T
odescribe the revisable St-Emilion classification as turbulent – and in recent months it has seen three out of the four highest-ranked, premier grand cru classé A estates withdraw – would be an understatement.
Unlike the static 1855 classification of Médoc (excepting the 1973 promotion of Château Mouton Rothschild to first growth status), that of St-Emilion is updated every decade or so. The previous revision in 2012 – the sixth since the original in 1955 – counts 64 grand cru classé and 18 premier grand cru classé estates; although that will now be 15, since Châteaux Angélus, Ausone and Cheval Blanc withdrew (see ‘Angélus withdraws’, decanter.com 5 January 2022), leaving only Château Pavie with the coveted ‘A’ grade.
HOW IT WORKS
The St-Emilion appellation consists of two categories: St-Emilion and St-Emilion grand cru.
The classification, however, bestows prestige on estates ranked grand cru classé (GCC), and even more on those ranked premier grand cru classé (1GCC), with the ‘A’ specification at the very top (the former ‘B’ status no longer officially exists).
While the French national appellation authority INAO wrote in an email that it ‘does not give out such information’, sources in the appellation say that 114 applications have been submitted this time, with results to be made public in September this year.
Estates cannot sit on their laurels, as dossiers must be submitted to maintain prior rankings: The €14,000 application fee applies to maintain (or be promoted to) a GCC rank. An additional €7,000 is then needed in order to be considered for premier
