The Paris Wine Tasting of 1976, also known as the Judgment of Paris, was a wine competition organized in Paris on 24 May 1976 by Steven Spurrier, a British wine merchant, and his colleague, Patricia Gallagher, in which French oenophiles participated in two blind tasting comparisons: one of top-quality Chardonnays and another of red wines (Bordeaux wines from France and Cabernet Sauvignon wines from California^[1][2]). A Napa County wine rated best in each category, which caused surprise as France was generally regarded as being the foremost producer of the world's best wines. By the early 1970s, the quality of some California wines was outstanding but few took notice as the market favored French brands. Spurrier sold predominately French wine and believed the California wines would not win.^[3]

The event's informal name "Judgment of Paris" is an allusion to the ancient Greek myth.

The wines

Red wines

White wines

The judges

The eleven judges were (in alphabetical order):^[4]

Method

Blind tasting was performed and the judges were asked to grade each wine out of 20 points. No specific grading framework was given, leaving the judges free to grade according to their own criteria.

Rankings of the wines preferred by individual judges were based on the grades they individually attributed.

An overall ranking of the wines preferred by the jury was also established in averaging the sum of each judge's individual grades (arithmetic mean). However, grades of Patricia Gallagher and Steven Spurrier were not taken into account, thus counting only grades of French judges.^[5]

The results

White wines

California Chardonnays vs. Burgundy Chardonnays^[4]

Official jury results:

Rank	Grade	Wine	Vintage	Origin
1.	132	Chateau Montelena	1973	USA
2.	126.5	Meursault Charmes Roulot	1973	France
3.	121	Chalone Vineyard	1974	USA
4.	104	Spring Mountain Vineyard	1973	USA
5.	101	Beaune Clos des Mouches Joseph Drouhin	1973	France
6.	100	Freemark Abbey Winery	1972	USA
7.	94	Batard-Montrachet Ramonet-Prudhon	1973	France
8.	89	Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles Domaine Leflaive	1972	France
9.	88	Veedercrest Vineyards	1972	USA
10.	42	David Bruce Winery	1973	USA

Red wines

California Cabernet Sauvignon vs. Bordeaux^[4]

Official jury results：

Rank	Grade	Wine	Vintage	Origin
1.	127.5	Stag's Leap Wine Cellars	1973	USA
2.	126	Château Mouton-Rothschild	1970	France
3.	125.5	Château Haut-Brion	1970	France
4.	122	Château Montrose	1970	France
5.	105.5	Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello	1971	USA
6.	97	Château Leoville Las Cases	1971	France
7.	89.5	Mayacamas Vineyards	1971	USA
8.	87.5	Clos Du Val Winery	1972	USA
9.	84.5	Heitz Wine Cellars Martha's Vineyard	1970	USA
10.	78	Freemark Abbey Winery	1969	USA

Average Original grades: out of 20 points.

Rank	Grade	Wine	Vintage	Origin
1.	14.14	Stag's Leap Wine Cellars	1973	USA
2.	14.09	Château Mouton-Rothschild	1970	France
3.	13.64	Château Montrose	1970	France
4.	13.23	Château Haut-Brion	1970	France
5.	12.14	Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello	1971	USA
6.	11.18	Château Leoville Las Cases	1971	France
7.	10.36	Heitz Wine Cellars Martha's Vineyard	1970	USA
8.	10.14	Clos Du Val Winery	1972	USA
9.	9.95	Mayacamas Vineyards	1971	USA
10.	9.45	Freemark Abbey Winery	1969	USA

Breakdown by judge

The original grades (out of 20 points) are shown, in alphabetical order by judge.^[4]

Pierre Brejoux Original grades: out of 20 points.

Rank	Grade	Wine	Vintage	Origin
1.	17	Château Haut-Brion	1970	France
2.	16	Château Mouton-Rothschild	1970	France
3.	14	Stag's Leap Wine Cellars	1973	USA
3.	14	Clos Du Val Winery	1972	USA
5.	13	Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello	1971	USA
6.	12	Château Montrose	1970	France
6.	12	Heitz Wine Cellars Martha's Vineyard	1970	USA
8.	10	Château Leoville Las Cases	1971	France
9.	7	Mayacamas Vineyards	1971	USA
10.	5	Freemark Abbey Winery	1969	USA

Claude Dubois-Millot Original grades: out of 20 points.