DOC in Argentina and Mendoza

Some of the most frequently asked questions about Argentina’s up-and-coming wine Industry involves DOC (denominacion de origen controlado in Spanish). The Old World wine regions are intricately defined by rules and regulations about each and every aspect of the winemaking process. So far in Argentina, the only two sub-regions with a  DOC attached is Lujan De Cujo and San Rafael, both in Mendoza. However the label is rarely taken advantage of due to the strings attached, and there are a lot of them.

New World wines and their corresponding regions are generally ran in a completely different way to Old World wines and regions. Labels associated with New World DOC’s and vintages have less of a brand-advantage due to the price tag usually attached.  Lujan de Cujo and Maipu are known as the ‘primera zona’ or premium winemaking area, throughout history having the best wines of Argentina.

DOC stands for ‘Denominazione de Origine Controllata’ in Italian so a consumer can identify exactly where the item they wish to purchase is from. DOCG or ‘Denominazione de Origine Controllata e Grarantita’, meaning a further guarantee as to where the product was made, was later created as the original DOC was deemed too liberally used.  In Italy the DOCG have to be examined and sealed by the government before given the label officially.

The only wines in Argentina supervised by the government are the top 10% of wines produced in the country called the ‘Vinos Finos’. Although most bodegas will still claim their wines as premium or fine wines, due to the lack of regulation there are not a huge amount of allegations or punishments for doing so. Considering the ease a winemaker faces in producing good quality wine in such consistent terrior in Argentina, it is not a difficult task to find a non-specific wine that tastes the same if not better than a DOC vintage.

It is rare to find labelled DOC Argentine wines at wine tastings in Argentina, simply because there are not that many of them.