The definitive guide to the wines of Bordeaux, first published in 1850, gets an update

One of the first books I bought when I was doing my (brief) sommelier training in Paris years ago was a copy of “Le Féret,” the definitive guide to the wines of Bordeaux, oh, since 1850. I haven’t opened it in years, but when I wanted to look something up the other day, I discovered the book has gone missing. Where? Is it hidden away in a box of books I have yet to unpack? Or was it yet another item left behind by the movers when I changed houses nine years ago?

Now that I have a burning need to consult it, I can’t remember how I acquired it. Was it in San Francisco before I left for Paris? London? Or from the wine shop of Place Madeleine in Paris run by British wine merchant Stephen Spurrier (famously caricatured in the film “Bottle Shock”)? I haven’t a clue.

However, I just learned something of its history (much more than I ever knew) in an article “The Book That Defined Bordeaux” by Suzanne Mustacich in the magazine Wine Spectator. First published in 1850 by Michel-Édouard Féret of Librairie Féret, which was founded in 1813, “Bordeaux et Ses Environs et Ses Vins, Classé par Ordre de Merite,” or “Bordeaux and Its Region and Its Wines, Ranked in Order of Merit,” writes Mustacich, “provided the blueprint for the 1855 classification of Médoc and Sauternes châteaus still in use today.”

Who knew that the 2,296-page tome started life as an 84-page travel guide for 19th century gentlemen? Over the years there have been 18 editions and it “is the oldest book in France updated continuously by the same editor and publisher. Editions Féret celebrates its 200th anniversary in 2013, and the publishing house is celebrating by preparing the Bordeaux guide’s 19th edition, which will be released in French, English and Mandarin and in e-book format.”

It’s telling that the book will be translated into Mandarin. Shrewd, even, considering the intense Chinese interest in Bordeaux.

Now, though, I can breathe a sigh of relief and stop hunting down my old copy. I remember it was a very expensive purchase at the time. I’ll simply have to get the new edition, maybe as an e-book. No doubt it will have all the latest information on Chinese acquisitions of Bordeaux estates. It’s not yet for sale on the publisher’s site: the 18th edition for 99 euros (about $129) is all that’s listed at the moment. Never mind, I’m patient. (I’ve also written to them for an update.)

Do read Mustacich’s Wine Spectator article: the back story of the book is fascinating. When I bought it, I remember it was referred to as Cocks and Féret. I found out why. Charles Cocks was an Englishman who wrote a travel guide to Bordeaux in 1846. Michel-Édouard Féret wanted to publish a French version: Instead the two decided to collaborate on a book that would classify the wines of Médoc and Sauternes according to price, i.e. value in the marketplace. And the rest, as they say, is history.

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