During the Middle Ages, wines from questionable origins were often passed off as wines from more prestigious regions. In London, local authorities established laws for tavern owners prohibiting French, Spanish, and German wines from being cellared together so as to prevent the potential for mixing the wines or falsely representing them to the consumer. If a producer or merchant was found selling fraudulent or "corrupt wine", they were forced to drink all of it. In medieval Germany, the penalty for selling fraudulent wine ranged from branding to beating to death by hanging.