Beer and Nosovicky zeli: it's the law

Super-kraut!

One might think that one jar of pickled cabbage tastes much like another. Not in the Czech Republic, where it was often the only vegetable available during four decades of Communist rule, creating a nation of connoisseurs. This distinction has now been rightly recognised by the European Commission.

Nosovicky zeli, or sauerkraut, from the region that first produced it in the country, has been granted a wine-style appellation d’origine. The system, created to protect the likes of Parma ham and Parmesan cheese, now covers hundreds of lesser-known products.

The sauerkraut must be prepared in the Moravian town of Nosovice “using recognised know-how”. Observer’s man with the dumplings conducted a poll of a Prague office and found no one who had heard of it. Now, we are sure, they will accept nothing less.

-- Financial Times, 6 February 2008

From reading the post, I would assume that the EU is applying Champagne-like appellation protection to the designation Nosovicky zeli, not to the word sauerkraut itself.

In the meantime: "Would you like Nosovicky zeli with your frankfurter?" (hmm, appellation protection for that?)