According to a forgotten 20-year-old EU agreement with Canada, European whisky producers are prohibited from labelling their rye whiskies ‘rye whisky’.
Under the suddenly enforced EU agreement, it is non-compliant for European whisky producers to use the term ‘rye whisky’ in their labelling.
Call it bad timing; the rule took effect on 1 April, but it is no April Fool’s joke.
The 2004 agreement between the EU and Canada is now hindering European distilleries that have spent years producing whisky from rye, including Stauning and Thy in Denmark, Kyr? in Finland, Storck in Germany, and Ruotker’s in Austria.
On LinkedIn, Kyr? Distillery, which has been producing whisky from rye since 2014, described the enforcement of the trade deal as ‘outryegous’.
Alex Munch, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Stauning Whisky, commented: “We are, of course, quite frustrated that a huge mistake has been made in the EU concluding this agreement.
“Rye, being a raw material used for whiskies in several different countries, should not be trademarked in the EU.
“Protecting the use of the raw material is akin to saying that outside of France, you can’t use the words ‘grape’ or ‘wine’ in your product description.”
According to the legislation, the agreement was made to protect Canadian rye whisky, which, in reality, doesn’t need to be made from rye.
According to Munch, protection could be achieved through geographical delimitation, as seen with Champagne and Parmesan cheese.
“It’s perfectly fine to protect ‘Canadian rye’ – that makes sense. We also dream of protecting ‘Danish whisky’ in the future. Typically, you protect a specific production method or the region where it is produced. But the agreement in its current form doesn’t make any sense,” said Munch.
He emphasised that Stauning would continue to produce whisky from rye at its distillery in West Jutland: “We are recognised for our rye whisky all over the world, and we will continue to make Danish rye whisky exactly as we have always done.
“Even if we eventually have to change the wording on the label, we will never compromise on our way to make whisky or on the quality of the spirit that we deliver to the world.”
Surprisingly, no one knew
Reportedly, the 20-year-old agreement came as a surprise to not only whisky producers in the EU but even Canada was not aware of it.
To note, back when the agreement was signed in 2003, the production of rye whisky in EU countries was close to non-existent.
“Nobody was aware of it – and it hasn’t been enforced for the last 20 years. We went through a long approval process to get into Canada, and our rye whisky was approved without any problems. In the US market, it is a requirement that we label it as rye whisky. This clearly shows that it is a strange situation,” explained Munch.
Stauning is willing to adjust to the naming restrictions, however, the distillery is collaborating with the EU to seek changes to the agreement during its renegotiation next year. The current regulation is deemed illogical and impacts all whisky producers within the EU.
Like in many European countries, especially those in Scandinavia, rye has been an integral part of food traditions for thousands of years.
Given rye’s strong cultural connection in Europe, Munch is urging the Danish government to take up the matter of renegotiating this element of the 2004 agreement.
In Denmark, there is growing political support from various politicians, and several producers across Europe are expected to advocate for changes to the agreement next year. SMV Danmark, a business organisation representing 18,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in the country, is also urging action. They are hopeful that Danish politicians will address and resolve the issue.
Kasper Munk Rasmussen, industry manager at SMV Danmark, said: “It is our analysis that this rule provides very limited value to Canada while creating an unnecessary obstacle for smaller European producers. Therefore, I expect there will be broad interest in solving the problem.”
As a response and to highlight the issue, Stauning has created a special whisky bottle, where the mention of ‘rye whisky’ has been replaced with the word ‘Censored’.
“We have simply chosen to censor the name of the whisky because it is a rye whisky that bears the name ‘Rye’ – which, under this trade agreement, we are not allowed to call it,” said Munch.
Definition of Canadian rye whisky
Canada has been famously known for having some of ‘the world’s most lax regulations’ when it comes to whisky. This includes allowing any whisky made in the country, whether blended, single grain, single malt, cask-finished, flavoured, or rye whisky, to be labelled as ‘rye whisky’.
As a result, ‘whisky’ and ‘rye whisky’ can be considered synonymous in Canada.
The regulation regarding Canadian rye whisky states that the whisky must be mashed, distilled, and aged in Canada. It must also be aged in small wooden containers for at least three years and must not fall below 40% ABV at any point during production.
Additionally, Canadian whiskies allow the use of caramel colouring and, in blended whiskies, may contain up to 9.09% wine, fortified wine, or at least two-year-old whisky from another country.
The whiskies may also be adjusted with harmless colouring, flavouring, and blending materials (HCFBM) unless they are ‘straight’ rye.