Château Mouton Rothschild

Nathaniel de Rothschild, a member of the English branch of the banking family, acquired Château Brane-Mouton at auction in 1853 and immediately renamed it Château Mouton Rothschild. The estate remained largely overlooked by its owners until Baron Philippe de Rothschild assumed control in 1922. During his 65-year tenure, Philippe changed the estate's operations by introducing château bottling in 1924, a decision that shifted control and responsibility from merchants back to the producers. After his death in 1988, his daughter Philippine de Rothschild managed the property until 2014. It is currently owned by her children, Camille Sereys de Rothschild, Philippe Sereys de Rothschild, and Julien de Beaumarchais de Rothschild, under the family company Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA.

The vineyard covers 82 hectares in the northern part of the Pauillac appellation, situated on a hillock of deep gravel soils that provide natural drainage and sun exposure. These gravelly mounds, once referred to as mottes or mothons, are the origin of the estate's name. Cabernet Sauvignon is the primary variety, making up approximately 80 percent of the plantings, supplemented by Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. In 2013, the estate inaugurated a new gravity-fed vat house featuring oak vats with transparent staves, allowing winemakers to monitor the fermentation process. Jean-Emmanuel Danjoy currently serves as the technical director, overseeing a winemaking process that prioritizes manual harvesting and plot-by-plot vinification.

Château Mouton Rothschild is best known for its status as a First Growth, a classification achieved in 1973 following decades of lobbying by Baron Philippe. This remains the only significant change ever made to the 1855 Bordeaux classification. The estate is also recognized for its tradition of commissioning a different artist to design the label for each vintage, a practice that began in 1945 with the V for Victory label. In addition to the Grand Vin, the property produces a second red wine called Le Petit Mouton de Mouton Rothschild and a dry white wine named Aile d'Argent. The estate's motto was updated upon its reclassification to reflect its position at the top of the Bordeaux hierarchy.