Gruyère News

msmofet said:
Why can’t they just call it Swiss cheese? I don’t see why they need to steal the name. People in Kentucky would be very upset if whiskey from say France was called bourbon. Just saying
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Actually, there are European Bourbons already on the market. Most Kentucky Bourbons are labeled as Kentucky Bourbon or Kentucky Straight Bourbon. Calling a European Bourbon Kentucky Bourbon would be illegal because it would be deceptive.

CD
 
caseydog said:
Calling a European Bourbon Kentucky Bourbon would be illegal because it would be deceptive.
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That´s the point precisely. Calling a cheese made in Charlottesville "Gruyère", when the Swiss Gruyère has AOP (Appellation d´Origine Protégée) is the same deception.
What´s worse, it would probably be made with pasteurised cow´s milk!
 
I wonder why companies have to be so desperate to steal an already established name of a product that's gained a good status?
Of course I understand they want to sell something, but it's so stupid: first we declare it as possible to save a product to a specific region or style of manufacturing, so the customer always knows what to expect and then they try to break that rule.
 
PabloLerntKochen said:
I wonder why companies have to be so desperate to steal an already established name of a product that's gained a good status
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There are probably two reasons. The first is that the company has a total lack of creativity and is incapable of inventing a new name.
The second is arrogance. Something like " HEY! We´re (one of the) biggest company in our area, so if the others don´t like it - tough!"
 
karadekoolaid said:
That´s the point precisely. Calling a cheese made in Charlottesville "Gruyère", when the Swiss Gruyère has AOP (Appellation d´Origine Protégée) is the same deception.
What´s worse, it would probably be made with pasteurised cow´s milk!
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Calling a cheese from outside Gruyere by the name Gruyere is ignoring protocol. But if the label on the fake one was "Swiss Gruyere," it would be a lie. Same with Bourbon and Kentucky Bourbon. Who knows was is sold as Gruyere or Bourbon in China. :ohmy:

CD
 
The one with companies being arrogant fits perfectly into the image what big US companies have in europe. It's probably a bit of everything. Wonder if it will stop with gruyere or continue with Parmesan and so on.

No joke, as a chef it's already confusing that French isn't the world language in the kitchen anymore, now you've to know or be able to explain everything in English as well, don't forget about butchers name it different no matter if they speak the same language, now you also have to know if it's the real original product or the fake product... it could save us years if we follow one system
 
PabloLerntKochen said:
Wonder if it will stop with gruyere or continue with Parmesan and so on.
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We already sell parmesan that’s made here labeled as such. I think we stop with labeling US Parmesan as “Parmigiano-Reggiano,” but “parmesan” is perfectly ok here.

Same thing with cheddar, and I think the argument they’re making (meaning the US cheese makers) is that to the US consumer, “gruyere” is a type of cheese, not a location-specific cheese, so it doesn’t make sense to call it something else, as it would just be confusing.

As a US consumer, if I want a gruyere style cheese, I don’t want to have to fuss with knowing that this one from Switzerland is called this name, and that one from the US is called that name, and this third one from Canada is called something else. I just want to know what fits inside that taste profile of what a Gruyère cheese is “supposed” to be, and I’ll make my choice based on a combination of taste and price.
 
Alcohol that's distilled from agave is named according to where it's made (tequila or mezcal).

Sparkling wine is called a number of things, but it's only champagne if it's made in that region of France.

Maybe the judge is a cheese-lover? The argument was that the usage of gruyere has become a generic term for Swiss cheese. Does that mean that Asti Spumante can start putting "champagne" on the label because people routinely call it champagne?
 
The Late Night Gourmet said:
Sparkling wine is called a number of things, but it's only champagne if it's made in that region of France.
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That’s just it, though, there are plenty of sparkling wines labeled “champagne” that aren’t from Champagne. Even the winery around the corner and down the road from my house labels their sparkling wine as champagne.

It’s just the French who says you can’t do that. It’s up to the everyone else to decide if they want to honor it or not, and I imagine the further away from any of those areas, the easier it gets to say, “Yeah, whatever…”
 
Generally in europe the producers are following the rules. Either champagne is from the champagne or it's declared a secco made after the champagne method.
Tequila is by the way just a special variety of mezcal, made only with blue agave. Mezcal can be made with any agave.

But seriously where is the point labeling something, when it's basically lying?
 
caseydog said:
Actually, there are European Bourbons already on the market. Most Kentucky Bourbons are labeled as Kentucky Bourbon or Kentucky Straight Bourbon. Calling a European Bourbon Kentucky Bourbon would be illegal because it would be deceptive.

CD
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Really? I can't remember ever having seen any over here....also the EU has had specific rules on what can be called "Bourbon" since the mid 90s:
B. The EC agrees to restrict, within its regulatory framework (Council Regulation (EEC) No 1576/89, Article 11 or an equivalent successor regulation), the use of the product designations: 'Tennessee whisky`/'Tennessee whiskey`, 'Bourbon whiskey`/'Bourbon whiskey` and 'Bourbon` as a designation for Bourbon whisk(e)y to distilled spirits/spirit drinks products of the USA produced in compliance with the laws and regulations of the USA (27 CFR 5.22 or an equivalent successor regulation). Further, it is recognized that these whiskies shall continue to be subject to all of the labelling requirements of the EC.
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Interestingly, it seems that in return the US agreed to recognise and protect certain European spirits:
A. The USA agrees to restrict, within its regulatory framework (27 CFR 5.22 or an equivalent successor regulation), the use of the product designations: 'Scotch whisky`, 'Irish whiskey`/'Irish whisky`, 'Cognac`, 'Armagnac`, 'Calvados` and 'Brandy de Jerez` to distilled spirits/spirit drinks products of the Member States of the EC, produced in compliance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 1576/89 and with the laws of the Member States in which those products originate. Further, it is recognized that these products shall continue to be subject to all of the labelling requirements of the USA.​
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Source: EUR-Lex - 21994A0624(01) - EN

TastyReuben said:
Same thing with cheddar, and I think the argument they’re making (meaning the US cheese makers) is that to the US consumer, “gruyere” is a type of cheese, not a location-specific cheese, so it doesn’t make sense to call it something else, as it would just be confusing.
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As I understand it, the reason cheddar cheese doesn't have a protected origin is because the name cheddar refers to the manufacturing process which is called "cheddaring". So any cheese made by that process can be called Cheddar, no matter where its made.

The Late Night Gourmet said:
Does that mean that Asti Spumante can start putting "champagne" on the label because people routinely call it champagne?
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Asti itself is also protected by PGO, so they wouldn't want to call it Champagne even if they were allowed to.

TastyReuben said:
That’s just it, though, there are plenty of sparkling wines labeled “champagne” that aren’t from Champagne. Even the winery around the corner and down the road from my house labels their sparkling wine as champagne.

It’s just the French who says you can’t do that. It’s up to the everyone else to decide if they want to honor it or not, and I imagine the further away from any of those areas, the easier it gets to say, “Yeah, whatever…”
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No its not just the French: Prosecco can only be made in a very specific area in northern Italy around Valdobbiadene. Cava can only be made in certain areas of Spain. Similar for Port in Porto, Scotch Whisky in Scotland......and that's just the alcohol-related ones :okay:
 
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