From what it seems the silly initiative to create Languedoc Grand Crus have failed. In California things are much simpler. You just put Grand Cru on the label and voilà, you are a Grand Cru. At least, that is what Bob Davids has done at his Sea Smoke vineyards in Santa Rita Hills in Santa Barbara County in California, according to what Dr Vino writes on his blog. On the new labels on the Sea Smoke wine bottles you can read “California Grand Cru”. Apparently there is no agreement between the EU and the USA to protect that term. Read more and see the label on Dr Vino’s blog: Sea Smoke declares own vineyards “Grand Cru” on the label.
It is just as easy and simple to elegantly produce a Bordeaux wine in California: At the Saint Francis Winery and vineyards in Santa Rosa they make a Sonoma County Claret from cabernet sauvignon, merlot, petite (sic) verdot and malbec (as pointed out by The Sediment Blog). “Claret” is the traditional English word for red wine from Bordeaux. You can get a bottle for only $19.95. Read more and see the bottle here: Sonoma County Claret
(And on the Languedoc Grand Cru: We have written about this previously but a comment may be to the point. We are certainly among the first to agree that there are some great and outstanding wines made in the Languedoc today. We have even written a book about the wines from the Languedoc. But the proposed system of Grand Cru and Grand Vin was so silly and ill-conceived that it is fortunate that it has now apparently been ditched.)
