1976 Judgment of Paris

By the early 1970s, a quiet revolution was underway in Napa Valley. From 1961 to 1973, acres planted to Cabernet Sauvignon in California grew from 387 to 2,432, and Chardonnay plantings expanded from just 60 to 785 acres. Patricia Gallagher, the American director of Spurrier's L'Academie du Vin, suggested a tasting tied to the 1976 U.S. Bicentennial to draw attention to California's wines. Gallagher had visited Napa in September 1975 and returned impressed by what she tasted. Spurrier then traveled to California in early 1976 to personally select six Chardonnays and six Cabernet Sauvignons, purchasing bottles at full price without revealing his plans. The wines were transported to Paris in the luggage of a tour group of California winemakers. The decision to make the tasting blind was a last-minute one; Spurrier feared the French judges would be dismissive if they knew American wines were involved. He also selected four of the best white Burgundies and four top Bordeaux from his own shop to serve alongside the Californians. Before the Paris tasting, there were approximately 67 wineries in the entire Napa Valley.

• Patricia Gallagher proposed the tasting as a Bicentennial celebration; Spurrier visited California in early 1976 to select the wines personally
• The blind format was a late decision by Spurrier, who feared judges would show bias if they knew the origins of the wines
• California acreage in Cabernet Sauvignon grew from 387 to 2,432 acres between 1961 and 1973, reflecting the region's rapid ambition
• Roughly 67 wineries existed in Napa Valley at the time of the tasting; today there are over 400

The tasting was held at the InterContinental Hotel in Paris on May 24, 1976. Nine French judges scored each wine on a 20-point scale with no prescribed framework for how to allocate points. The judging panel represented the cream of French wine expertise: Aubert de Villaine, co-director of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti; Odette Kahn, director of La Revue du Vin de France; Christian Vannequé, sommelier of La Tour d'Argent; Raymond Oliver, owner of restaurant Le Grand Vefour; Pierre Tari, owner of Chateau Giscours; Jean-Claude Vrinat, owner of restaurant Taillevent; Michel Dovaz of the Institut Oenologique de France; Pierre Brejoux, inspector general of the INAO; and Claude Dubois-Millot, a director of Le Nouveau Guide. Spurrier and Gallagher also tasted and scored the wines, but their scores were excluded from the final results. The white flight came first: six California Chardonnays against four Burgundies, all from the Chardonnay grape. The red flight followed: six California Cabernet Sauvignons against four Bordeaux blends, including the 1970 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, 1970 Chateau Haut-Brion, 1970 Chateau Montrose, and 1971 Chateau Leoville Las Cases.

• All nine judges were French; they included the co-director of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, the sommelier of La Tour d'Argent, and the editor of La Revue du Vin de France
• Wines were scored out of 20 points with no prescribed framework; final rankings used the average score across all nine judges
• French Bordeaux entries included the 1970 Mouton-Rothschild, 1970 Haut-Brion, 1970 Montrose, and 1971 Leoville Las Cases
• French white Burgundy entries included the 1973 Meursault-Charmes (Roulot), 1973 Beaune Clos des Mouches (Drouhin), 1973 Batard-Montrachet (Ramonet-Prudhon), and 1972 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles (Domaine Leflaive)

Spurrier announced the white wine results before the red flight began, and the room fell silent: the top score had gone not to any French Burgundy, but to the 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay from Calistoga, California, averaging 14.67 out of 20. The French Meursault-Charmes Roulot 1973 came second with 14.05, followed by California's Chalone Vineyard 1974 and Spring Mountain Vineyard 1973 in third and fourth. Three California wines thus occupied three of the top five spots in the white flight. When the red wines were tallied, the 1973 Stag's Leap Wine Cellars S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon claimed first place with an average of 14.14, beating the celebrated 1970 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild (14.09) and 1970 Chateau Haut-Brion (13.55). Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello 1971 finished fifth among the reds. Odette Kahn reportedly demanded her scorecard back upon hearing the results, and the French wine industry subsequently banned Spurrier from its prestigious wine-tasting tour for one year. The French press largely ignored or dismissed the story.

• White wine winner: 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay (14.67/20), made by winemaker Mike Grgich; three California whites finished in the top five
• Red wine winner: 1973 Stag's Leap Wine Cellars S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon (14.14/20), beating Chateau Mouton-Rothschild (14.09) and Chateau Haut-Brion (13.55)
• Judge Odette Kahn demanded her scorecard back after the California victories were announced
• The French wine industry banned Spurrier from its national wine-tasting tour for one year in retaliation; the French press largely ignored the story

Although Spurrier had invited many journalists to the event, only one accepted: George M. Taber, a foreign correspondent for Time magazine who was also attending Spurrier's wine school. Taber's four-paragraph article appeared without a byline in the July 7, 1976 issue of Time, buried on page 58 next to an advertisement for Armstrong Tires. In that brief piece, Taber coined the phrase 'Judgment of Paris,' drawing on the ancient Greek myth in which the Trojan prince Paris judged between three goddesses. It was his first-ever wine article. Without Taber's report, the results might have gone entirely unnoticed; the French press was dismissive or silent. Taber later wrote a full-length book on the event, published in 2005 by Scribner. Bella Spurrier, Steven's wife, took the only existing photographs of the tasting. When news reached California, the phone rang off the hook at Stag's Leap Wine Cellars. Jim Barrett, part-owner of Chateau Montelena, offered what became the most iconic quote of the entire episode: 'Not bad for kids from the sticks.'

• Taber was the sole journalist present; his four-paragraph Time article on July 7, 1976 coined the term 'Judgment of Paris' and broke the story to the world
• The article ran without a byline on page 58, next to an Armstrong Tires advertisement; it was Taber's first wine article
• Bella Spurrier took the only existing photographs of the historic tasting
• Chateau Montelena owner Jim Barrett's response became legendary: 'Not bad for kids from the sticks'

The Judgment of Paris triggered a seismic shift in the global wine industry. Investment poured into Napa Valley; within two years, the Rothschild family partnered with Robert Mondavi to launch Opus One, with the first vintage in 1979. Warren Winiarski eventually sold Stag's Leap Wine Cellars for 185 million dollars in 2007. Mike Grgich of Chateau Montelena went on to co-found Grgich Hills in 1977. Before 1976, California had fewer than 350 wineries statewide and fewer than 70 in Napa Valley specifically; by 2021, California had over 6,000 wineries. The tasting's legacy extended far beyond California, inspiring winemakers in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Chile, Argentina, Oregon, and Washington to believe they too could produce world-class wine. It also directly inspired the practice of Old World versus New World blind tastings as a critical tool. The event's cultural footprint grew further with the 2008 film Bottle Shock, starring Alan Rickman as Spurrier, which debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, and George Taber's definitive 2005 book of the same name.

• The Rothschild family partnered with Robert Mondavi in 1978, leading to Opus One's first vintage in 1979, just three years after the tasting
• California grew from fewer than 350 wineries statewide in 1976 to over 6,000 by 2021, a transformation catalyzed in part by the Paris tasting
• The event inspired winemakers worldwide, from Australia and New Zealand to Chile and South Africa, to compete on the global stage
• The 2008 film Bottle Shock (starring Alan Rickman) and George Taber's 2005 book cemented the tasting's place in popular culture; 2026 marks its 50th anniversary

French critics immediately argued that California wines would not age and that a re-tasting in 30 years would vindicate France. The first rematch came just 20 months later, in January 1978, at the Vintners Club in San Francisco, where Spurrier flew in to participate. California wines again performed strongly. At the 10th anniversary in 1986, the French Culinary Institute organized a re-tasting of the reds only, as the whites were considered past their prime. The 30th anniversary in 2006 delivered a decisive verdict: Spurrier organized simultaneous tastings in Napa at COPIA and in London at Berry Bros. and Rudd, with distinguished panels including Jancis Robinson MW, Michael Broadbent MW, and Hugh Johnson at the London venue. In both cities, and in the combined results, the 1971 Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon, which had finished fifth in 1976, took the top position. Four California reds occupied the next four places before the highest-ranked French wine, a 1970 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, appeared in sixth. The re-tastings definitively put to rest the argument that California wines could not age.

• A 1978 rematch at San Francisco's Vintners Club, just 20 months after the original, again favored California wines
• The 10th anniversary tasting in 1986 tested only the reds, as the whites were judged too old
• At the 30th anniversary in 2006, the 1971 Ridge Monte Bello topped the results on both sides of the Atlantic, with four California reds finishing ahead of the best Bordeaux
• The 2006 re-tasting panel in London included Jancis Robinson MW, Michael Broadbent MW, Hugh Johnson, and Michel Bettane