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The need for a classification of the best Bordeaux wines arose from the 1855 Exposition Universelle de Paris. The result was the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, a list of the top ranked wines, named the Grand Crus Classés (Great Classified Growths). With several thousand different Chateaux producing their own wines in Bordeaux with only 5 making the grade.
Bordeaux First Growths
Château Lafite Rothschild
Situated in the wine-producing village of Pauillac in the Médoc region to the north-west of Bordeaux, the estate was the property of Gombaud de Lafite in 1234. In the 17th century, the property of Château Lafite was purchased by the Ségur family, including the 16th century manor house that still stands. Although vines almost certainly already existed on the site, around 1680, Jacques de Ségur planted the majority of the vineyard. Before long he was known as the "Wine Prince", and the wine of Château Lafite called "The King's Wine" thanks to the influential support of the Maréchal de Richelieu. Towards the end of the 18th century, Lafite's reputation was assured and even Thomas Jefferson visited the estate and became a lifelong customer. The wine has a particular softness imparted by the Merlot, creating finesse and elegance with age.
- 20,000 cases per annum
Château Mouton-Rothschild
Château Mouton Rothschild is a wine estate located in the village of Pauillac in the Médoc and is regarded as one of the world's greatest clarets. Originally known as Château Brane-Mouton, it was renamed by Nathaniel de Rothschild in 1853 to Château Mouton Rothschild. In the 1920s it began the practice of bottling the harvest at the estate itself in 1924, rather than shipping the wine to merchants for bottling elsewhere. The Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 was based entirely on recent market prices for a vineyard's wines, with one exception: Château Mouton Rothschild was excluded from First Great Growth status, an act that Baron Philippe de Rothschild referred to as "the monstrous injustice". It is widely believed that the exception was made because the vineyard had recently been purchased by an Englishman and was no longer in French ownership. The wine is characterised by its richness and long finish.
- 22,000 cases per annum
Château Haut-Brion
Located in the graves region, it was the only non-médoc estate to be included in the 1855 classification, as well as being the oldest and smallest of the four first growth properties. The vineyard consists of 109 acres. Château Haut-Brion was the first recorded First Growth to be imported to the United States, when Thomas Jefferson purchased six cases during his French travels and had them sent back to his estate in Virginia. The wine is described as being a complex bouquet of scents, well structured and powerful.
- 12,000 cases per annum.
Château Latour
Château Latour lies at the southeastern tip of the commune of pauillac in the médoc region to the northwest of bordeaux, at its border with saint-julien. The Château makes three principal wines, all red; in addition to its world famous "Grand Vin de Château Latour", it has produced "Les Forts de Latour" and "Pauillac". One of Bordeaux's most concentrated, full bodied and rich. Highly regarded in terms of consistency.
- 33,000 cases per annum
Château Margaux
The Château is amongst the commune of Margaux in the médoc region, having been occupied since at least the 12th century. By 1700, the estate covered its present area of 265 hectares, of which 78 were devoted to wines. It has remained essentially unchanged since then. Château Margaux is noted by an 18th century manager, Berlon, who revolutionised growth techniques such as the forbidding of harvest in the early morning, to avoid dew- covered grapes, and acknowledging for the first time soil quality. The wine is noted as being opulent, rich, and multidimensional.
- 12,500 cases per annum
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