I guess I might just be annoyed that I can no longer afford many of the gems that Burgundy and Bordeaux have to offer.  However, I have thought for a long time that many of the great wine world’s classification systems are somewhat “dubious”, or as my grandpa used to say “has flies on them”.  The choice for quality wine has never been greater and the way in which we judge that quality is always a hot topic for debate.   Take Bordeaux for instance (“yes take it”!  I here some new world wine producers say), it is the most hotly traded, most difficult to understand and one of the most misunderstood wine regions in the world.

 

This area in the South West of France lies next to the Atlantic Ocean and surrounds the tributaries of the Gironde River.  It has over 300 000 acres under vine and over 18000 producers.  Famous for its’ red wine blends of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot it also produces remarkable Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc wines including the luscious desert wines of Sauternes and Barsac.  Although, it wasn’t until the mid 17th century that the Dutch drained the large marshy area of the “Medoc” creating some of the best, well drained gravel terroir in the world. Many of the biggest wine names such as Lafite, Latour and Margaux are planted in this unique area.  Then in 1855, the wine buyers of the region were asked to “classify” the Chateaux of the Medoc (except Chateau Haut Brion from Graves) based on prices achieved in the market place over the previous decades.  Only 57 Chateaux were classed at this time (although 61 exist now). This 1855 classification remains the basis of how wines are priced and judged in the Medoc. Interestingly it was purely a “price guide” and had nothing to do with individual terroir or vineyard sites (unlike the Burgundy system). Therefore as a result, the Chateaux can still trade land with no effect on their designation.  Therefore it is very likely that a “1990 classed growth” wine would come from very different piece of dirt than its’ 1890 predecessor.  Given the French market importance of “individual vineyard”, “terroir-driven” or “appellation” wine, it is interesting that one of the most important classifications is not based on where a vineyard lies.

 

Bordeaux trades more of the world’s most expensive wines than anywhere else.  Yet, there is also an increasing gap in profitability between the “Cru Classe” Chateaux and “non-classified” Bordeaux producers.  While strong international demand (lead by Asia more recently) for the classified wines has grown exponentially in the last 10-20 years, the regular Bordeaux AC and “Cru Bourgeois” producers have struggled to maintain market relevance against “varietal labeled” new world producing areas such as Australia, California, Chile, Argentina, New Zealand and South Africa.  High intensity, fruit forward, oak aged new world wines simply have had too much crowd appeal (particularly for new consumers) in comparison to the leaner Bordeaux AC styles.  

 

Consumers often don’t realize that the 1855 classification really only affects the wines of Medoc and Sauternes/Barsac. Graves and St Emillion have their own classification systems and many of the highly priced wines of Pommerol (eg.Petrus, Le Pin, Lafleur) have no classification at all.  Clear as mud right? In fact, there are more of these “Right Bank” wines in the top 50 most expensive wines of Bordeaux than in Medoc.  The lack of strict classification has been one of the reasons “Garage wineries”, were inspired to shrug of the institutional confinement of the system and market wines on their own merits.  Many would argue that the old classification system of the Medoc simply encourages these classified wineries to become complacent and those without classification not to try because “It simply won’t change”.  However, there is nothing more de-motivating to a vigneron than to put your heart, soul and money into a wine that will never command the prices of the Chateau down the road, simply because your winery didn’t exist in 1855. 

 

However, what is interesting has been the substantial power shift from the Chateaux to the critic due to the power of technology.  The American publications of Robert Parker (Wine Enthusiast) and Wine Spectator now judge whether the Bordeaux vintage is fantastic or a failure.  In fact up until the last Bordeaux vintage release, the Chateaux didn’t release pricing “En Primeur” without reading the scores first.  Beware the winery that forgets to mention its’ Parker points when trying to sell its’ wine.  Indeed, the recent auction Bordeaux buying sprees (led by Asian buyers ) in Hong Kong and London have only reinforced these power positions.

 

So, what does this mean to the consumer in the end?  The reality is that most wine drunk, is not at $100 per bottle.  Therefore wineries and wine regions need to have concise and clear communication with their customers.  Varietal labeling is important; people want to know what is in the bottle and where it came from.  Bordeaux does not provide this, and therefore in the mass market they will continue to lose market share against regions which have a clearer brand message…there is more than 61 producers in Bordeaux. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to drink Ch. Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande every day, but unfortunately my bank manager says Jacobs Creek will do just fine.  

 

(If you are interested in learning more about Bordeaux you can read Ben Lewin’s MW’s great book titled “What Price Bordeaux?”)