IGP, short for Indication Géographique Protegée, France’s pgi category which has been taking over from the old vin de pays. To qualify as an IGP, a wine must not be blended across zones, must be produced in limited quantities, must be made of certain specified grape varieties, must reach a certain minimum alcoholic strength, and must be submitted to a tasting panel, as well as coming from a specified area. By 1993, more than one-fifth of all wine produced in France was sold as a Vin de Pays of some sort. The proportion rose to more than 30% by the turn of the century and remains relatively constant (just under 30% in 2012).
