A sommelier serves champagne in the Ruinart Champagne House in Reims, northeastern France, during the event "the Journées Particulières" of LVMH on Oct 12, 2018. (FRANCOIS NASCIMBENI / AFP)

PARIS/MOSCOW - 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.

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.

Julien Denormandie, French agriculture minister

"The word Champagne comes from that beautiful region of France where champagne is produced," he continued.

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On Monday, France's champagne industry group blasted the Russian law and called for the halting of exports of the bubbly drink to Russia for the time being.

The French champagne industry group said the name "champagne" had legal protection in 120 countries.

"The Champagne Committee deplores the fact that this legislation does not ensure that Russian consumers have clear and transparent information about the origins and characteristics of wine," Maxime Toubart and Jean-Marie Barillere, the group's co-presidents, said in a statement.

French Trade Minister Franck Riester said he was tracking the new Russian law closely, and was in contact with the wine industry and France's European partners. 

"We will unfailingly support our producers and French excellence," he said on Twitter.

Moet Hennessy, the LVMH-owned French maker of Veuve Clicquot and Dom Perignon champagnes, said on Sunday it would begin adding the designation "sparkling wine" to the back of bottles destined for Russia to comply with the law.

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Pavel Titov, the president of Russian sparkling wine maker Abrau-Durso, told Radio France Internationale on Saturday his firm does not have sparkling wines that would be called "champagne" in its portfolio and said he hoped the issue would be resolved in favor of global norms and standards.

"It is very important to protect the Russian wines on our market. But the legislation must be reasonable and not contradict common sense ... I have no doubts that the real champagne is made in the Champagne region of France," he said.

The European Commission said the legislation in Russia regarding spirits and wine would have a considerable impact onwine exports and would do all it could to express its disagreement and concern.

"We will do everything necessary to protect our rights and take the necessary steps if this law enters into force," European Commission spokeswoman Miriam Garcia Ferrer said.

Asked what counter-measures the European Union could take in response to the Russian law, she said it was premature to discuss such a situation.