French wine region changes name to hide damaged reputation

A French wine region that shared its name with a nuclear power plant has won the right to change its AOC designation after a two-year campaign.

The Tricastin wines of southern France will now be known as the Grignan-Les Adhemar. The Tricastin power plant was built in 1974 by EDF and hit the headlines in 2008 after a uranium leak. Although soil and water tests confirmed no radiation poisoning, the damage was done to the image of the wine region and wine producers campaigned for a new name to shake off the negative associations.

The new designation is named after the village of Grignan in the Rhone-Alpes region.