In Italy, the term DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine Controllata. It is the equivalent of the French AOC. Only wines which have met certain requirements of place of origin, variety and vinification process are entitled to use this on their labels.
In Portugal this term refers to wines which come from a demarcated region. Portugal was 25 years ahead of France’s 1855 Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée in classifying “quality wine.” There are currently nine Denominacao de Origem Controlada (DOC) or Regiao Demarcada (RD) wine regions.
The current list of DOC regions includes:
Vinho Verde (7 subregions: Moncao, Lima, Braga, Basto, Amarante, Penafiel, Lafo)
Porto e Douro
Bairrada
Dao
Bucelas
Corales
Carcavelos
Setubal
Madeira
Since joining the European Common Market, an additional 30 areas have been identified by the phrase Indicacao de Provenienca Regulamentada (IPR) or Vinhos de Qualidad Produzides em Regiao Determinada (VQPRD).