We must be completely mad

While doing some research on the internet, I came across this website. It is an association of winemakers who use the Meritage trademark. To be able to claim this trademark, the wine must be crafted from classic red Bordeaux grape varieties, and they include Saint-Macaire and Gros Verdot in this list. The former is listed in the official grape variety catalogue, but not authorised in Bordeaux appellations. The latter is not even registered in the French national catalogue of vine varieties. We have an extraordinary heritage, yet we are forbidden from making use of it. The INAO is only just beginning to relax the rules to allow the introduction of new grape varieties, but one must compile and submit a formal dossier (which takes several years) and then conduct a 10-year trial to see whether the variety will be authorised in the appellation or not. Can we afford to wait 15 years to make the right decisions? Our American friends must be having a good laugh at our procrastination, and they will have had ample time to claim and appropriate Mancin, Saint-Macaire, and other Gros Cabernet. I am seriously considering certifying a Meritage cuvée that would include some of these grape varieties not authorised in Bordeaux in its blend. If only that could provoke a reaction from the INAO and our institutions!