EU SANCTIONS SPANISH STARTUP OVER BLUE WINE

In June 2016, Spanish startup Gïk rocked the wine world with its neon blue product. By all accounts, it’s a success — selling more than 120,000 bottles in 25 countries, including Brazil, Japan and South Korea. However, the start- up has now f ound i tself on the wrong side of Spain’s Agriculture Ministry and the European Union. The wine, a mix of Spanish red and white grapes, is simply the wrong colour, The New York Times reports.

The bright blue colour is achieved by adding two natural ingredients: indigo and anthocyanin ( a grape skin pigment). Whether achieved through natural means or not, blue is considered an illegal colour under EU oenol ogical regulations. Last month, after an anonymous complaint was filed and a fine issued, Gïk was required to remove the word “blue” from its labels and change the formulation of its wine.

“None of us really liked normal wine, which comes with too many norms, such as whether you can take it with ice or not,” Taig Mac Carthy, one of the co- founders of Gïk, told the New York Times. “So our goal was clearly to offer something to people looking for a wine that was a bit more fun and crazy. The trouble is that we are trying to revolutionize an industry that has worked for centuries without making any change — and they control the rules of the game.”

In addition to appealing the fine, The New York Times reports that Gïk has launched an online petition opposing colour naming restrictions. Following a twomonth halt in production, the start- up is once again shipping its vibrant bottles around t he world. “Relabelled and now containing 99 per cent wine and 1 per cent grape must — so as not to fall under the category of pure wine,” The New York Times writes.