The estate as we know it today was birthed in 1853 when Nathaniel de Rothschild purchased it from Isaac Thuret when it was still known as Brane Mouton. Following the custom of his day, Rothschild renamed the property after himself keeping a portion of the original name, forming Mouton Rothschild.
Mouton Rothschild would not see any dramatic changes until the arrival of Baron Philippe de Rothschild in 1922. A highly revered winegrower, Philippe declassified fruit of a lower quality for an entirely different wine. He labelled it Carruades de Mouton and later Mouton Cadet, the latter of which has since become one of the best-selling red wines in the world.
Philippe’s fondness for art extends to the labels of his wine — in the mid-1940s he came up with the idea of having each year’s label designed by a famous artist of the day, which included illustrious figures by the likes of Salvador Dali, Francis Bacon, Picasso, and Andy Warhol.
The vineyard comprises over 70 hectares of mainly gravel-based soils planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot. Fruit is handpicked and fermented in barrels, then aged in new oak for about 22 months prior to bottling. The estate’s annual output is approximately 25,000 to 30,000 cases split between the grand vin and its second wine Le Petit Mouton, established in 1993.
Mouton Rothschild typically displays immense appeal in its youth with vibrant and powerful characteristics evoking red and black fruits, tobacco leaf and graphite. Bottle aging rewards the drinker with extraordinary complexity coupled with great persistency on the finish.
This vertical collection offers the collector one bottle of each of Mouton Rothschild’s vintages from 1945 to 2010, as well as a second bottle from 1978 and 1993.
