US: Counterfeit Protection for the Wine Industry

(Wines&Vines) - The Napa Valley Vintners (NVV) trade association, in partnership with Wines & Vines, is hosting a Wine Anti-Counterfeiting Seminar on Aug. 14 to help winemakers and wine marketers understand the potential for wine counterfeiting and learn about available technology to protect against this threat. The seminar is open to NVV members and non-members. 

According to our cover story about intellectual property challenges in China in the August issue of Wines & Vines, counterfeit California wines in this growing market are less common than fake French wines. However, as regions like Napa Valley continue to actively promote premium wines in Asia, the risk increases. Although Napa Valley was the first wine region in the world to achieve geographic indication status from the Chinese government last fall, the designation does not provide counterfeit protection for individual wine brands.

“The NVV takes the topic of name and brand protection seriously,” said Emma Swain, CEO of St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery and a member of the NVV Board of Directors. “This anti-counterfeit seminar is a natural extension of work our organization been doing for many years to protect the Napa Valley name, and it dovetails nicely on a member-education program we hosted in April on the topic of trademark protection in China. It is important for the NVV as an industry leader to ensure our members are working to actively protect their individual brands.”