THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1855

Much more than a hierarchy of vineyards, the classification of Bordeaux wines is a tribute to the history of the region, to the wine trade that gave rise to it, and of course to the châteaux themselves.

In 1855, wishing to honour the wines of Bordeaux at the Universal Exposition in Paris, Napoleon III ordered brokers and dealers linked with the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce to establish as clear and complete a classification as possible. This work led professionals to develop a veritable reference list, devoted primarily to the longstanding reputation and consistency of the châteaux and based on the market value of their wines, which from that time onward has been directly related to their quality.

Organized hierarchically from the Premiers Crus to the Cinquièmes Crus, the Classification included some sixty red wines of the Médoc, twenty-seven sweet white wines of Sauternes and Barsac, and one red wine from Graves.

The genius of this classification is to have always left it to the market to ensure that a quality wine receives the fair trade value it is due. Thus, in a commercial environment where supply and demand are the law of the market, the price obtained by a wine can place it, according to the times and the quality of its wines and its management, above or below its 1855 ranking.

The famous "list" has a great promotional power, not only for the brands contained therein, but for the entire territory. No other wine region in the world has such a prestigious tool: now legendary, the label "Grand Cru Classé en 1855" remains a key driver of the wines of Bordeaux. This has become particularly evident as new markets such as those of North America in the twentieth century and more recently Asia, decidedly opened up to the pleasure of discovering the grands vins of Bordeaux.

^{Text drawn particularly from the book by Dewey Markham Jr., 1855: A History of the Bordeaux Classification, Editions Feret, Bordeaux, 1998.}