Description
The Genepì del Piemonte Geographical Indication refers to a liqueur obtained by extracting the active ingredients of plants belonging to the species Artemisia genipi Weber, Artemisia mutellina Vill., Artemisia glacialis L., Artemisia nivalis Br.-Bl., Artemisia petrosa Jan., through the infusion or suspension of the same plants in hydroalcoholic solution. The wormwood must come from the harvesting of wild plants and/or crops located in the identified production area. Both dynamic and static extraction methods can be used.
Production Area
The production area of Genepì del Piemonte GI is within a few municipalities in the Piedmont region. The wormwood plants can only be cultivated in the administrative territories of the municipalities of Alessandria, Biella, Cuneo, Torino, Verbania-Cusio-Ossola and Vercelli. The optimal altitude for cultivation is higher than 1500 metres a.s.l., on south-facing land. Cultivation at lower altitudes is permitted if there is particularly good orientation, although never under 1400 metres a.s.l.
Production Method
Genepì del Piemonte GI obtained through infusion is made by placing the dried plants in stainless steel vats filled with a hydroalcoholic solution that has an alcohol content of between 70% ABV and 90% ABV. The infusion process lasts between 30 and 60 days for static extractions. After the extraction process the infusion is pressed and – after ageingwhere necessary – added to a mixture of water and sugar to complete the liqueur. A portion of the infusion can be steam distilled in alembic stills and then added when the liqueur is being made. If necessary, the alcohol content can be adjusted by adding ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin. The liqueur is then left to stand in order to promote the spontaneous sedimentation of the insoluble parts, which are then filtered to obtain a clearer, brighter product. The minimum amount of dried plants must be 7 g per litre of the finished liqueur. The liqueur obtained through “suspension” is made by placing the dried plants on special grills suspended over the hydroalcoholic solution, in hermetically sealed containers where the alcohol-saturated headspace extracts the volatile compounds of the plants. This process lasts about 90 days. After the suspension process, the extracted mixture is used to make the liqueur, following the same procedure described above. The finished product, whether obtained though infusion or suspension, can be bottled and put on the market immediately, or left to age – either before or after bottling – for a minimum of two months. Flavour mixtures deriving from other aromatic plants are permitted in the production of Genepì del Piemonte GI, but the quantity of plants used to obtain the flavour mixture must not exceed 10% of the total amount of Artemisia used.
Product Characteristics
Genepì del Piemonte GI must have the following characteristics: a minimum alcohol content of 30% ABV; a minimum of 100 g of sugar per litre of product, expressed as invert sugar (either sucrose or glucose syrup can be used). The product is characterised by the absence of colourings. The Artemisia plant species are usually wild harvests, with the exception of A. mutallina, which can be cultivated. This species has been selected and studied by the University of Turin, which has made it possible to establish that the ecotypes linked to the Piedmont region are morphologically and chemically different to plants in other areas.
Legislative information
The Genepì del Piemonte Geographical Indication is registered in Annex III of Regulation (EC) No. 110/2008 on the definition, description, presentation, labelling and protection of Geographical Indications of spirit drinks and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No. 1576/89 (published in the OJEU L. 39 of 13.02.2008), as modified by EC Reg. 1067/2016 and Reg. 674/2019. Notwithstanding the entry into force of the new EU Reg. 787/2019, which repeals Reg. 110/2008 and – as far as GIs are concerned – has been applied since 8 June 2019, Annex III will continue to apply until the creation of the GI Register referred to in art. 33 of the new regulation. Generally, article 24, paragraph 1 of Regulation 787/2019 states that for every single Geographical Indication a technical file containing the requirements set out in the same article must be presented to the European Commission. The technical file for Genepì del Piemonte GI is contained in the decree issued by the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies on 21 July 2016 (published in the Italian Official Journal no. 182 of 05.08.2016).
