(Wine-Searcher) - Médoc producers agree to another attempt to reclassify their châteaux, after several previous failures.

Bordeaux’s cru bourgeois wineries have announced an ambitious project to launch a new classification, seven years after the last attempt dissolved in acrimony and lawsuits.

The latest attempt to bring in a classification system for the 250-plus properties currently holding cru bourgeois status comes after five years of strict quality control and tireless promotion under the banner of the Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc.

"On September 16, we took a blind vote with our members during an extraordinary general meeting; there were 78.1 percent 'yes' votes," said Frédérique Dutheillet de Lamothe, director of the alliance.

Their goal is to have the new classification in place by the time the 2014 vintage hits the stores, which means 2016 – just two years away, which Dutheillet de Lamothe admits is an ambitious target for a group with something of a history of disagreement.

But rather than demonstrating dissension in the alliance, the 'Non' votes appear to express caution.

"This means we still have some work to do to reassure everyone. It's not that they’re against it, but they’re worried," said Dutheillet de Lamothe.

Their trepidation is understandable. The 2003 Crus Bourgeois Classification, which included three tiers of quality – cru bourgeois, cru bourgeois supérieur and cru bourgeois exceptionnel – took years to put in place and was well received by consumers and the trade. It not only eliminated the misuse of the term "cru bourgeois" but it validated an unofficial classification that had already existed for centuries. Unfortunately, the classification fell apart amid disappointment, infighting and legal action, and was finally cancelled by the courts in 2007.

Frédèric de Luze, négociant and owner of cru bourgeois Château Paveil de Luze, emerged as the leader of the Médoc growers, and has worked tirelessly to create a new, reliable image for the crus bourgeois. They regrouped as the Alliance des Crus Bourgeois, and put in place an annual, single-tier quality label, scrupulously controlled by an impartial organization without direct ties to the wine business. Unfortunately, the alliance lost some of its luster when the most prestigious châteaux deserted, unwilling to share the same status as less-illustrious estates.