On 5 April 2019, the OIV Scientific and Technical Committee appointed the historian, medievalist, and specialist in the history of wine to the position of President of the International OIV Award Jury.
Azélina Jaboulet-Vercherre is the first woman to be appointed to this position since the creation of the OIV Awards in 1930.
The new President of the OIV Award Jury received her PhD in history from Yale and has been conferred degrees in no fewer than four disciplines, namely art history, archaeology, literature, and history.
Her thesis focused on medical literature and natural philosophy from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries.
Apart from her studies in history, the author has developed her critical mindset thanks to her multidisciplinary educational background in art history and Anglo-American literature.
Her innovative style when it comes to wine is entirely unique: she draws attention to the harmony between wine, art, music, emotion and feelings.
Through her historiographical and cultural approach, she strives to promote renewal in the taxonomy of wine, going beyond conventional frameworks.
This interdisciplinarity brings a unique dimension to the wine history classes and lectures/wine-tastings she delivers worldwide.
A visiting professor at Sciences Po (Paris, Summer School), she was entrusted with the task of setting up the ‘Sciences Po Wine School’.
The several years she spent teaching at the Hospitality Management School of Lausanne (EHL) and at the Changins School of Oenology Engineering provided her with the opportunity to develop her knowledge of Swiss wines.
She is a wine judge and taster for a number of competitions.
Azélina Jaboulet-Vercherre has received two OIV Awards (2013 and 2015) and an OIV Special Mention (2017).
2013 OIV Award in History, Literature and Fine Arts with:
2015 OIV Award in Wine and Health with:
2017 OIV Special Mention in Literature with:
OIV AWARD JURY
MEMBERS 2019
President: Ms Azélina Jaboulet-Vercherre / France
1st Vice-President: Ms Christiane Blum / Luxembourg
2nd Vice-President: Mr Luís Carlos Ferreira Peres De Sousa / Portugal
Scientific Secretary: Mr Jean-Luc Berger (until October 2019) / France
President of the OIV: Ms Regina Vanderlinde / OIV (Brazil)
Director General of the OIV: Mr Pau Roca / OIV (Spain)
Vice-Presidents of OIV Commissions and Sub-Commissions
Mr Benjamin Bois / Viticulture / France
Mr Luigi Moio / Oenology / Italy
Mr Tony Battaglene / Economy and Law / Australia
Ms Nuria García Tejedor / Safety and Health / Spain
Mr Luís Carlos Ferreira Peres De Sousa / Table grapes, raisins and unfermented vine products / Portugal
Mr Ondřej Mikeš / Methods of analysis / Czech Republic
Former OIV Presidents (guest jury members)
Ms Monika Christmann / Germany
Ms Claudia Quini / Argentina
Mr Yves Bénard / France
Mr Peter Hayes / Australia
Mr Reiner Wittkowski / Germany
Highly contrasting positions
It is already established that where alcoholic beverages are concerned, there is little harmonisation of national regulations with Codex labelling standards. During the discussion in Ottawa, the issue of the presence on the label of the alcohol content as well as energy values and nutritional information rapidly arose and brought contrasting national positions to the fore.
Some delegations considered that the existing Codex texts sufficiently apply to alcoholic beverages and that given the different types of these products and the social values surrounding their use, it is preferable to deal with them at a national level rather than at the level of the Codex.
However, other countries highlighted that it could be necessary to provide additional guidelines specific to the labelling of alcoholic beverages and – since alcoholic beverages are not ordinary foodstuffs – it would be important to inform consumers of the health risks associated with alcohol consumption by providing reliable information on the label.
The OIV offers its expertise
The delegate for the OIV, Scientific Coordinator Jean-Claude Ruf, drew the attention of the Committee to the complexity of labelling alcoholic beverages.
Should the Codex come to undertake new work on this matter, the OIV has already specified that it would be necessary to define the minimum alcohol content of alcoholic beverages and to clarify the definitions of the products to which the standard would apply, in order to take into account the specificities of certain products.
It is worth noting that the OIV has already carried out a revision of its own standard for the labelling of wines and wine-based spirits. Therefore, it would be useful for the potential discussions within the Codex to take into consideration the work of the OIV, which is the sole intergovernmental organisation collaborating with the Codex on this topic.
Dossier to follow within the working groups formed by the Codex...
For this year’s edition, the auditorium of Mucem (Museum of the Civilizations of Europe and the Mediterranean) hosted 37 official projections, selected out of 144 films from 17 countries.
The selected films presented a number of subjects, inviting the audience to a reflexion about how the current economic and societal model should be going towards a sustainable way of living, in respect with nature.
The search for alternatives to phytosanitary products and pesticides in viticulture and the application of a biodynamic methodology of production were highlighted in several documentaries.
Certain films focused on the way young generations look at wine and the empowerment of women in vitiviniculture. Other themes on screen included Terroir, sustainability and ancestral methods of vinification.
The 2019 Oenovideo Grand Prix was awarded to the Catalan film “’40 hectàrees. La terra i el Pagès” (40 hectares. The land and the farmer). This film tells the story of ten farmers from the wine-growing region of Penedès (Catalonia) talking about their daily work, their difficulties in facing Cava’s big producers and their relationship with the land. Consult the list of award winners (link in French).
‘Wine, Vine and the sacred’ on pictures
Under the theme "Le vin, la vigne et le sacré : mystère d’une culture, divin nectar” (Wine, Vine and the sacred: a culture mystery, divine nectar)!" , the Terroir d'Images photography exhibition accompanying the festival for 14 years already, was held at the Vieille Charité cultural centre.
80 photographies were officially selected, out of over 1500 works by amateur photographers and professionals from 15 competing countries.
The Grand Prix winner will be revealed during the official Oenovidéo and Terroir d’Images awards ceremony, which will take place on Monday 14 October 2019 in the Palais du Luxembourg, Paris.
During this interview, Pau Roca recalled the fundamental missions of the OIV and its specificities in a globalised sector marked by an international regulatory framework inspired by or founded on the recommendations and expertise of the Organisation.
The Minister emphasised the importance of maintaining a balance between the different inclinations that may be expressed within the OIV. Didier Guillaume also conveyed the interest of France, as the host country of the Organisation, in marking the centenary of the OIV in 2024. This could see the convening of a Ministerial Conference on the major issues of the global viticultural sector.
Pau Roca also indicated the importance of the strategic axes implemented by the OIV with regard to sustainability, which meet the expectations expressed by the Minister in terms of the development of the agro-ecological transition, for which viticulture should play a promoting role.
© Cheick Saidou / agriculture.gouv.fr.