Chateau Mouton Rothschild

In 1853 Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild, wishing to serve his own wine to his prestigious guests, buys Château Brane-Mouton at auction. The estate, at Pauillac in the heart of the Médoc, will henceforth bear his name: Château Mouton Rothschild.

In 1924 Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Baron Nathaniel’s great-grandson, takes the destiny of the estate in hand in 1922. Two years later he insists that all the wine, hitherto delivered to Bordeaux wine merchants in barrels, should be bottled at the château. Also in 1924, Baron Philippe asks Jean Carlu to design the label but the initiative, ahead of its time, is not repeated.

In 1926 the decision to bottle the wine at the château means more storage space is needed there. The spectacular 100-metre-long Grand Chai (Great Barrel Hall), designed by the architect Charles Siclis, is built in 1926.

In 1933 in a spirit of loyalty to the Médoc, in 1933 Baron Philippe acquires a small wine-trading business in Pauillac, destined for a flourishing future under the name by which it is now known, Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA. Among other wines, the company produces and markets Mouton Cadet, created in 1930 and now the world’s leading Bordeaux AOC brand.

In 1945 to celebrate the Allied victory and mark his return to his estates, Baron Philippe asks the artist Philippe Jullian to illustrate the Mouton Rothschild label: the “V” for Victory appears on the bottles, to universal acclaim. Since then, the label for each vintage has been illustrated with the reproduction of an original artwork specially created for Mouton by a contemporary artist.

In 1973 after a long fight by Baron Philippe, Château Mouton Rothschild achieves the status of Premier Cru Classé (Classified First Growth) of which it had been unfairly deprived in the 1855 classification. Following a decree signed by Jacques Chirac, then Minister of Agriculture, Mouton officially joins an elite to which it had belonged de facto for many years.

In 1991 With the 1991 vintage, Château Mouton Rothschild signs the first bottles of Aile d’Argent. This high-quality dry white wine is produced from 7 hectares (20 acres) of vines in the Mouton Rothschild vineyard, planted with white grape varieties in the early 1980s (57% Semillon, 42% Sauvignon, 1% Muscadelle).

In 1993 Baroness Philippine creates a second wine, Le Petit Mouton de Mouton Rothschild, which soon finds its place and its market. Generally made with grapes from selected younger vines, it receives the same care and attention as the First Growth.

In 2003 Château Mouton Rothschild celebrates its 150th anniversary. In a departure from tradition, Baroness Philippine devotes the entire label to her ancestor Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild (1812–1870), who acquired Mouton on 11 May 1853. Baron Nathaniel appears on the label in a photograph of the time, against a background that reproduces part of the deed of purchase of the estate. The document, preciously guarded in the Mouton archives, marks the start of a long love affair between the Rothschilds and fine Bordeaux wines.

In 2006 on 28 September, at an auction organised by Christie’s in Beverly Hills, a lot of twelve bottles of Mouton Rothschild 1945 goes for $290,000, and a lot of six magnums of the same vintage for $345,000. Château Mouton Rothschild 1945 becomes the world’s most expensive wine.

In 2012 a splendid vat room comes into service at Mouton. Designed and built by the scenographer Richard Peduzzi and the Bordeaux architect Bernard Mazières in consultation with Philippe Dhalluin, Managing Director responsible for the the family company’s châteaux, it combines tradition and cutting-edge technology and includes a tasting room overlooking the vines.