When are Bordeaux wines determined to be Grand Cru or Grand Cru Classe?

Cru, Grand Cru, Grand Cru Classé are mentions you will often come across on French labels and in the French wine world.

CRU is a DENSE notion to understand in the French classification. A cru could be defined this way : a GEOGRAPHIC term referring to vineyards that produce wine ELIGIBLE for a regulated LABEL.

Bordeaux has Grand Cru or Grand Cru Classé : when was this determined? More precisely, when are Bordeaux wines determined to be Grand Cru or Grand Cru Classé?

Well, it all depends on the classification you are talking about! There is the 1855 Classification, mostly for Médoc wines, the 1955 Saint-Emilion Classification and the Graves Classification.

But first, what is a Cru?

The CONCEPT of Cru (Growth) is used to designate a specific vineyard, often a TERROIR or the name of a COMMUNE. A cru is the “winemaker” version of the denomination. To take the same example as my post on denominations: Margaux appellation is a cru of Bordeaux.

The territory can be a locality, a municipality or a wine estate.

The right to the “Cru” name is open under 3 conditions : that the product can be individualized, that it really and exclusively comes from the area it claims and, last but not least, that it belongs to an AOP.

A CRU is therefore associated with an AOC (for example the ten “Cru du (AOC) Beaujolais”), a geographical delimitation (a plot for areas such as Burgundy) or a communal delimitation (associated with the commercial value of the grapes and the grape variety), a farm (such as Saint-Emilion, whose Crus are updated every ten years), special production conditions (for example : Banyuls Grand Cru, which has a majority of Grenache and long aging)

However, in Bordeaux, the classification system is not linked to that of appellations, except in Saint-Emilion. Moreover, it does not concern specific terroirs, but estates (or castles as they are called in Bordeaux). Indeed, the size of the property can vary over the years, with the purchase or sale of plots. The name of a chateau is therefore more of a brand than the designation of a specific vineyard.

Answer 1 : 1855

In 1855, Paris hosted the third UNIVERSAL Exhibition. For this occasion, Napoleon III asked his ministers to contact the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the candidate REGIONS for the exhibition to encourage them to present their best products there by classifying them.

The President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, through wine brokers, in Bordeaux decided to respond to this request by establishing a classification of Bordeaux wines. But, wait! This only applies to the LEFT Bank of Bordeaux.

The red wines all come from Médoc, except Château Haut-Brion who belongs to the Pessac Léognan appellation.

The white wines come from Sauternes or Barsac.

The criteria for this classification was the following :

• the vine root depth and the ages of the vines. This influenced the length of aromas and the body of the wine
• the vineyard elevation and the degree of natural light the grapes get
• the terroir
• the quoted value on the market.

Originally, the list included 58 châteaux. Over time, this list has evolved and now includes 61 châteaux : 5 Premier Crus (First Growth), 14 Second Crus (Second Growth), 14 Troisième Crus (Third Growth), 10 Quatrième Crus (Fourth Growth) and 18 Cinquièmes Crus (Fifth Growth)

This list was revised only once in 1973, when Château Mouton Rothschild was promoted from Second Growth to First Growth.

Concerning the white wines, 27 sweet wines were classified from Sauternes and Barsac. Château d’Yquem is the only Premier Cru Supérieur, 11 Châteaux constitute the Premier Cru and 15 the Second Cru.

Over the years, the number, size and owners of classified châteaux have changed a lot, as has the quality of their wines. The relevance of the 1855 ranking to current quality levels is the subject of ongoing debate.

Answer 2 : 1955

The classification of Saint-Emilion took place ten years later by INAO (Institut National de l’Origine et de la Qualité) and the ministries of Agriculture and Consumer and Commercial Relations on request of the Saint-Emilion appellation defense union.

This classification was done upon the following criteria :

• tasting of the wines,
• terroir
• renown of the Châteaux

82 châteaux were classified in Premier Grands Crus Classés, itself divided into A and B, and Grand Cru Classé.

Be careful, there is also a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru appellation : this regroups producers within a clearly defined appellation zone which meet specific requirements.

Answer 3 : 1953

The Graves classification took place tow years before in 1953, by INAO as well, on the request of the Graves appellation defense union.

16 châteaux were classified as Grand Cru Classé de Graves. All château belong to the appellation Pessac-Léognan.

This classification was created to complete the 1855 Classification.

Other classifications

Indeed, the 1855 classification represents only a very small number of estates in the Médoc, which is why a new classification of crus bourgeois was later introduced for the other châteaux in the region.

This Crus Bourgeois classification takes place every five years since 1932. The last one took place on the 20th of February in 2020, the next one will thus take place in 2025.

Today, the status of cru bourgeois is attributed only to a specific vintage, and not to the château itself, which must therefore present its wine again each year to remain classified.

Between 200 and 300 domains are thus classified. One domain out of four has the mention Cru Bourgeois in the Médoc wine region.

Still, in the Médoc area, the Syndicate of craftsmen crus “Crus des Artisans” made ANOTHER classification (Cru Artisan) with other criteria.

Conclusion : When are Bordeaux wines determined to be Grand Cru or Grand Cru Classe?

All in all, Bordeaux has several classifications. So to answer the question : when are Bordeaux wines determined to be Grand Cru or Grand Cru Classé, it all depends on to which sub region or château you are referring to.

Bordeaux wines were determined to be Grand Cru or Grand Cru Classé in 1855, if they come from the Médoc or Sauternes, in 1953 if they come from Graves and in 1955 if they come from Saint-Emilion.