Rhône wine body forced to change slogan

The regional body for Côtes du Rhône wines has been ordered to amend one of its advertisements after it was deemed to link alcohol with happiness – which is illegal under French law.

The advert in question. “A taste of life”

The advert, which launched in October 2014, features a businessman being lifted above a city by a balloon with the tagline Au Goût de la Vie – “a taste for life”.

However in November the advert came under fire from the ANPAA, an alliance of health professionals and campaigners against alcohol and drug abuse, who said it contravened France’s Evin law which prohibits advertisements from linking alcohol to happiness.

On 7 January, the Tribunal de Grand Instance in Paris ruled that the Rhône wine body could use the image in its campaign, but must remove its slogan.

The court held that the image was “not devoid of artistic quality” and did not have a “manifestly unlawful or imminent harm”, as reported by Objectifgard.com. 

The president of Inter Rhône, Michel Chapoutier, has since called the decision “balanced”.

The ANPAA has 15 days to appeal the ruling.