Paris, Dec. 18 - French police are investigating whether some winegrowers in the Beaujolais region illegally tipped 600 tonnes of extra sugar into their wine to raise alcohol levels to within official limits.
Five people were detained at the beginning of December by investigators in Villefranche-sur-Saone, capital of the Beaujolais region in eastern France, as part of the probe into wine produced from 2004-2006. The five, including the four who delivered the sugar, were released after questioning.
"I can confirm that there is an inquiry," said Villefranche public prosecutor Francis Battut. "Now we need to talk to all the winemakers who could be involved."
Some 100 individuals may face questioning.
Adding some sugar into the winemaking process is known as chaptalisation and is allowed by law. But in years when the grape harvest is not very good, some winemakers can be tempted to add a bit more, making it easier to reach the officially required alcohol levels.
"But if you go above the authorised (sugar) levels, you're committing an offence which is called falsification because the wine is no longer wine, it's much too sugary," explained Battut.
"So for a harvest that isn't very good, which was notably the case in Beaujolais for 2004, it seems there was an overchaptalisation, in other words a massive use of sugar bought illegally."
As part of the process, the winemakers must declare exactly how much sugar they used.
Battut said the sugar was sold by several local supermarkets, which did not provide proper receipts and they may also face investigation for helping the producers cover their tracks.
"It allows the supermarkets to clear their stock of sugar. It's simply about money," he added.
The investigation is a blow for the region's reputation, which is best known for its Beaujolais Nouveau wine, a young wine which goes on sale in the third week of November and is meant to be consumed by the following May.
Many French winemakers are struggling with plummeting domestic consumption and fierce competition from new world producers such as Australia and Chile.
The Beaujolais region is no exception and is undertaking a restructuring, reducing the number of vines, to improve quality and make winemakers more competitive.
The latest scandal has angered the Inter Beaujolais, the trade body for the region. It has threatened to file its own lawsuit against producers if they are found guilty of adding too much sugar into the wine.
"We've been fighting for 10 years to win over consumers' confidence, because it's not the first time that our reputation has been damaged. And because a handful of individuals decide not to respect the law, we find ourselves back to square one," said Inter Beaujolais spokeswoman Anne Masson.
"That's really painful."