IVDP ANNOUNCES CONTROL ON SPECIFIC 10-YEAR-OLD TAWNY PORT UNDER ANALYSIS

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FOLLOWING GRONINGEN UNIVERSITY'S INVESTIGATION

PORTO, Portugal, Jan. 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Port and Douro Wines Institute (IVDP) informs that is currently carrying out a control on the wines of the brands referred to in the Groningen University investigation, following its statement that certain 10-Year-Old and 20-Year-Old Tawny Ports could mislead the consumer in the Dutch market.

The IVDP clarifies that the 10 and 20-Year-Old Tawny Ports have a perfectly defined legal and regulatory framework. Therefore, for these wines with age indication, the consumer should not only expect an age of maturation, but also a set of organoleptic characteristics proper to the indicated age and ageing process.

The IVDP reiterates that the certification process for the protected designation of origin (PDO) it carries out scrupulously complies with all the specifications set out in European legislation and specific to the Port PDO.

"Despite this, we constantly follow scientific developments, and seek to incorporate the most up-to-date scientific knowledge into the PDO Porto certification process," says Gilberto Igrejas, IVDP President.

The IVDP also reiterates that it immediately contacted the University of Groningen to find out details of the used methods and has from the first showed willingness to collaborate with them in order to understand all the methodology that could be associated with such results.

Without questioning the potential value of the method, the IVDP's response concluded that the work had not yet been published in a scientific journal, had not been peer-reviewed, and the method had not yet been approved internationally by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV).

The contacts made with the University of Groningen have opened the possibility of active collaboration in the field of isotopic analysis, which could come to complement the IVDP's determination framework.

"We are highly committed to understanding how those results were achieved, not only for the interest of the consumer but also for the prestige of the Tawny Ports all over the world," underlines the president of the IVDP.

The IVDP regrets that the information published in the media refers specifically to the Protected Designation of Origin Port – an industrial property right that has international reputation and prestige, and, as such, will carefully follow all new developments.

The IVDP will soon publish instructions to the industry on the appropriate interpretation of the regulations, always with the aim of ensuring that the Port consumer receives accurate, clear and truthful information.

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