France stands firm on Champagne, refusing Russian pretender

French Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie on Tuesday said 'champagne' was a name that could on be used on sparkling wines from the eponymous region in France, although other countries at times tried to claim the denomination as theirs, Reuters reports.

Denormandie was reacting after Russia on Friday enacted a law that requires foreign producers of sparkling wine to describe their product as such on the back of the bottle - though not on the front - while makers of Russian "shampanskoye" may continue to use that term alone.

"You can imagine the reaction of the French authorities," Denormandie told Sud Radio. "The word Champagne comes from that beautiful region of France where champagne is produced," he continued.