Pesticide in vine growing is a strong environmental concern, given the intensive use and the complex pollution nature. We build a model to investigate the potential effects of the introduction of a pesticide tax on the French wine market. First, we examine the theoretical relationship between risk and market power. Then we study the effect of a pesticide tax in an otherwise unregulated oligopoly. Lastly, we study how the tax interferes with public intervention and professional self-regulation that takes place in the sector. We find that the appellation regime fosters the use of pesticide through quantity limitations on grape, as compared to the unregulated situation. This suggests that both types of regulations should be handled together, for example in a single book of specifications.