Greece is among the first countries in the European Union that introduced wine laws in order to protect the identity and the reputation of its wine-growing regions. However, long before that, if someone could take a closer look into the Greece’s history, he would be able to see that the Greeks have been protecting their most famous wines since antiquity. In those wines, one can trace the earlier forms of wine protection and wine laws.

Back to the modern era, and Greece has 33 registered Protected Indications of Origin and 114 Protected Geographical Indications for its wines. These Geographical Indications (GIs) guarantee the origin of the wine as well as the accuracy of the given information in the labels and this is because the use of GIs is tightly controlled to ensure a wine is genuinely the product of grapes grown in a specific location and under very specific rules. Geographical Indications protect both the legitimate interests of consumers and producers. In one hand, they prevent “bad faith” usage and give consumers a guarantee of authenticity distinguishing the products on the market. On the other hand, they are a key part in protecting the quality, the reputation, the identity and the long-standing history of Greece’s wine regions.

PDO and PGI wines ensure that Greece’s cultural gastronomic and local heritage is preserved and certified as authentic across the world. So, the next time you will come across a wine that bears a PDO or PGI designation in the label such as PDO Santorini, PDO Nemea, PDO Naoussa or PGI Drama and PGI Slopes of Aigialia, you should be aware that you are dealing with a unique, authentic, branded product that guarantees and ensures the quality you have in your glass. Moreover, it is the product of laborious work and passion from authentic people that prize their terroirs and traditions.