What does Saint-Émilion Grand Cru mean on the label of a wine bottle?
On the one hand, Saint-Émilion is a town near Bordeaux in the south-west of France and has about 1,700 inhabitants. On the other hand, Saint-Émilion also has two appellations of its own, the Appellation Saint-Émilion and the Appellation Saint-Émilion Grand Cru. You can then find this appellation on the wine label.
Read also: What is an appellation?
The Bordeaux wine-growing region is divided into the left bank and right bank of the Gironde. Gironde is a river that flows into the Atlantic, but also a department in the same area. Bordeaux is also a city and the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.
Let's look again at the Gironde river at its mouth in the Atlantic. There the river divides an area that is world famous for wine production in Bordeaux. Saint-Émilion, together with Pomerol, is located on the right bank of the Gironde and the Dordogne. They are located right next to the city of Libourne and are often referred to collectively as Libournais. The Médoc peninsula and the Graves region form the left bank of the Gironde and Garonne respectively.
By the way: The Libournais also includes the satellite appellations Lalande-de-Pomerol, Montagne-Saint-Émilion, Puisseguin-Saint-Émilion, Lussac-Saint-Émilion, Saint-Georges-Saint-Émilion, Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac.
In the Saint-Émilion wine-growing region, wineries belong to either the Saint-Émilion appellation or the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru appellation. For the latter appellation, wineries must undergo an additional quality inspection. The designation "Appellation Saint-Émilion Contrôlée" or "Appellation Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Contrôlée" is then listed on the label of a wine bottle.
AOC Saint-Émilion: This is an alternative spelling. AOC stands for Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée and means controlled designation of origin.
In 1955, a system for classifying wine was implemented for the first time in the Saint-Émilion wine-growing region. Since then, wineries from Saint-Émilion have had to apply at regular intervals to defend or improve their classification.
So far, there have been the following updates: 1955, 1969, 1985, 1996, 2006, 2012 and 2022. With each update, the classification of wineries can change and relegation and promotion is possible. As the criteria for qualification have changed over the years, criticism has become more widespread. This has led to a number of wineries no longer submitting applications or even filing a lawsuit.
These well-known Bordeaux wineries are part of the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Contrôlée appellation (as of 2022):
1er Grand Cru Classé A
- Château Figac
- Château Pavie
1er Grand Cru Classé B
- Château Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse
- Château Canon
- Château Larcis Ducasse
- Château Troplong Mondot
- Château Beau-Séjour Bécot
- Château Canon la Gaffelière
- Château TrotteVieille
- Château Bélair-Monange
- Clos Fourtet
- Château Pavie-Macquin
- Château Valandraud
Grand Cru Classé
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