St-Emilion, and its surrounding vineyards: home of the 2012 Classification
St-Emilion and its surrounding vineyards.
(Image credit: Wikipedia (2016, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license))

Bordeaux’s administrative court of appeal has effectively validated the St-Emilion 2012 Classification after rejecting long-standing complaints from three châteaux.

France’s national appellation body, INAO, said the decision upholds an original court ruling from 2015. It added the complainants still have two months in which to appeal the judgement, however.

INAO said it was ‘reassured’ by the latest appeal court ruling.

It said it is pressing ahead with work on the 2022 edition of the ranking system, which was conceived in the 1950s and is revised every 10 years.

Separately, however, the upcoming St-Emilion 2022 Classification process has been hit by high-profile withdrawals.

Châteaux Angélus, Cheval Blanc and Ausone have all independently said that they do not wish to be part of the process for the new ranking.

They represent three of the four ‘Premier Grand Cru Classé A’ estates from 2012, when Angélus and Château Pavie were promoted to join Cheval Blanc and Ausone at the top of the hierarchy.

St-Emilion’s Wine Council has said it regrets the withdrawals but it defended the process for the 2022 Classification.

St-Emilion council defends Classification after Angélus withdrawal

Cheval Blanc and Ausone to leave St-Emilion Classification

St-Emilion 2012 Classification announced (archive story)

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Chris Mercer
Chris Mercer

Chris Mercer is a Bristol-based freelance editor and journalist who spent nearly four years as digital editor of Decanter.com, having previously been Decanter’s news editor across online and print.

He has written about, and reported on, the wine and food sectors for more than 10 years for both consumer and trade media.

Chris first became interested in the wine world while living in Languedoc-Roussillon after completing a journalism Masters in the UK. These days, his love of wine commonly tests his budgeting skills.

Beyond wine, Chris also has an MSc in food policy and has a particular interest in sustainability issues. He has also been a food judge at the UK’s Great Taste Awards.