Understanding the Bordeaux Classification of 1855

by Sherwin Lao
Have you seen P20,000 and above per bottle wines? If you have, these are most likely the so called ?Grand Cru? wines from Bordeaux. The usual suspects for these almost sinfully priced wines are the classified 1st Growths namely Chateau Lafite, Chateau Latour, Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Chateau Margaux and Chateau Haut Brion. Bordeaux in general still has the lion share of the most expensive wines in the world. And a lot of this has to do with the Bordeaux Classification of 1855?a classification that remained immutable and sacred for over a century and a half already. The 1st Growths or Premiers Crus are the highest ranked wines of this 1855 Classification.

The classification was under the initiative of Emperor Napoleon III of the Imperial Government.

Napoleon III wanted to have the great wines of the Gironde ranked and presented in an official classification format during the Exposition Universelle de Paris of 1855. The Exposition Universelle de Paris was supposed to highlight the best of France as a civilization, and French agriculture as a whole, including agricultural machinery breakthroughs, emerging breeds of livestocks, and of course their proudest wines. The task of drawing up the classification was entrusted to the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce to the Federation of Business Brokers. The objective was to formally rank the most successful commercial Chateaus in Bordeaux. The basis would be more on the reputations of the Chateaus using actual historical transaction prices taken from the records departments in the wine brokers offices. Napoleon III wanted the great Chateaus ranked into five tiers, known as Premiers Crus (1st Growths), Deuxi?mes Crus (2nd Growths), Troisi?mes Crus (3rd Growths), Quatri?mes Crus (4th Growths) and Cinqui?mes Crus (5th Growths). Aside from the red wines of Medoc, the classification also included the sweet wines of Sauternes and Barsac. For Sauternes and Barsac, there were only three tiers: the Premier Cru Superieur (Superior 1st Growth)?which applied to only Chateau d?Yquem, the Premiers Crus (1st Growths) and Deuxi?mes Crus (2nd Growths). The justification on the ranking was based on prices fetched by the bottles, which at that time was directly associated to quality. All in all, the Classification covered 87 Chateaus, 60 Reds in Medoc, 1 Red in Pessac-Leognan Graves (Chateau Haut Brion), and 26 Whites in Sauternes and Barsac. The classified growths of Medoc account for 24 percent or almost a quarter of all the red wines from Medoc, Bordeaux.

The Mouton Rothschild exemption

In the original 1855 Classification, there were only four 1st Growths, three from Medoc, and one from Graves. The fifth one, Chateau Mouton Rothschild, only joined these illustrious circle in 1973 after much lobbying. But this was well justified. Chateau Mouton Rothschild was actually part of the Chateau Lafite estate till the middle of the 18th century. Philippe de Rothschild, proprietor of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild during much of the 20th century, vehemently protested Mouton?s ranking as a deuxi?me cru or 2nd Growth?calling it a ?major injustice.? For several years, the Mouton-Rothschild wines would state ?Premier ne puis, second ne daigne, Mouton suis? in their labels, or translated as ?First I cannot be, second I do not deign to be, I am Mouton.? But it would take the relentless effort of then minister of agriculture, the former French President Jacque Chirac, to get Chateau Mouton-Rothschild reclassified as a first growth. The Ministry of Agriculture passed a decree conferring the status of Premier Cru Class? upon Mouton-Rothschild in 1973. After that, the Mouton-Rothschild labels would bear a new inscription, ?Premier je suis, second je fus, Mouton ne change,? or translated as ?First I am, second I was, Mouton does not change.?

Not all Bordeauxs are Created Equal Bordeaux as a region has 100,000 hectares, covering 57 demarcated regions or AOCs (Appellation d?Origine Controlee), and with around 20,000 producers. Bordeaux alone accounts for 21 percent of all French wines produced. Because of this magnitude in size and over 86 million bottles produced annually, there are sadly as much mediocre wines, as good wines from this region. But the excellent ones, especially the ones from Medoc, are purely hedonistic. It is definitely no surprise that the 1855 Bordeaux Classification was focused almost solely on this region.

The Medoc wines

Medoc accounts for just 15 percent of all of Bordeaux wines. Mediocre generic Bordeauxs can be flimsy, earthy and lack fruit power, while Medoc wines in general are powerful, masculine, loaded with fruits, very age-able and long on the finish. The main varietal is Cabernet Sauvignon, with Merlot as the key sidekick, and Cabernet Franc, Vedit Verdot and Malbec (known as Cot in the area) as the mixer varietals. In Medoc, there are eight appellations: two regional appellations in Medoc and Haut-Medoc, and six communal appellations in Saint Estephe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien, Moulis-en-Medoc, Listrac-en- Medoc, and Margaux in order from North to South.

The Pauillac experience

Pauillac is my favorite amongst these AOCs. Pauillac is only 1,200 hectares in size, and accounts for just 8 percent of the Medoc vineyards (or a minuscule 1.2 percent of Bordeaux). But a whopping 84 percent or 18 Chateaus from this region are classified growths, including three 1st growths in Chateau Lafite, Chateau Latour and Chateau Mouton-Rothschild. Even as an AOC in a negociant?s label like B&G, Calvet or those you see in Mark & Spencer, the Pauillac wine will still be very expensive?easily in the P2,000/bottle price range. Pauillac wines are normally full-bodied, rich in tannins, with strong aromas of ripe berries, very supple in texture and long on the finish. But if you want a very good Pauillac, not in the P20,000 per bottle price of 1st growths, I strongly suggest a Chateau Batailley or Chateau Pontet-Canet, both 5th Growths in the 1855 Classification, and roughly in the P5,000 to P7,000 range for a young vintage of 2003 or 2004, with the 2003 being more expensive. I know that Ralph?s wine stores carry the Chateau Batailley.

I was very fortunate to be able to taste many of these Cru Classe Pauillac wines, including the surreal 1st Growths. I tried the wines in international wine events, wine parties and with generous benefactors.

I have not drunk enough of each to say which one is the best... I mean, how could I? But one thing is for sure in reference to the 1st growths, the wines are not overrated. While I kept telling myself that these wines are too pricey, and not worthy of the money you pay for, a sip of a Chateau Lafite 1989 changed all of that. It is hard to explain, but when you drink a grand cru wine from the 1855 Classification, even the 5th growth, you are not just drinking an excellent wine, but one with so much legacy and almost royalty like lineage. This is not the same as getting a cult like Napa Cabernet Sauvignon that may cost the same, but has not much legacy to speak of. So, if you want to experience grand cru wines, please save up. It is worth the savings, and save the drinking for major occasions. I had my Haut Brion 1983 during my 10th wedding anniversary. I now have a Chateau Latour 1990 still waiting to be drunk. Wonder what that next great occasion would be??

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