At the time of the Gauls, the latter commonly drank beer made from barley, the cervoise, and knew only the wine brought by the Mediterranean merchants. Wine was mainly imported from Pompeii, the Narbonnais and Spain. Later, the Bituriges people decided to plant their own vineyard with a cold resistant grape variety, the famous Biturica or Biturgiaca grape variety, which is known to us from the writings of Pliny the Elder and Columella.

The importation of Biturica, whose origin has not yet been determined, will seal the wine vocation of Bordeaux. Thus in 71 AD, when Pliny visited the region, the vines were already there. Very quickly, the city was transformed into a trading town where wine culture touched all sectors of the economy, the vineyards were to expand steadily and already conquered the hillsides of the right bank.

From Ausone to the Kings of England

While already in the IVth century the prestigious poet Ausone praised the qualities of the wine of his beloved Bordeaux homeland (, in the Middle Ages, the English kings exempted Bordeaux wines from duties and taxes and forbade their subjects to consume products of other origins as long as Bordeaux wines were not entirely consumed.

It should be remembered that at that time, people were looking for "frez and noviaux, fors, bevans and bien bevans, under the general name of vin claret", far from what we appreciate and taste today ...

London first market of Bordeaux wines

London was then the leading market for Bordeaux wines and remained so even after the Battle of Castillon, which returned Aquitaine to France. Under Louis XI, in 1462, 4000 sailors gathered in the brotherhood of Notre-Dame de Montuzet, established in Bordeaux, traded wine.

In order to revive trade, the King of France donated 300 carts of Gascony wine to the King of England and confirmed the privileges over the wines transported on the Garonne. He even re-established the two great fairs of the Ascension and Saint Martin's Day, previously created by King Edward III of England.

Bordeaux wine and the wars

The taste for Bordeaux wines will increase under the Renaissance. The wars of the kings Louis XIV, XV, XVI will make exports difficult, some defeats will favour the wines of Spain and Burgundy, when the victorious countries do not impose the consumption of beer.

The Intendants' recommendations for grubbing up were not followed and the wine trade resumed with America, the Islands and all of Northern Europe.

The 19th century saw the appearance of a terrible disease that struck the whole Bordeaux vineyard "phylloxera". Imported from the Americas, it is a small parasite that attacks the roots of the plant. The Bordeaux vineyard owes its salvation to the grafting of a French grape variety (vitis-vinifera) with an American grape variety (vitis labrusca). However, it was not until between the two wars that the vineyard was reconstituted. In spite of this, the general economic situation allowed the Bordeaux wine market to be relatively prosperous until the end of the 19th century.

The official classification

It was Lodi Martin Duffour-Dubergier, Mayor of Bordeaux between 1842 and 1848, who in 1855, as President of the Chamber of Commerce, was involved in setting up the classification of Bordeaux wines at the request of Napoleon III.

The wines were classified in importance from the first to the fifth growth by the Union of Trade Brokers near the Bordeaux Stock Exchange. This classification and the 88 Châteaux (61 reds, 27 whites) that are part of it, remains a subject of discussion among wine lovers.

In 1892, a work published by the municipality, summarizes the situation and the "morals" in terms of viticulture and wine:

"Wines can be modified by changing owners. Such a vintage, neglected by a careless or obedient owner can fall into the hands of a rich, active, intelligent man and by this very fact give better products. The opposite can also happen.

Everything is said or almost said ....

Contemporary times

The world wars of the 20th century, successive economic crises, competition from emerging countries, changing tastes and consumption habits are all attacks on the vines and wine of Bordeaux, which are not lacking in assets.

The production of the terroir remains noble in Bordeaux, as does the culture and savoir-vivre that surrounds this ancestral practice.

The art of winemaking in Bordeaux is not only part of its heritage but also in its genes. Thanks to its millenary roots, its rich history and the tradition that goes with it, the art of winemaking in Bordeaux can pride itself on being incomparable in every way.

So many values to which the people of Bordeaux, be they producers, merchants or simple consumers, seem to be increasingly attached ....