aerated sparkling wine

English · EU wine category 7

In EU law, aerated sparkling wine (category 7) is wine without a PDO or PGI whose carbon dioxide is wholly or partly added, with at least 3 bar at 20 °C.1

On opening, such wine releases CO2 that comes wholly or partly from an addition of the gas, not only from fermentation.2 The label must say so, for example 'obtained by adding carbon dioxide', in the same type and size as the category name, unless the language itself makes the addition clear.3 In plain sparkling wine and quality sparkling wine, by contrast, CO2 may come only from fermentation of the cuvée.4 The lower-pressure version is aerated semi-sparkling wine; the OIV term is carbonated wine. Process: carbonation.

See also

CarbonationMethodsaeratedGlossarycarbonated wineGlossaryEU categories of sparkling wineMethods

Sources

  1. legislation.gov.uk (copy of EU OJ text). Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, Annex VII Part II (categories of grapevine products), original version as adopted (2013-12-17)
  2. legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives). Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, Annex VII Part II (categories of grapevine products), as reproduced on legislation.gov.uk (2013-12-17)
  3. EUR-Lex. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 (consolidated text), Articles 47, 48, 49, 53, 54 and Annex III Part A (2023-12-08)
  4. legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives). Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/934, Annex II (sparkling wine oenological practices), as reproduced on legislation.gov.uk (2019-03-12)

Facts checked on 2026-10-19