting density, pruning rules, ripeness and minimum natural alcoholic strength provisions across the specifications.

• The minimum maturation period for white and red wines now runs until 1 November of the year following the harvest, and wines may not be placed on the market for consumers before that date.
• For the designations ‘Alsace grand cru Hengst’ and ‘Alsace grand cru Kirchberg de Barr’, the minimum maturation period for red wines has been increased from 10 to 11 months.
• Red-wine vines are pruned to single or double Guyot with a maximum of 14 buds per plant.

Updated boundaries and packaging

The amendments update the reference to the Official Geographic Code to the 2025 edition, without changing the boundaries of the geographical areas. The demarcated parcel area now carries the date 25 June 2024, as approved by the competent national committee of the National Institute of Origin and Quality.

• In the department of Haut-Rhin, the municipalities of ‘Herrlisheim’ and ‘Soultz’ have been renamed ‘Herrlisheim-près-Colmar’ and ‘Soultz-Haut-Rhin’.
• In the department of Bas-Rhin, ‘Gimbrett-Berstett’ has become ‘Gimbrett (associated municipality, attached to Berstett)’, while ‘Mittelhausen’ has been replaced by ‘Wingersheim les Quatre Bans’.

Packaging provisions have also been rewritten: wines must be bottled in “Vin du Rhin” bottles in line with EU legislation and French decrees, or in straight-sided cylindrical glass vessels with specified proportions for capacities from 300 cl down to below 37,5 cl.

Transitional measures

Transitional provisions give producers time to adapt. Vines remain entitled to the PDO for their harvest until they are grubbed up, or up to and including the 2033 harvest at the latest for pruning rules. For the parcels concerned, the eligible volume is established on the basis of the yield set in the specification multiplied by a coefficient of 0,8.

The communications also update the inspection-body provisions to comply with the new drafting rules. The nine approvals, each carrying an EU reference number in the PDO-FR-A0xxx-AM03 series, reflect a coordinated update of the Alsace grand cru specifications.

For winegrowers and consumers, the changes clarify the rules for red wines under the grand cru designations, harmonise maturation and packaging requirements, and modernise the administrative references, while preserving the protected link between these French wines and their geographical origin.

Source: Official Journal of the European Union, C series, 28 August 2026 (official references: C/2026/4624, C/2026/4625, C/2026/4626, C/2026/4627, C/2026/4628, C/2026/4629, C/2026/4631, C/2026/4634, C/2026/4635).