Heads up: this guide contains an affiliate link. If you buy through it we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
A fifth growth is a Bordeaux château sitting in the bottom band of the 1855 classification, the fifth of five. There are 18 of them. Bottom band sounds like a polite insult, and in Bordeaux it is nothing of the sort.
The list was put together in a few weeks for the Paris world fair of 1855, ranked on what each château’s wine was fetching at the time, and it has been changed exactly twice in the 170 years since. A fifth growth is therefore not a verdict on today’s wine. It is a snapshot of a price list from 1855.
Table of Contents
The Five Growths at a Glance
| Tier | How many today | Names you might know |
|---|---|---|
| First growth | 5 | Lafite Rothschild, Latour, Margaux, Haut-Brion, Mouton Rothschild |
| Second growth | 14 | Cos d’Estournel, Montrose, Léoville-Las Cases |
| Third growth | 14 | Palmer, Calon-Ségur, d’Issan |
| Fourth growth | 10 | Talbot, Beychevelle, Duhart-Milon |
| Fifth growth | 18 | Lynch-Bages, Pontet-Canet, Grand-Puy-Lacoste |
That is 61 estates in total, and every one of them is a Grand Cru Classé. The third growths started at 15 and are now 14, because Château Dubignon was swallowed by a neighbour in 1960.
Where the Ranking Came From
Napoleon III wanted France’s best wines on show at the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1855. Bordeaux’s wine brokers were asked for a ranking and produced one the fastest way available: they sorted the châteaux by the prices their wines had been trading at, treating price as a fair stand-in for reputation. Every red on the list came from the Médoc except one, Château Haut-Brion, which sits in Graves just outside the city and was far too famous to leave out. The sweet whites of Sauternes and Barsac were ranked separately, and only into two bands.
It has barely moved since. Cantemerle was added as a fifth growth in 1856, either forgotten at first or slipped in afterwards depending on whose account you believe. Then in 1973, after decades of lobbying by Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Mouton was lifted from second growth to first. Those are the only two official changes ever made.
What Fifth Growth Actually Means
It means the château’s wine was priced in the fifth band in 1855. That is the entire definition. It does not mean fifth best, and it certainly does not mean fifth best today. All 61 classified estates sit above the several thousand Bordeaux properties that never made the list at all. Being the shortest player in a basketball squad is a strange way to be called short.
All 18 Fifth Growths, by Commune
- Pauillac (12): Pontet-Canet, Batailley, Haut-Batailley, Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Grand-Puy-Ducasse, Lynch-Bages, Lynch-Moussas, d’Armailhac, Haut-Bages-Libéral, Pédesclaux, Clerc-Milon, Croizet Bages
- Haut-Médoc (3): Belgrave, de Camensac, Cantemerle
- Margaux (2): Dauzac, du Tertre
- Saint-Estèphe (1): Cos Labory
Why Fifth Growths Are Often the Smart Buy
Read that list again and one number stands out. Twelve of the eighteen fifth growths are in Pauillac, the same small commune that holds three of the five first growths. They sit on the same gravel, in the same climate, sometimes within sight of one another, and they sell for a fraction of the money. The ranking froze in 1855. The vineyards, the owners and the winemaking did not.
Alexis Lichine, who sat on a revision panel that failed in 1960, spent thirty years making exactly this argument. His standing example was Château Lynch-Bages, a Pauillac fifth growth that quietly bought good parcels whenever they came up and now makes wine many critics rate well above its band. The point works in reverse too. Château Margaux is a first growth, and its wines from the 1960s and 1970s are widely regarded as nowhere near what the label promises.
Nobody has managed to change the list since. A revision would flatten the price of any demoted château, and the estates with the most to lose also have the most influence, so it stays exactly where it is.
And the Five First Growths?
Since it is the other question everyone arrives with: Lafite Rothschild, Latour and Mouton Rothschild in Pauillac, Château Margaux in Margaux, and Haut-Brion in Pessac, just outside Bordeaux itself. Four of them have held the title since 1855. Mouton joined the club in 1973 and remains the only estate ever promoted.
If a Classified Bordeaux Is Out of Reach
Honesty corner: our supplier does not stock classified Bordeaux at all, so we are not going to pretend otherwise. What we can do is point you at the same idea in a bottle you can actually buy. Left-bank Bordeaux, fifth growths included, is Cabernet Sauvignon led and softened with Merlot. Australia’s closest answer is Coonawarra, where a narrow strip of red soil over limestone makes Cabernet with the same cedar and blackcurrant backbone.
St Hugo Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2022
This will not settle any arguments about the 1855 list, but it does show you what the fuss over Cabernet on gravel and limestone is about. Give it an hour in a decanter if the bottle is young.
- Single-region Coonawarra Cabernet, the Australian left bank
- Blackcurrant, cedar and fine tannin, the classic profile
- Will happily sit in a cupboard for another eight to ten years
- Costs less than the freight on a case of Pauillac
- Not Bordeaux, and pretending otherwise would be silly
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a fifth growth wine?
A Bordeaux château placed in the fifth and lowest band of the 1855 classification. There are 18 of them, and all 18 are still Grands Crus Classés, which puts them above the thousands of Bordeaux estates that were never classified at all.
How many fifth growth Bordeaux are there?
Eighteen. Twelve are in Pauillac, three in the Haut-Médoc, two in Margaux and one in Saint-Estèphe.
What are the 5 first growths of Bordeaux?
Lafite Rothschild, Latour, Margaux, Haut-Brion and Mouton Rothschild. The first four were named in 1855; Mouton was promoted from second growth in 1973.
Has the 1855 classification ever changed?
Twice. Cantemerle was added as a fifth growth in 1856, and Mouton Rothschild was promoted to first growth in 1973. A revision attempt in 1960 came to nothing.
Are fifth growths good value?
Often, yes. Many sit on the same Pauillac gravel as the first growths and sell for a small fraction of the price. Value still depends on the estate and the vintage rather than the band on the label.
Should I buy Bordeaux by its classification?
Use it as a starting point, not a scorecard. The list ranks 1855 prices, so it tells you which estates had money and reputation then. Recent critic scores and the vintage will tell you far more about what is in the bottle now. A decent wine glass will do more for an expensive red than an extra rung on a 170-year-old ladder.
This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It keeps the wine flowing and the reviews honest.
User Review
( votes)
Sip smarter, subscribe now!
One short, useful email a week: pairings that actually work, honest reviews, and your free Food Pairing e-book the moment you join. No spam, no snobbery, and your inbox stays classy.
