AOC / AOP — the core
France's quality tier is AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée), now also written AOP under EU rules. It names a place and controls the grapes, yields and methods allowed there.
VIN DE FRANCE
basic, no origin claim
IGP
broad regional
AOC / AOP
strict, place-specific
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Remember
The narrower the AOC, the stricter the rules. 'Bordeaux' AOC is broad; 'Pauillac' AOC names one small commune within it and is tighter.