Michelin launches 'Grapes' wine distinction
- Michelin said on December 2, 2025, that it will launch MICHELIN Grapes in 2026, a new one-to-three-tier rating for wine producers. - The first selections will cover Burgundy and the Bordeaux area, with inspectors grading estates on five criteria from vineyard work to visitor experience. - The move extends Michelin beyond Stars and hotel Keys into wine tourism and producer rankings. (guide.michelin.com)
Michelin is moving into wine estates, saying it will launch a new MICHELIN Grapes distinction in 2026 for producers in Burgundy and the Bordeaux area. (guide.michelin.com) (michelin.com) The company announced the program on December 2, 2025, and said wineries will receive one, two or three Grapes, plus a broader MICHELIN-selected category for producers listed without a Grape distinction. (michelin.com) (guide.michelin.com) Michelin said inspectors will judge estates on five criteria: viticulture, winemaking mastery, how the wine expresses its region, consistency over time, and the quality of the visitor experience. (guide.michelin.com) (michelin.com) That is a shift from Michelin’s older wine coverage, which focused on restaurant wine lists and sommeliers rather than rating vineyards and estates as destinations in their own right. Michelin introduced a wine pictogram in 2004 and a Sommelier Award in 2019. (guide.michelin.com) (winebusiness.com) Michelin is also tying the new badge to travel. Its announcement says the guide wants to recognize not just bottles, but the people, places and hospitality around wine production. (guide.michelin.com) (news.michelin.co.uk) The launch fits a broader expansion of the Michelin brand. Restaurant Stars date to 1926, and Michelin added hotel Keys in 2024 before extending the system again to wineries. (guide.michelin.com) (michelin.com) Industry coverage has treated the move as a potential new marketing tool for wine regions because Burgundy and Bordeaux are global benchmarks and Michelin’s rankings already shape travel demand. (thedrinksbusiness.com) (businesstraveller.com) Michelin has not yet published the first winners. For now, the story is that one of travel’s best-known arbiters is preparing to score wineries the way it already scores restaurants and hotels. (guide.michelin.com 1) (guide.michelin.com 2)
