Page 6 - Wine Journal
Among the top Bordeaux chateaux, Mouton Rothschild has a unique tradition. Every year, it releases a newly commissioned artwork as its label for the vintage. Part of this traces to the love of art by the owners of this prestigious property, part of it is attributed to the idea of starting afresh each year with a blank slate (see bottle image without the artwork and the newly released label for the 2018 vintage).
The owners of Château Mouton Rothschild, Philippe Sereys de Rothschild, Camille Sereys de Rothschild and Julien de Beaumarchais de Rothschild, gave the commission to the renowned Chinese artist Xu Bing. He pioneered his own style of calligraphy be presenting symbols and images in the traditional Chinese characters, also called "square word" by Chinese.
The label artwork of the 2018 vintage of Château Mouton Rothschild is titled "Mouton Rothschild". How original, one might ask. The artwork illustrates “Mouton Rothschild” in Xu’s signature “Square Word Calligraphy,”
"A wine that genuinely belongs among the elite Saint-Émilions", thus wrote Neal Martin when he awarded Château Figeac 2016 the top score - 100 points.
Over the past decade, 4 vintages are on the short list of Bordeaux collectors' must-buys: 2009, 2010, 2015 & 2016. For the discerning buyers, Château Figeac is a name few would have missed. These are the ratings given to the 4 top vintages of Figeac by wine critics:
- Château Figeac 2009 (94, Robert Parker Jr/Neal Martin)
- Château Figeac 2010 (97, Neal Martin/Lisa Perrotti-Brown)
- Château Figeac 2015 (97+, Neal Martin/Lisa Perrotti-Brown)
- Château Figeac 2016 (100, Neal Martin)
As a Thanksgiving special, we present you an offer direct from Château Figeac: a custom-made vertical selection mix containing one bottle each of the top 4 vintages. See picture below:
For those who need a refresher: Château Figeac is considered one of the jewels of the picturesque Saint-Émilion appellation. This unique Right Bank producer yields
If you were to talk to any wine collector who has been buying wine for decades, from time to time you would hear stories about a bottle of Château Lafite Rothschild being acquired for under $80. That level of pricing, unfortunately, is unlikely to happen again in our life time, especially after a former Fed chairperson was just nominated to be the next Treasury Secretary by President-Elect Biden. The stock market is at an all-time high. Inflation - while conveniently absent from CPI numbers - is everywhere if you happen to buy food, medicine, education, or fine wine.
Don't let that general rise in price of everything we consume lead you to conclude that you can't find top wine for bargain price. We bring you two sub-$25 wines in this month's selection: Château Goubau 2015 and L'Hêtre 2017. These two wines are so new that most wine critics have not found the time to rate them, except Julia Harding MW who writes for jancisborinson.com. Her tasting
Last weekend, a leading wine auction house sold a special treasure case presented by Château Montrose. The winning bid was $24,000.
Here is the case pictured inside the cellar of Montrose (right).
Montrose, the famed estate in Saint-Estèphe, was founded in 1815, and classified as Second Growth in the 1855 Classification of Médoc. The current family owner since 2006, the Bouygues, wanted to mark the 200th anniversary with a thoughtful gift to the collectors. They selected 3 exceptional vintages surrounding the bicentenary year: 2014, 2015, 2016, presented in 2 litre bottles (larger format = no tariffs), encased in a handmade, custom-designed work of art.
With a treasure box like this. these are the additional perks only the family owner can offer:
- a private tour of Château Montrose
- a private dinner at the chateau hosted by the owner or her sales director
- an overnight stay for 4 guests at the estate in Saint-Estèphe
Other thoughtful inclusions in this case for a true
Château d’Yquem was almost English. During the Middle Ages, in fact, the estate belonged to the King of England, who was also Duke of Aquitaine at the time. In 1453, southwest France was once again brought under the dominion of the French crown by Charles VII and has stayed French ever since. A century and a half later, in 1593, a descendent of a local noble family, Jacques Sauvage, was given feudal tenure over Yquem. The Gironde department archives, as well as those of the château, show that special winegrowing practices and late harvesting already existed at this time. A few years later, the Sauvage family built the château and patiently set about constituting the present-day vineyard, plot by plot. The family became full owners of Yquem in 1711, during the reign of Louis XIV (by which time they had received noble status). In 1785, Françoise Joséphine de Sauvage d’Yquem married Count Louis Amédée de Lur-Saluces. Three years later, in 1788, the count died after a riding accident. His young
"Do wine drinkers genuinely seek pleasure above all?"
Award-winning author and contributing editor to the Decanter magazine, Andrew Jefford, asked in the recent issue of August 2020. What a timely question! Do you?
If you are a hedonist wine drinker, here is a new release for you: a custom-made original wood case of 3 top vintages of Château Mouton Rothschild - 2005, 2009 & 2010.
These are the ratings by wine critics of the 3 vintages of Mouton:
Château Mouton Rothschild 2005 (99/100, Robert Parker Jr, Antonio Galloni)
Château Mouton Rothschild 2009 (99/99, Robert Parker Jr, Lisa Perrotti-Brown)
Château Mouton Rothschild 2010 (98/99, Neal Martin, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker Jr)
Tasting Notes
Château Mouton Rothschild 2005 - "The 2005 Mouton-Rothschild has developed magnificently, and is even better than I remember. The final blend was 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc. Stunning notes of crème de cassis, melted asphalt, roasted espresso and cedarwood
Who doesn't fall in love with the Tuscan sun? When you are far from Tuscany, a Super Tuscan is the next best thing to savor over the memory you may have.
New Release: Solaia 2017
Here is the latest release from Solaia, an iconic brand of the Antinori family from Italy. Solaia is one of the original and top-rated, "Super Tuscans," a term used to describe red wines made from Tuscany that may include the use of non-indigenous grapes such as Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah.
The Antinori family has been making wine for over six hundred years. The qualities of tradition, passion, and instinct have made Antinori one of the leading Italian producers of fine wines. Marchesi Antinori's first vintage of this wine was 1978. Solaia is heralded as a defining wine to Italy -- the ultimate, "Super Tuscan" alongside Sassicaia or Ornellaia. Solaia 2017 is offered at $259/bt.
Tasting Notes:
"Just bottled, the 2017 Solaia is naturally going to need time to come together. Even in the
This morning, Château Latour released a small quantity of its top-rated vintage of 2009. For collectors and connoisseurs, such ex-chateau release of the top vintage is the most reliable way to acquire 100 pointers. The wine is being prepared by the chateau to leave its cellar for the first time after aging in its vaulted cellar under perfect conditions for 10 years. You wouldn't find a better kept bottle anywhere else in the world. For an inside view of Château Latour's cellar, here is a picture I took on my last trip.
When the 2009 vintage was first released, Robert Parker Jr called it "a monumental wine from a monumental vintage in the Médoc, this is our children's children's children's elixir". We all love our children. But I plan to open one of the bottles in another 5-10 years, just so I can be sure of the quality of what I will be leaving behind for the children and their children one day. :-)
Tasting Notes:
"A blend of 91.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8.7%
Let the Terroir Shine ...
A year ago, I worked with my local Newport Beach chapter of La Chaïne de Rotisseurs to present a dinner prepared by our local Michelin-starred chef, Craig Strong, featuring the wine from Clos du Clocher.
Most of the gourmet in attendance had never heard of the wine before. That was no surprise. Clos du Clocher, in my view, is one of the best hidden value hailing from Pomerol, the smallest village in the Bordeaux area.
Here's what I told the audience at dinner:
"Imagine you decide to take a walk in the center of Pomerol plateau, to really get a feel for the land. Starting at Château Trotanoy, in less than 5 minutes, you would pass Le Pin. Another 5 minutes, you walk past Clos du Clocher. Make a left turn, in 9 minutes, you reach Vieux Château Certan. Another 10 minutes, you reach Château Pétrus. Along the way, you will see Château Beauregard, Petit Village, La Conseillante, L'Évangile on your right. Further in the
It isn't every day you hear a lady calling herself "a heartless cow" for not giving 100 points to Château Margaux 2015 (Paul Pontelllier's last vintage), like wine critic Lisa Perrotti-Brown just did yesterday. To make up for her past hesitancy, maybe, she went on to say this about Château L'Eglise Client 2019 (Denis Durantou's last vintage):
"This L’Eglise Clinet is difficult to review, not because it is Durantou’s last wine, but because beyond all the quality factors, this wine so clearly, evocatively tells a story of a man’s life and achievements like very, very few wines can. How many points is that worth? For me, it’s off the scale."
That statement about Denis Durantou's winemaking prowess should not come as surprise to subscribers of Laguna Cellar Wine of the Month Selections.
Just in the past six months, we have featured Denis Durantou's wine twice, once before we knew how dire his health conditions were, once 10 days after his premature passing.
I am a big fan of Denis
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Château Pontet-Canet 2019Special Price $124.85 Average US Price $141.00 -
La Dame de Montrose 2019Special Price $38.85 Average US Price $56.00 -
