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Non-EU Chapel Down wine gets a tasting

Non-wine tasting in Brussels.
Non-wine tasting in Brussels.

A row over whether a Kent wine can be called wine has taken on a fruity twist.

In a dispute that overshadows the bendy bananas saga, the EU has refused to allow a Kent tipple to be called wine.

That is despite the fact it's made from wine grapes, is produced in the usual fashion and bottled like any other wine.

But because the drink from Chapel Down vineyard in Tenterden uses non-EU grapes - the Malbec variety from Argentina - it has to be called a “fruit-based alcoholic beverage”.

Now UKIP leader and MEP Nigel Farage is hosting a 'non-wine' tasting in Brussels.

His aim is to allow fellow members to try the "fruit-derived alcoholic beverage from produce sourced outside the EU" - and make up their own minds.

The event tonight will be held on Europe Day in the EU Parliament.

Whether the "wine" will be accompanied by a slice of "solid food prepared from the pressed curd of milk" has not been revealed.

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