The fame of the prestigious Appellation d'Origine Protégée Hermitage is arousing the envy of certain economic operators who are seeking, unduly, to profit from it. On March 3, 2022, the Paris judicial court condemned the owner of a winery for registering with the INPI several trademarks including the name of the Hermitage appellation, as well as their use for wines not entitled to this appellation, being Corbières appellation wines.

The Hermitage appellation, with or without H, was recognized by decree on March 4, 1937. Only red and white wines produced in the Drôme communes of Tain l'Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage and Larnage that meet the criteria of the appellation's specifications are eligible.

Case background

Since 2014, the Syndicat de Protection de l'Appellation Hermitage has set up a program to combat, on the legal front, economic operators whose behavior is likely to misappropriate or exploit the reputation of the Hermitage PDO.

Following the detection of bottles reproducing the appellation's name, the legal department of the Syndicat des Vignerons des Côtes du Rhône took up the case. After the failure of amicable negotiations initiated by the Syndicat des Vignerons des Côtes du Rhône and the Institut National de l'Origine et de la Qualité (INAO), which came to support its action, the two bodies were forced to take their claims to court and summoned the operator before the Paris Tribunal judiciaire.

By decision dated March 3, 2022, the Paris Judicial Court, in its 3rd Chamber, after also noting that the operator had proceeded to cancel the disputed trademarks, upheld the arguments of the INAO and the Syndicat de l'appellation Hermitage.

It ruled that the operator's actions constituted an infringement of the Hermitage Appellation d'Origine, protected under European Union law, as well as a misleading commercial practice likely to substantially alter the economic behavior of the "normally informed and reasonably attentive and circumspect" consumer.

The two unions and INAO are delighted with this landmark decision, which enshrines several years of work and effort to protect the appellation. It finally rewards the efforts of the winemakers of this Côtes du Rhône Cru in promoting their terroir to which they are so attached.

An exemplary conviction

The Court noted that the defendant "as a professional winegrower, could not have been unaware that he could not reproduce a protected appellation of origin for wines that did not meet the conditions, and that such conduct misled the consumer, who legitimately expected the wine marketed under the name "L'Ermitage" to fulfill the taste characteristics of wines benefiting from the protected appellation of origin and produced under the strict conditions laid down in the specifications. "

As a result, the Paris Magistrates' Court prohibited the owner of the Domaine:

• from making, having made and marketing, directly or indirectly, wines under the name "Ermitage" or a similar term not benefiting from this appellation of origin, subject to a fine of 500 euros per infringement found (...),

and ordered the operator to:

• recall and withdraw from distribution channels marketed wines bearing the appellation "Ermitage" not benefiting from this appellation of origin in question, under a fine of 500 euros per day of delay (...),
• withdraw from its communication media any reference to bottles of wine bearing the appellation "Ermitage" or any similar term to designate wines not benefiting from this appellation, under a fine of 500 euros per infringement found (...).

In addition, the Paris Court ordered the operator to pay substantial damages to the Syndicat and INAO, as well as partial reimbursement of legal fees incurred by the Syndicat and INAO. This decision is subject to appeal.

Organizations with complementary roles

The Syndicat de protection de l'appellation Hermitage, the Syndicat des Vignerons des Côtes du Rhône and INAO play complementary roles.

The Syndicat de protection de l'Appellation d'Origine Protégée (AOP) Hermitage promotes and oversees the protection of this famous appellation in order to defend the interests of all producers of wines benefiting from this denomination. Every day, the legal department of the Syndicat des Vignerons des Côtes du Rhône works alongside him to defend the Hermitage appellation, Cru des Côtes du Rhône. The Syndicat provides technical, legal and political support to all Côtes du Rhône AOCs on a daily basis.

The INAO, for its part, is the public body in charge of implementing French policy on signs identifying quality and origin. As such, it contributes to the promotion and defense of these signs, and in particular PDOs, both in France and abroad, including before the courts when necessary. It provides important support to the Syndicats.