Cocks & Féret
Encyclopedia
Cocks & Féret or simply Féret, is the colloquial name of a Bordeaux wine
directory originally created by Charles Cocks and Michel-Édouard Féret in 1846, which was published under the name Bordeaux, its Wines and the Claret Country and translated into French and published as the first edition of Bordeaux et ses vins in 1850. It is regarded as the classic reference work on Bordeaux wines, and is to date considered the most comprehensive information source on Bordeaux' wineries.
La Librairie Féret in Bordeaux
in 1812, which became Féret et fils in 1841. In 1846 Michel-Édouard Féret approached Charles Cocks, an English schoolmaster and wine
enthusiast living in Bordeaux since 1840, to publish a directory of wine aimed at his compatriots. At 84 pages containing historical observations and assessment of Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux, its Wines and the Claret Country was published in London that year.
It was not the first publication dealing solely with Bordeaux wines however, in many ways its forerunner is cited as Traite sur les vins du Medoc (1824) by William Franck.
A French translation was proposed by Féret, which led to Guide de l'étranger à Bordeaux et dans la Gironde. Bordeaux, ses environs et ses vins classés par ordre de mérite published in 1850, with further emphasis on classifying wines in order of merit. This directory would be considered the first edition of Bordeaux et ses Vins.
Charles Cocks died in 1854, while the second edition, Bordeaux et ses Vins 2ème édition, appeared in 1868, and the succession of publications provide a useful historical record of the evolution of different properties' and districts' reputations.
Revisions are published to date, usually referred to as "Le Féret", most recently with the 2007 edition of Bordeaux et ses Vins 18ème édition. The English language translations are titled Bordeaux and Its Wines, with the seventeenth edition published in 2004.
, Cocks assessed Château Lafite, Château Latour
, Château Margaux
and Château Haut-Brion
as First Growth
s, while ranking as Second Growths Château Mouton
, Château Léoville (present day Château Léoville-Las Cases
, Château Léoville-Poyferré
and Château Léoville Barton)
Château Rauzan (present day Château Rauzan-Ségla
and Château Rauzan-Gassies
), Château Durfort
, Château Gruaud-Larose
, Château Lascombes
and Château Gorse (present day Château Brane-Cantenac
).
Bordeaux wine
A Bordeaux wine is any wine produced in the Bordeaux region of France. Average vintages produce over 700 million bottles of Bordeaux wine, ranging from large quantities of everyday table wine, to some of the most expensive and prestigious wines in the world...
directory originally created by Charles Cocks and Michel-Édouard Féret in 1846, which was published under the name Bordeaux, its Wines and the Claret Country and translated into French and published as the first edition of Bordeaux et ses vins in 1850. It is regarded as the classic reference work on Bordeaux wines, and is to date considered the most comprehensive information source on Bordeaux' wineries.
History
Jean-Baptiste Féret founded the publishing housePublishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
La Librairie Féret in Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
in 1812, which became Féret et fils in 1841. In 1846 Michel-Édouard Féret approached Charles Cocks, an English schoolmaster and wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
enthusiast living in Bordeaux since 1840, to publish a directory of wine aimed at his compatriots. At 84 pages containing historical observations and assessment of Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux, its Wines and the Claret Country was published in London that year.
It was not the first publication dealing solely with Bordeaux wines however, in many ways its forerunner is cited as Traite sur les vins du Medoc (1824) by William Franck.
A French translation was proposed by Féret, which led to Guide de l'étranger à Bordeaux et dans la Gironde. Bordeaux, ses environs et ses vins classés par ordre de mérite published in 1850, with further emphasis on classifying wines in order of merit. This directory would be considered the first edition of Bordeaux et ses Vins.
Charles Cocks died in 1854, while the second edition, Bordeaux et ses Vins 2ème édition, appeared in 1868, and the succession of publications provide a useful historical record of the evolution of different properties' and districts' reputations.
Revisions are published to date, usually referred to as "Le Féret", most recently with the 2007 edition of Bordeaux et ses Vins 18ème édition. The English language translations are titled Bordeaux and Its Wines, with the seventeenth edition published in 2004.
Early classification
Nearly a decade before the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855
The Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 resulted from the 1855 Exposition Universelle de Paris, when Emperor Napoleon III requested a classification system for France's best Bordeaux wines which were to be on display for visitors from around the world...
, Cocks assessed Château Lafite, Château Latour
Château Latour
Château Latour is a French wine estate, rated as a First Growth under the 1855 Bordeaux Classification. Latour lies at the very southeastern tip of the commune of Pauillac in the Médoc region to the north-west of Bordeaux, at its border with Saint-Julien, and only a few hundred metres from the...
, Château Margaux
Château Margaux
Château Margaux, archaically La Mothe de Margaux, is a wine estate of Bordeaux wine, and was one of four wines to achieve Premier cru status in the Bordeaux Classification of 1855. The estate's best wines are very expensive...
and Château Haut-Brion
Château Haut-Brion
Château Haut-Brion is a French wine, rated a Premier Cru Classé , produced in the Gironde region. It differs from the other wines on the list in its geographic location in the north of the wine-growing region of Graves...
as First Growth
First Growth
First Growth status refers to a classification of wines primarily from the Bordeaux region of France.-Bordeaux reds:The need for a classification of the best Bordeaux wines arose for the 1855 Exposition Universelle de Paris. The result was the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, a list...
s, while ranking as Second Growths Château Mouton
Château Mouton Rothschild
Château Mouton Rothschild is a wine estate located in the village of Pauillac in the Médoc, 50 km north-west of the city of Bordeaux, France. Its red wine of the same name is regarded as one of the world's greatest clarets. Originally known as Château Brane-Mouton it was renamed by Nathaniel...
, Château Léoville (present day Château Léoville-Las Cases
Château Léoville-Las Cases
Château Léoville-Las Cases is a winery in the Saint-Julien appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. Château Léoville-Las Cases is also the name of the red wine produced by this property...
, Château Léoville-Poyferré
Château Léoville-Poyferré
Château Léoville-Poyferré is a winery in the Saint-Julien appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. Château Léoville-Poyferré is also the name of the red wine produced by this property...
and Château Léoville Barton)
Château Rauzan (present day Château Rauzan-Ségla
Château Rauzan-Ségla
Château Rauzan-Ségla, or Château Rausan-Ségla, is a winery in the Margaux appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. Château Rauzan-Ségla is also the name of the red wine produced by this property. The wine produced here was classified as one of fifteen Deuxièmes Crus in the original...
and Château Rauzan-Gassies
Château Rauzan-Gassies
Château Rauzan-Gassies is a winery in the Margaux appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. Château Rauzan-Gassies is also the name of the red wine produced by this property...
), Château Durfort
Château Durfort-Vivens
Château Durfort-Vivens is a winery in the Margaux appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. It is also the name of the red wine produced by this property...
, Château Gruaud-Larose
Château Gruaud-Larose
Château Gruaud-Larose is a winery in the Saint-Julien appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. It is also the name of the red wine produced by this property...
, Château Lascombes
Château Lascombes
Château Lascombes is a winery in the Margaux appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. The wine produced here was classified as one of fifteen Seconds Crus in the original Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855...
and Château Gorse (present day Château Brane-Cantenac
Château Brane-Cantenac
Château Brane-Cantenac is a winery in the Margaux appellation of the Bordeaux wine region of France. The wine produced here was classified as one of fifteen Deuxièmes Crus in the original Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855....
).