With the 1970 Common Wine Policy, the Algerian wine industry, established by France for its own benefit in colonial times, was thrown out of business; and this occurred precisely when Algeria, finally an independent nation, was poised to reap the profits of wine exports. This chapter elaborates on this story in three ways. First, it connects the collapse of Algerian wine exports to the dynamics of the Common Agricultural Policy, outlining the natural rivalry between Mediterranean countries – some in Europe, some beyond its borders – and highlighting unresolved distributional tensions between internal cohesion and external trade policy. Second, the chapter adds theoretical perspective to the wine story. The reorganization of EEC wine markets to the detriment of Algeria was a striking example of colonial wealth diversion. Yet, it also followed a common pattern – one not confined to colonial arrangements – in which the law enables trade agreements between some states, benefiting parties while extracting or diverting wealth from non-parties. Third, the chapter dwells on the enduring significance of the Algerian wine parabola. In hindsight, the excision of Algeria from the Common Market may have been a triumph of short-termism. This time around, Europe might be the one left out.