Nobody wants to be second best, play second fiddle, or be second in command. But when it comes to Bordeaux, second is still pretty darn good.

You may have heard the term "second wine," a phrase usually associated with the slightly lesser wines produced by the great Châteaux in Bordeaux. What most people don’t realize, however, is that the term dates back to the 19th Century and originated for slightly different reasons than those it serves today.

In the late 1800s, phylloxera made its deadly crawl thorough Europe, invisibly attacking the vineyards from the root. The 1855 Bordeaux classification had staked the reputation of the best châteaux, and the quality of their wines was waning. Comte Frédéric Alexis Louis Pillet-Will, owner of Château Margaux from 1879 to 1911, is credited with the idea of the “second wine.”

Pillet-Will, then Director of the Bank of France, had invested heavily in Margaux after acquiring it, and fearing damage to his reputation and that of Margaux, began selling the wines in lots designated "grand vin" and "second vin," intending a distinction between the estate’s finest and lesser wines.

Most highly-ranked châteaux followed, eventually assigning distinct names to avoid confusion. Hence, Pavillon Rouge du Châteaux Margaux, Les Forts de Latour, Carruades de Lafite and so on. The idea continues, but the selection of the second wine is now drawn from young vines, less successful plots in a given vintage and lots that do not contribute positively to the "grand vin."

Have a "second wine" you love? Share it with the crowd below!