The Graves Classification
The 1855 Médoc and 1855 Sauternes classifications ignored some very significant regions of Bordeaux, most notably Graves. This exclusion is perhaps somewhat surprising, as the wines of Graves were hardly unknown at the time. The land to the south of the city of Bordeaux had been planted with vines hundreds of years before intrepid explorers began venturing up the marshy Médoc, and yet it was almost entirely overlooked. The only exception to this rule was Château Haut-Brion, ranked at the first growth level in the 1855 Classification of the Médoc.
Nearly one hundred years later, the 1855 Classification of the Médoc, drawn up for a great exposition but now seemingly carved in stone, remained as relevant to the value of land and the wines of the Médoc as ever. Determined to protect and promote the identity of their own region, and perhaps to soak up some of the prestige the other classifications brought to their members, in the early 1950s the Syndicat des Vins de Graves decided to draw up their own classification.
The classification was largely based on the selling price of the wines, much like the 1855 classification of the Médoc. It has evolved somewhat since its inception in 1953, having been revised in 1959, and of course there have been a few other changes – as châteaux have been divided or restructured – along the way.
Before I provide some detail on the 1953 and 1959 classifications, there are two curious features to the Graves classification to which I should first draw your attention. The first is that the classification pertains not to land, vineyards or even châteaux, but to specific wines. Thus a property can be classified for its red, or its white, or both. This throws up some surprises, which I will examine in more detail further down the page.
