Saint-Émilion Classification sees ‘long overdue’ Château Figeac promotion

Château Figeac has been promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classé A in the latest revision of the Saint-Émilion Classification, which was published by the INAO on 8 September.

The new classification, which takes place every 10 years, also saw 16 estates named as new Grands Crus Classés, including Badette, Croix de Labrie, and Rol Valentin.

Colin Hay, the drinks business’s Bordeaux correspondent, said the recognition of Figeac was “well merited… but long overdue”, noting that many people felt it had been unlucky not to have been promoted alongside Angélus and Pavie in 2012.

According to Liv-ex, Château Figeac was the most traded Saint-Émilion Grand Cru estate after the Premier Grand Cru Classé A châteaux, accounting for 10.8% of wines from St-Émilion in 2022, just behind Ausone, on 11.3%. Prices for the château have also risen by 47.1% in the past three years, and it has therefore long been seen as a prime candidate for promotion.

There were no changes within the other Premiers Grands Crus Classés (although Angélus, Ausone, Cheval Blanc, and La Gaffelière no longer appear in the classification, as all four withdrew entirely from the system). This was likely to“disappoint many” but was “hardly a great surprise”, Hay said. “The barrier to Premier Grands Cru Classé entry seems to be becoming more difficult to breach,” he said.

There was more action at Grand Cru Classé level, with 71 properties classified Grands Crus Classés, up from 62 in 2012. Amongst the new additions are Vignoble K’s Tour Saint Christophe, Axelle and Pierre Courdurié’s La Croix de Labrie, Pierre Seillan’s Lassègue, Benoit Trocard’s Clos Dubreuil, the Todeschini family’s Mangot, Jean-Philippe Janoueix’s La Confession, and Catherine Papon-Nouvel’s tiny Clos Saint-Julien. The previously de-classified Corbin Michotte also returned to the fold.

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