Bordeaux, France - It is history in the making as Napa Valley joins 2,400 wine makers from 45 countries in Bordeaux this week as the first U.S. region to be granted Geographic Indication status (GI) by the European Union. To celebrate the landmark recognition, representatives of the Champagne region presented Napa Valley officials with a special bottle of Champagne and led a toast to their achievement.

"From now on, the Napa Valley name will only be used in Europe in wines produced in the famous U.S. region. This is not only a victory for our friends in Napa Valley but for all wine regions around the world - like Champagne - that recognize the importance of location to winemaking," said Jean-Luc Barbier, Director-General of the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC), the trade association of all grape growers and houses of Champagne.

Champagne and Napa Valley are two of the original signatories of the Joint Declaration to Protect Wine Place & Origin, a set of principles aimed at protecting consumers by advocating truth-in-labeling worldwide. The Declaration has been signed by a total of 13 wine regions, including six American regions - Napa Valley, Sonoma County, Paso Robles, Oregon, Walla Walla Valley and Washington. The other member regions are Champagne, Porto, Jerez, Chianti Classico, Tokaj, Victoria and Western Australia.

"We are proud to stand with Napa in our quest to put consumers first and end practices that allow for confusing and misleading labels. Consumers deserve nothing less than total clarity in the marketing of wine products," added Barbier.

While there is still not complete protection under the U.S. law against the misuse of semi-generic names such as Champagne, members of the Napa Valley Vintners Association have stopped using the Champagne name in the labeling and marketing of their sparkling wines.

To learn more about the Joint Declaration, visit www.protectplace.com