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by Eckhard Supp - Finally, the cat is out of the bag! In three press conferences which were held yesterday and Wednesday in Paris, London and Brussels - the totally unimportant German market was obviously not given the honour - the Alliance des Crus Bourgeois has finally published, after years of litigation, abortive attempts and useless tastings, the official list of châteaux which are authorized to add the prestigious "cru Bourgeois" label to the name of their wines.

Studying the list, you immediately notice the absence of many well known names of the past - among them some of the most prestigious producers like Chateaux Chasse Spleen, Citran, Clarke, Coufran, Phélan-Ségur, Siran, or Tronquoy-Lalande as well as of the entire Fourcas-group (Hosten, Dupré, Loubanney) from Listrac. Some of these had already withdrawn their wines right from the beginning of the selection procedure, a certain number even stepping completely out of the Alliance. In the case of others, one might suppose that their wines were not judged good enough to receive the official recognition.

Among the wines which ENO WorldWine rated good to excellent, during the last years, in adition to the above mentioned châteaux are also missing Châteaux Cornélie, Lanessan, Meyney, and Puy-Castéra. Even some very popular names are not to be found like Ormes de Pez or Tour de By.

Bleak prospects for the crus Bourgeois? (photo: E. Supp)

It is highly questionable if the absence of these prestigious and popular names will benefit the Alliance and its cru-Bourgeois-label as a whole. Apparently the long selection procedure has brought some producers to the conclusion that they will do as well if not better without labelling their wines as crus Bourgeois.

To find our ratings and tasting notes (comments in German) of Crus Bourgeois wines, please click here ...