In Champagne, the notion of "cru" applies to entire communes, unlike in Bordeaux where the notion of "cru" is limited to a terroir or château, and in Burgundy to a lieu-dit or village (Volnay, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges...).
In Champagne, the cru is a guarantee of quality, derived from the best terroirs in the appellation, depending on exposure, the soil in which the vines are planted and the final quality of the grapes. The communes are classified into three categories according to a scale of crus that goes from 100% to 80% depending on the quality of the grapes produced (not that of the Champagne). not that of the Champagne).
Today, the 300 wine-growing communes in the Champagne region have different appellations:regional, sub-regional, departmental, zone, communal, Premier Cru and Grand-Cru.17 are classified as Grand-Cru (rated at 100%) and 44 as Premier Cru (rated between 99 and 90%).The communes rated below these are "non-classified" up to 80% on the scale, and make up 21,000 hectares of Champagne vineyards, with less stringent specifications than the previous two.This scale is used to establish the selling price per kilo of grapes to wine merchants. 100% "Grand Cru", the buyer pays 100% of the price, etc....In the past, classification went up to 60%.
A cru
Sometimes it's easiest to take the definition from the dictionary. In wine critic Michel Dovaz's "Le dictionnaire Hachette du vin", a "cru" is a"Term (...) to designate a specific vineyard, terroir or production region, and the wine or brandy made from it."
