Château Mouton Rothschild Pauillac 1er Cru Classé 2019

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Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild acquired the château in 1853, but the "Mouton" legend truly began in 1922, with Baron Philippe de Rothschild. At 21 years old and driven by ambitions full of originality, he decided to devote his life to forging an identity and worldwide reputation for the wine, which, from its very beginnings, shone on the image of Bordeaux as a whole. In 1924, faced with the numerous deviations occurring among Bordeaux merchants, the owner inaugurated "bottling entirely at the château." In 1945, to celebrate the Liberation, the "V" for Victory crowned the vintage label, an initiative that would mark the beginning of a series of original works created each year by famous painters. In 1973, while no changes had ever been made to the 1855 classification, Baron Philippe obtained—not without difficulty—a revision, and Mouton officially joined the elite of Bordeaux's Premiers Grands Crus Classés. Upon his death in 1988, his daughter Philippine took over the reins, assisted by an outstanding technical team, and successfully pursued her father's projects until his death in 2014. Today, these three children, Camille Sereys de Rothschild, Philippe Sereys de Rothschild, and Julien de Beaumarchais de Rothschild, jointly manage the estate.

The grand vin of Château Mouton-Rothschild comes from the finest vines planted on the "Plateau de Mouton," part of the property's 90 hectares. Their root systems are well-suited to anchoring themselves in particularly deep gravelly soils. In keeping with Pauillac, Cabernet Sauvignon largely dominates the blend. Depending on the vintage, up to 80% of the grapes can be found, complemented by Merlot and a touch of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The harvest is, of course, carried out by hand. Each berry is carefully combed in the vineyard and then in the winery. The grapes, once destemmed, are transferred to vats without passing through the press. Each vat is a different size, corresponding to the château's various plots. The aging process, which lasts for around twenty months, is carried out in the purest Médoc tradition, entirely in new barrels, with topping up and fining with egg white to stabilize the wine by precipitating the remaining solid particles to the bottom of the barrel. Most vintages offer opulence, richness, and depth, enhanced by a remarkable aromatic complexity ranging from blackcurrant to roasted coffee, mint, and fine leather. Château Mouton-Rothschild's unique feature, if it's worth mentioning, is that it collaborates with an artist each year to design a unique label for its wine. You can find labels created by Chagall, Braque, Picasso, Dali, Francis Bacon, and even Prince Charles of England!