Chiles Get Controlled-Name Status

Wine has been protected in France for a century and beer in Germany for many decades as part of what the European Union calls "Protected Designation of Origin." What this means is that the term "champagne" is restricted to a sparkling wine from that region only, and "Roquefort"cheese is limited to the cheese that is produced by certain methods only in that village. The E.U. recognizes only about 500 products with such favored status. The four requirements of such a designation are terroir, the region and soil contributing to the product; matiere premiere, the raw materials from which it’s made; savoir-faire, the techniques of making the product; and tradition, or the knowledge of its manufacture built up over generations.

"In other words," says food writer Nancy Harmon Jenkins, "you just can’t make any old cheese and call it Roquefort. You can’t even make a sheep’s milk cheese, inject it with Penicillium roqueforti and call it Roquefort. And the controlled-name status has the force of law around the world."

Chile pepper enthusiasts should rejoice that two products have gained controlled-name status in Europe. The first is Pimenton de La Vera, a spicy paprika from the Extremadura region in western Spain, which was granted a denominacion de origen, the Spanish term for the protection. According to Jenkins, "The paprika is produced from mature red peppers, which are dried and smoked over oak fires, then stone-ground to a uniquely smooth, almost talclike texture." It is used to season sausages and other cured meats, and since the controlled-name designation the production has tripled in five years."

In 1999 the Piment de Espelette, a chile from the Basque region of southwest France, was granted an appellation d’origine controlee, the French term for the name protection. This chile has a long history in the region and is a symbol much in the same way that chiles are in New Mexico. They are hung in strings to dry on buildings and are then ground into powder. They form the basis of the spicy cuisine of the Basque country, including a famous dish of veal, potatoes, and Espelette peppers called "Axoa d’Espelette, Emince de Veau aux Piments."

See also:

Piment d'Espelette: The Beloved Basque Chile Pepper

Pimentón: The Smoked Chile Powder from La Vera, Spain, by Dave DeWitt

The Fiery Side of France -- Espelette

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