Bordeaux (AFP)
Two great figures of Bordeaux, including the co-owner of the famous Angélus, on Monday refuted having influenced the development of the 2012 classification of the great vintages of Saint-Emilion, as accused by three family properties who saw "the sky fall on them. head "after their downgrading.
Hubert de Boüard, 65, and Philippe Castéja, 72, important merchant and owner of Château Trotte Vieille, respond until Tuesday of "illegal taking of interest" before the criminal court of Bordeaux for their alleged involvement, to degrees miscellaneous, in this classification synonymous with significant commercial and financial benefits.
In 2012, the new hierarchy promoted Angélus premier grand cru Classé "A", at the top of the pyramid, and maintained Trotte Vieille "B".
Eight other properties where M. de Boüard played a role (consultant or supervisor) were rewarded (out of 82 distinguished).
However, the two defendants, who risk up to 5 years in prison and a fine of 500,000 euros, were members of the national wine committee of the INAO, attached to the Ministry of Agriculture.
This body validated the classification regulations and their results, drawn up by a commission whose members it had appointed.
Mr. de Boüard was also a member of the Organization for the Defense and Management (ODG) of Saint-Emilion wines, which participated in the development of the specifications with the INAO according to the instruction.
"In no case did I participate", defended Mr. de Boüard, who presented himself as a simple "winegrower", when the president of the court informed him of "continual comings and goings" of e- mails between ODG and INAO.
"At the INAO, I respected the rule from start to finish," added the defendant.
"I abstained from voting on the list of members of the classification committee," he said.
Gray area of the file, the writings of the INAO do not make it possible to know precisely who said or did what at a particular meeting.
Mr. Castéja, less active than his co-defendant according to the investigation but on the same line of defense, assured to have "never participated in the decisions of the INAO" on the classification.
He pointed out his "Médoc roots", another great Bordeaux region, to explain that he "knew very little" about the Saint-Emilion file.
- "Total ecoeurement" -
Daughter of the owner of Corbin-Michotte, one of the complainant castles, Isabelle Boidron testified to the "total disgust" of the three generations of operators when the ax fell in 2012: "60 years of work destroyed for my father", including wine had always been classified.
She claimed to have "quickly" understood that her castle was the victim of "irregularities" and "malice".
An "informal committee" of four people from the ODG, including Mr. de Boüard, exchanged for a year and all were classified or promoted, she assured.
"And now, we are the black sheep of Saint-Emilion," she regretted, citing the annoyances suffered by her family.
The long procedure has seen many twists and turns, in particular in 2019 a rare appeal by the Bordeaux public prosecutor's office - which had requested a dismissal of the decision of referral to correctional.
"A special situation," admitted the president.
The position of the representative of the prosecution, Tuesday, will be particularly scrutinized: will he seek to "save the soldiers of Boüard and Castéja", as the lawyer for the plaintiffs Eric Morain suspects the prosecution of having wanted to do so far?
Mistreated in court, with another - administrative - litigation in progress for nine years, the 2012 classification is also upset internally since the historic châteaux Ausone and Cheval-Blanc, first grands crus classified "A" since the origin, did not not a candidate for 2022. They consider that the rating leaves too much room for "secondary elements" (notoriety, public reception, etc.) versus the "fundamentals" (terroir, tasting, etc.).
Witness called Monday by the civil parties, the Bordeaux oenologist Franck Dubourdieu assured that the renewable classifications like that of Saint-Emilion (every ten years) were "sick" because of "drifts against the backdrop of sometimes enormous financial stakes" .
© 2021 AFP