The Denominação de Origem Controlada (or DOC) is the system of protected designation of origin

Protected designation of origin

Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...

 for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products from Portugal.

Wines

Portuguese wine

Portuguese wine

Portuguese wine is the result of traditions introduced to the region by ancient civilizations, such as the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, and mostly the Romans. Portugal started to export its wines to Rome during the Roman Empire. Modern exports developed with trade to England after the...

 regions, as well as producers of several other products, established this system following Portugal's entry into the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

 in 1986. It is similar to the French

French wine

French wine is produced in several regions throughout France, in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year, or 7–8 billion bottles. France has the world's second-largest total vineyard area, behind Spain, and is in the position of being the world's largest wine producer...

 Appellation d'origine contrôlée

Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée

Appellation d’origine contrôlée , which translates as "controlled designation of origin", is the French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products, all under the auspices of the government bureau Institut National...

(AOC), the Italian

Italian wine

Italian wine is wine produced in Italy, a country which is home to some of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world. Italy is the world's largest wine producer, responsible for approximately one-fifth of world wine production in 2005. Italian wine is exported largely around the world and has...

 Denominazione di origine controllata

Denominazione di Origine Controllata

Denominazione di origine controllata is a quality assurance label for food products, especially wines and various formaggi . It is modelled after the French AOC...

(DOC), and the Spanish

Spanish wine

Spanish wines are wines produced in the southwestern European country of Spain. Located on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain has over 2.9 million acres planted—making it the most widely planted wine producing nation but it is the third largest producer of wine in the world, the largest...

 Denominación de Origen

Denominación de Origen

Denominación de Origen is part of a regulatory classification system primarily for Spanish wines but also for other foodstuffs like honey, meats and condiments. In wines it parallels the hierarchical system of France and Italy although Rioja and Sherry preceded the full system...

(DO) systems. The DOC system replaced the earlier Região Demarcada system of distinguishing Portuguese appellations developed in the early 20th century.

Regulation

In addition to protecting the designation of origin, the DOC also establishes regulations aimed at maintaining the quality level of the wines associated with a particular wine region. This includes establishing permitted grape varieties, regulating maximum crop yield

Crop yield

In agriculture, crop yield is not only a measure of the yield of cereal per unit area of land under cultivation, yield is also the seed generation of the plant itself...

s at harvest

Harvest (wine)

The harvesting of wine grapes is one of the most crucial steps in the process of winemaking. The time of harvest is determined primarily by the ripeness of the grape as measured by sugar, acid and tannin levels with winemakers basing their decision to pick based on the style of wine they wish to...

, establishing minimum alcohol content, and periods of bottle or oak aging. Producers are required to submit finished wine samples to a regulating body to ensure compliance with DOC standards.

Other levels

In addition to the top-level DOC designation, there are two secondary tiers: Indicação de Proveniencia Regulamentada (IPR) and Vinho Regional. IPRs are similar to DOC "in training" and indicate regions that have established their own regulating bodies but have not yet established an internationally recognizable identity for their wines. It is similar to the French Vin Délimité de Qualité Superieure (VDSQ) system. Vinho Regional is similar to the French Vin de pays

Vin de pays

Vin de pays is a French term meaning "country wine". Vins de pays are a step in the French wine classification which is above the table wine classification, but below the VDQS and Appellation d'origine contrôlée classifications...

and is sort of a "catchall" classification for wines that do qualify under the DOC or IPR designations.

See also

• Agriculture in Portugal
  Agriculture in Portugal
  Agriculture in Portugal is based on small to medium-sized family-owned dispersed units, however, the sector also includes larger scale intensive farming export-oriented agrobusinesses backed by companies...
  
  
• Protected designation of origin
  Protected designation of origin
  Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...
  
  
• List of Portuguese wine regions