The Judgement Of Paris

Today marks the 45th anniversary of The Judgement of Paris. This event rocked the wine world at the time and set in motion worldwide recognition that American wines were on par, if not better, than wines produced in the Old World. Prior to this fateful wine competition, American wine was looked at as a quality wine, but nothing special and definitely not to be consumed over established French wines. It is hard to fathom that today when Napa Cabs can go for thousands of dollars, Washington wines can score a perfect 100 from a wine critic, and the US is the 4th largest wine producer in the world.

The blind tasting competition was set up by a British wine importer and the director of a French wine school. The idea was to show the superiority of French wines over their American counterparts. The tasting consisted of California Chardonnays and Burgundian Chardonnays for the white wines, and California Cabernet Sauvignons against red Bordeauxs for the reds. California wines triumphed in both categories; a Chardonnay from Chateau Montelena and a Cab from Stag's Leap Wine Cellars. 

While the outcome of the competition has become the stuff of legend, the ramifications at the time were huge. In France, wine wasn't something you consume, it was a way of life. As soon as the results of the competition were announced some of the judges, all of whom were French, demanded their ballots back and cried fraud. The organizers of the competition were banned from further tastings. Even the French newspapers refused to publish the results. 

However, in the end, both New and Old World benefited from the controversial result. For the New World, it legitimized their wines and opened the doors for other countries such as Australia and Argentina to produce wines that consistently rank among the top wines in the world. The Old World was forced to look at their traditional winemaking approach and realize they could not just rest on their laurels. Today there are European wineries that are hundreds of years old that can be found using the latest technology in the vineyard and winery. In the end, a little competition tends to bring out the best in both the winner and the loser and, in this case, wine lovers around the world all benefitted from this competition 45 years ago.