More on Crus Bourgeois Reconnaissance

Back in November, I wrote about the "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance. I contaced l'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Medoc with some questions about the new label and Frederique de Lamothethe, Director of l'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois, was kind enough to answer them.

First some background about "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance. While it has been in the works for a while, the legislative part started in July of this year with Resolution No. 607/2009 which confirmed European protection of the term Crus Bourgeois.

Then, on October 20th, Decree No. 2009-1265 gave l'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Medoc the authority to designate chateaux from the eight different appellations of the Medoc as "Crus Bourgeois" as long as a Schedule of Requirements is created and an independent system of verification is set up. For reference, the eight Medoc appellations are: Haut-Medoc, Listrac-Medoc, Margaux, Medoc, Moulis-en-Medoc, Pauillac, Saint-Estephe, and Saint-Julien.

On November 12th a special assembly of l'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Medoc ratifies the final changes of the Schedule of Requirements as well as the Verification Plan for "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance.

On November 16th a decree by the Ministers of Agriculture and Consumer protection ratifies the plan submitted by l'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Medoc.

So, what will the label "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance actually mean? Chateaux that choose to participate will be subject to yearly examinations of their property and their wine. The wine itself will be judged two years after the harvest (the 2008 vintage will be examined in 2010). In addition to the property audit the wine quality will be judged via blind tasting, each vintage will be judged independently rather than over a series of vintages. The audits and inspections will be carried out by Bureau Veritas.

In other words, when the label "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance is attached to a wine, it is a guarantee to the consumer that a certain level of quality has gone into the wine.

According to Lamothethe, the 2008 vintage will be the first to receive the "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance, so we should start seeing them as early as March 2011.

Unlike previous iterations of the "Crus Bourgeois" label, there are no distinctions in quality, and there are no limits on the number of Chateaux that can receive the label, again, from Lamothethe, "We have no numerus clausus: so every candidate could get the 'Cru Bourgeois' Reconnaissance when he is in conformity with the criteria detailed in the schedule of requirements."

I also asked about whether or not the new inspection requirements could potentially cause producers to raise their prices. Lamothethe does not seem to think so, he did think it would help some lesser known producers, "...we can say that the price might increase for châteaux which are not so well know. It will help them to negociate their selling price since they have a recognition of quality through the 'Crus Bourgeois' Reconnaissance."

L'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Medoc will release a list every year, on September 15th, of the properties eligible for the "Crus Bourgeois" Reconnaissance label. I will be sure to publish it here, but I am sure there will be plenty of places to track it down.

I do want to say Merci to Frederique de Lamothethe for taking the time from his busy schedule to answer my questions and to pass on the press kit to me, his information was greatly appreciated.

Update: Le Journal du Vin has a great summation (in French) of the new process.