Peru bolsters protection of Pisco appellation of origin recognizing its notoriety

By Francisco Espinosa Reboa

The National Institute for the Defense of Free Competition and the Protection of Intellectual Property (Indecopi) of Peru, gave the Pisco appellation of origin (AO) the “renowned reputation of notoriety”, stating that the alcoholic beverage has “reached a relevant level of knowledge, recall, great quality and positioning that puts it at same level of other famous AO.

The distinction means that Indecopi reinforces the protection of the Pisco AO and extends it to the other member countries of the Andean Community of Nations, a customs union comprising the South American countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

Ray Meloni, director of the Distinctive Signs Direction of Indecopi, noticed that “in order to determine the notoriety, attention was paid to a number of factors, including sales volume, promotion and marketing of the appellation of origin, intensity and duration of its use, and prestige and value achieved over time, among others”.

An appellation of origin is a special kind of geographical indication generally consisting of a geographical name or a traditional designation used on products which have a specific quality or characteristics that are essentially due to the geographical environment in which they are produced. The grape used for preparing pisco grows thanks to the mild weather and the tectonic formation of the land that characterize the province of Pisco, located in the Department of Ica, and also extends to the valleys of the Departments of Lima, Arequipa, Moquegua and some valleys of the Department of Tacna, where similar conditions exist. 

The “renowned reputation of notoriety” is given to AO that are well-known by consumers belonging to diverse markets and, in addition, enjoy a high prestige and reputation across the world. The distinction places Pisco alongside renowned AO such as Cognac, Champagne and Brandy de Jerez.