2002 Château Mouton Rothschild

A cooler vintage brought power, structure, and minerality to Bordeaux. Mouton Rothschild’s meticulous winemaking delivered a wine of exceptional depth and longevity.

Nature's rollercoaster couldn't derail Mouton. Spring drowned in puddles, summer scorched the vines, and September rains threatened to spoil the party. Yet, through meticulous grape selection, Mouton persevered.

This vintage delivers a true Pauillac prizefighter. Expect dark fruit punches, muscular tannins, and surprising longevity. Not legendary, but a testament to winemaking prowess in a challenging year.

Bonus: Dutch maestro Karel Appel's label debut adds artistic flair to this resilient vintage.

A warm and consistent growing season yielded ripe and structured wines. Château Mouton Rothschild captured the vintage with its hallmark power and elegance.

The estate's deep gravel soils and elevated plateau position captured perfect ripeness through the balanced growing season, particularly in the historic parcels facing the Gironde. Late summer conditions allowed precise harvest timing across the château's prime sites. The wine shows intense cassis and cedar notes while delivering Mouton's signature power and noble Pauillac structure.

The 2001 vintage in Bordeaux saw a cooler growing season with moderate rainfall, producing wines of finesse and balance rather than power. At Mouton Rothschild, meticulous vineyard care and precise winemaking highlighted the gravelly soils and Cabernet Sauvignon dominance. The result is a wine of great elegance, showing the estate’s signature depth and aging ability.

Initially underestimated, 2002 was saved by an excellent Indian summer. Late-season warmth allowed for extended ripening, particularly benefiting Cabernet Sauvignon. Mouton's 2002 exhibits surprising depth and concentration, with elegant tannins, fresh acidity, and a balance of dark fruit and subtle oak influences. It's a testament to Mouton's ability to excel even in challenging years.

The 2002 features artwork by, Ilya Kabakov, titled Okho.

An exceptionally hot and dry year across Europe. The heat wave resulted in early ripening and harvest. Mouton's 2003 is characterized by its intense concentration, ripe fruit flavors, and higher-than-usual alcohol content. Despite the challenging conditions, the wine maintains balance and showcases the power of Pauillac, with rich tannins and a long finish. It's a unique expression of an atypical Bordeaux vintage.

The 2003 vintage celebrates Mouton's 150 anniversary, depicting Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild along with the deed of purchase.

Following the heat of 2003, 2004 returned to more classic Bordeaux conditions. A cool August was offset by a warm, dry September, allowing for steady ripening. Mouton's 2004 is elegant and well-balanced, with typical Pauillac characteristics of cassis, cedar, and tobacco. The wine shows good structure with refined tannins, suggesting excellent aging potential. It's considered a "drinker's vintage," offering accessibility earlier than some more robust years.

The artwork of the 2004 vintage was created by HRH King Charles III, (then Prince of Wales), Celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale.

The estate's deep gravel soils and elevated plateau position captured perfect ripeness during the balanced growing season, particularly in the historic parcels facing the Gironde. The château's old vine Cabernet Sauvignon reached ideal maturity through steady late summer conditions. The wine delivers profound depth with cassis and graphite notes, showing Mouton's signature power framed by noble Pauillac structure.

Mouton Rothschild 2008 Vintage Callout: A cool, damp summer required patience, but September and October brought crucial warmth and dry conditions to Pauillac. Mouton's well-draining soils proved vital during the sporadic summer rains. The wine balances power with precision, showing dark fruits, pencil lead, and vibrant acidity.

Mouton Rothschild 2009 Vintage Callout: Summer brought intense heat but Mouton's deep gravel soils maintained crucial water reserves. Perfect autumn conditions allowed extended hanging time on the Pauillac plateau. The wine shows opulent black fruits, spice, and minerals with perfectly ripe tannins and remarkable freshness.

Cool and late-ripening conditions in 2010 produced structured and age-worthy wines. Château Mouton Rothschild crafted a wine of intensity and finesse.

The estate's elevated plateau and deep gravel soils provided essential drainage and water regulation during the warm early season, particularly benefiting old vine Cabernet Sauvignon. The château's proximity to the Gironde estuary helped moderate temperatures through harvest. The wine shows concentrated dark fruits and cedar notes while maintaining Mouton's signature power and aristocratic structure.

Chateau Mouton Rothschild's 2014 vintage, featuring artwork dedicated to the late Baroness Phillipine de Rothschild by English Pop-Artist David Hockney, highlights the estate's resilience through hardships. After a challenging summer, September brought warm, dry weather that extended through October, allowing for a late harvest under ideal conditions. The result is a classic Mouton, combining freshness and precision with the estate's characteristic power and complexity.

The 2015 vintage from Chateau Mouton Rothschild, adorned with artwork and a note "Mouton ne change" (Mouton does not chage) by German painter and photographer Gerhard Richter, is a brilliant testiment to Mouton's slogan and way of operating. The growing season began with a mild spring, followed by a hot, dry summer that concentrated flavors, with timely August rains refreshing the vines. The resulting legendary wine combines the richness of the vintage with Mouton's signature opulence and structure, harvested during a perfect Indian summer.

The 2016 vintage in Bordeaux is celebrated for its near-perfect conditions, with a wet spring followed by a warm, dry summer that delivered ideal ripeness. Mouton Rothschild's deep gravel terroir yielded a wine of exceptional concentration, freshness, and structure. Widely regarded as one of the estate's finest modern vintages, it is built for decades of aging.

The historic Pauillac plateau's deep gravel soils protected First Growth parcels from April frost, while summer's moderate temperatures allowed steady ripening. Maritime influences from the Gironde provided crucial temperature regulation through the growing season. The wine shows Mouton's characteristic opulence with cassis intensity and profound mineral depth reflecting the vintage's natural concentration.

Chateau Mouton Rothschild's 2018 offering, featuring label artwork by Chinese artist Xu Bing, is a testament to the estate's ingenuity. The year began with challenging spring conditions, followed by intense summer heat and drought, requiring expert vineyard management throughout the season. The team's expertise shone through in the harvest, producing a wine of exceptional power and freshness that captures the intensity of this dramatic vintage.

The estate's sun-exposed gravel slopes amplified summer warmth, while cooling Atlantic breezes moderated afternoon temperatures across Pauillac's elevated plateau. The old-vine Cabernet Sauvignon demonstrated remarkable resilience through heat spikes, drawing deeply from the limestone-clay subsoils. The wine reveals profound blackberry, cedar, and graphite notes with remarkable tension between power and precision.

Mouton's ancient gravel soils moderated an intensely warm, dry spring that accelerated flowering and veraison across Pauillac. Low summer rainfall stressed the vines, concentrating flavors while maintaining freshness from cool nights and the estate's proximity to the Gironde. The wine displays powerful cassis and graphite notes, with pronounced Cabernet Sauvignon structure framed by precise tannins and Grand Vin depth.

The estate's gravelly plateau escaped the worst of spring frost, while proximity to the Gironde estuary moderated temperature swings through summer's irregular rains. Strategic crop thinning and the natural drainage of Mouton's deep gravel soils proved crucial during the humid season. The Cabernet Sauvignon from the highest parcels achieved classical ripeness, delivering precision and aromatic depth.