Description

The Paris Wine Tasting of 1976, also known as the Judgment of Paris, was a wine competition, to commemorate the United States Bicentennial, organized in Paris on 24 May 1976 by Steven Spurrier, a British wine merchant, and his American colleague, Patricia Gallagher, in which French oenophiles participated in two blind tasting comparisons: one of top-quality Chardonnays and another of red wines. A Napa County wine was 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 wines and believed the California wines would not be favored by the judges.