The French are known for their flare in the kitchen and for producing scintillating wines. We should also add to this list of stereotypes a passion for bureaucracy. The lamentable Cru Bourgeois system has just been re vamped, and the latest incarnation looks set to be the most dysfunctional to date, although we wouldn't bet against future changes making it even more confusing for consumers...So after the debacle of the 2003 reforms and the subsequent law suits, the Cru Bourgeois system reverted back to its original incarnation (of 1932). It wasn't perfect, but it wasn't all bad. Now in an attempt to glam up the classification, l'Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc have decided to appoint a third party tasting panel to judge whether a wine meets the criteria to be awarded Cru Bourgeois status. A good idea in essence, but this tasting won't take place until the wine is in bottle. The first vintage to be affected will be the 2008s; wines that we sold en Primeur over 12 months ago. It is conceivable that some wines that have been sold en primeur will have been incorrectly advertised as Cru Bourgeois, we won't know until the results are announced in September. It is also conceivable that an estate will produce a Cru Bourgeois one vintage and then a simple 'Bordeaux AOC' the next. Call us sceptics, but these reforms look daft and moreover, incompatible with the en primeur system of selling wines...
