Mouton Rothschild Philippe Dhaullin
Chateau Mouton Rothschild is on a roll. Wildly inconsistent since the historic 1982 vintage, this First Growth estate has been back on track since they hired Philippe Dhalluin. 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009 and now 2010 Mouton Rothschild are exhilarating, flamboyant wines with Mouton character. Each vintage shows an increase in quality over the previous vintage, which is what people need to focus on. After Dhalluin made the wine of the vintage in 2006, he was given more control to lower yields, production and to make improvements in the cellars and wine making facilities. The effects of these changes are clearly tasted in the wines of Mouton Rothschild as well. But you can really sense it in 2010 Mouton Rothschild!
Having tasted 2010 Mouton Rothschild in April, I was lucky to have to opportunity to retaste the wine in July. This classic Left Bank wine is even better now than it was a few months ago. 2010 Mouton Rothschild is a future legendary Bordeaux wine. Future generations of wine lovers will hold it in the same high esteem we currently view the 1986, 1982 and perhaps even the 1961!
2010 Mouton Rothschild – Inky in color, this sublime Pauillac offers an explosive nose filled with coffee, Asian spice, crème de cassis, tobacco, pepper and toasty oak that is dense, plush, rich, opulent and intense. With an exotic leaning, this stunning, mouth coating Bordeaux wine feels like pure silk and velvet meshed with power. 98-100 Pts
2010 Le Petit de Mouton Rothschild – Oak, spice and blackberry aromas lead to a medium/full bodied soft textured, coffee, cassis and dark berry finish. 90-91 Pts
2010 Clerc Milion – Deeply colored, the wine opens with cassis, earth, forest floor and plum aromas. Round and elegant in nature, this Pauillac ends with polished black and red fruits. 91-93 Pts
2010 d’Armailhac – Jammy dark berries, plum, coffee and mushroom scents open this sweet, fresh, plummy, full bodied wine. The finish ends with sweet, roasted blackberries. 91-93 Pts
Along with the 2010 Bordeaux vintage tasting, we also took a look back at the Cabernet Sauvignon dominated 1996 vintage for the entire Mouton Rothchild lineup of wines.
Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Bordeaux Wine
1996 Mouton Rothschild – From a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the wine opens with tobacco, cigar box, crème de cassis, minerality, damp earth, fennel, smoke, and an array spice box aromas. Full bodied and powerful, this Bordeaux wine awards you with a juicy, rich mouthful of fresh, ripe cabernet sauvignon. The long finish ends with a blast of blackberry, spice and black cherry. While already showing well, this is only going to gain additional complexity and more layers of texture with time. 96 Pts
1996 Chateau Clerc Milon – From a blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, and 12% Cabernet Franc, this fully mature Pauillac displayed cassis, tobacco and truffle in the aromas. With a medium body, this Pauillac ended with with sweet, black cherries and spice flavors. . This Bordeaux wine is fully mature. There is no reason to age it any longer as it will not improve. 89 Pts
1996 Chateau d’Armailhac – Dark red tea in color, with strawberry and earthy aromas, this medium bodied Pauillac ends with green peppercorn and cherry flavors. This Bordeaux wine is past fully mature. 85 Pts
2 Comments
Gregor… None of the 89 Mouton Rothschild wines are strong. d’Armailhac was a small, not very expensive wine at the time. It was not made to age. I think it was at its best by 10.
However, the 2010 d’Armailhac and 2009 d’Armailhac are both great wines that will age and evolve.
Had a 5 Litre of d’Armailhac 1989 some months ago. It was totally over past fully mature. A joke. How can a wine under the same ownership be made so badly.