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Why joining the EU is so hard to swallow for Croatia’s winemakers
As Croatia prepares to celebrate joining the EU, Nick Squires reports how a dispute over the name 'Prosek' is an early taste of the problems to come.
By Nick Squires, Split
08 Jun 2013
In a vaulted cellar on the pine-clad island of Hvar, Andro Tomic pops a cork on a bottle of his beloved prosek wine and pours a generous glass.
The amber-coloured dessert wine holds a special place in the hearts of Croats, particularly those along the Dalmatian coast, but it is about to face the full wrath of the Brussels bureaucracy.
The European Union has ruled that prosek is too similar in name to Italy's prosecco and that after July 1, when Croatia realises a decade-old ambition of joining the EU, it can no longer be sold as such.
The ruling has infuriated Croats and underlined the doubts and apprehension of many over the decision to become the bloc's 28th member, particularly at a time of deep economic and political tensions within the EU.
Nowhere is the indignation felt more deeply than on the island of Hvar, where prosek has been produced amid the dry stone walls, olive groves and pine woods for more than 500 years.
As Croatia prepares to celebrate joining the EU, Nick Squires reports how a dispute over the name 'Prosek' is an early taste of the problems to come.
By Nick Squires, Split
08 Jun 2013
In a vaulted cellar on the pine-clad island of Hvar, Andro Tomic pops a cork on a bottle of his beloved prosek wine and pours a generous glass.
The amber-coloured dessert wine holds a special place in the hearts of Croats, particularly those along the Dalmatian coast, but it is about to face the full wrath of the Brussels bureaucracy.
The European Union has ruled that prosek is too similar in name to Italy's prosecco and that after July 1, when Croatia realises a decade-old ambition of joining the EU, it can no longer be sold as such.
The ruling has infuriated Croats and underlined the doubts and apprehension of many over the decision to become the bloc's 28th member, particularly at a time of deep economic and political tensions within the EU.
Nowhere is the indignation felt more deeply than on the island of Hvar, where prosek has been produced amid the dry stone walls, olive groves and pine woods for more than 500 years.
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