Chateau Mouton Rothschild Premier Cru Classe, Pauillac 1998

Composed of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc.

The 1998 Mouton Rothschild is deep garnet-brick in colour with lovely crème de cassis, dried roses, hoisin and baking spice notes with underlying notions of dried cherries and mulberries plus touches of wood smoke, incense and forest floor. Medium to full-bodied and packed with rich fruit framed by firm, chewy tannins, it is stacked with complex, evolving flavours and finishes with incredibly long-lasting perfumed notes. According to winemaker Philippe Dhalluin, this needs about three hours of decanting at this stage. I simply love the place this wine is in right now, possessing plenty of mature, tertiary characters yet still sporting bags of fruit. It won’t be fading anytime soon either and should cellar nicely for 20-25+ more years.

Drink 2018 - 2043

Like many of its peers, the 1998 has filled out spectacularly. Now, in the bottle, this opaque black/purple-coloured offering has increased in stature, richness, and size. A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc 57% of the production was utilised), it is an extremely powerful, super-concentrated wine offering notes of roasted espresso, creme de cassis, smoke, new saddle leather, graphite, and liquorice. It is massive, with awesome concentration, mouth-searing tannin levels, and a saturated flavour profile that grips the mouth with considerable intensity. This is a 50-year Mouton, but patience will be required as it will not be close to drinkability for at least a decade.

Drink 2012 - 2050

A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc, the 1998 Château Mouton Rothschild comes from a vintage that saw beautiful early season weather but rain in September and October that made the vintage more complicated for the Médoc and Graves region. A more medium to full-bodied effort, it has terrific complexity in its red and black currant fruits and smoked tobacco, loamy earth, spice box, and chocolate. Balanced, elegant, and silky on the palate, its oak is perfectly integrated, has fine tannins, and is smack in the middle of its prime drinking window.

86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc; pH 3.82; IPT 76; 12.3% alcohol; a 57% selection.

Very deep saturated ruby. Archetypical cabernet sauvignon-dominated nose offers fresh blackcurrant, lead pencil and flowers complicated by strong spice notes. Bright and juicy on entry, with very pure flavours of dark berries, underbrush and dried herbs, then slightly austere and linear in the middle palate. Finishes with a lingering saline nuance and very good length. A very refined and impeccably balanced Mouton, but I would have liked a little bit more concentration and opulence for an even higher score.

This classic Mouton possesses relatively high acidity and a solid tannic structure; it offers early accessibility but should age effortlessly for another 15 or 20 years. In 1998, after a couple years of experimentation, Mouton began to de-leaf in a systematic fashion on both sides of the vine rows. Another vintage with a large crop, 1998 featured an unsettled September with rain falling during the Cabernet Sauvignon harvest one of the reasons why 1998 is widely considered a Right Bank year.)

Tasted at the château

The 1998 Mouton Rothschild is another wine that I had not tasted for several years. It is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. Compared directly with the 1988, there is clearly some improvement for the bouquet is fresher with greater complexity - blackberry, cedar, a spring of fresh mint and a little juniper berry for good measure.

The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin.  Like many Pauillac 1998s, this feels quite structured and masculine, but at least there is adequate fruit tucked in just behind. It segues into a rather ferrous last third, fresh and precise with a sustained finish. Although it lags behind more recent vintages under Dhalluin, it appears to be at its peak after 20 years and should remain there for another decade.

Drink 2018 - 2035

Bright ruby-red. Perfumed, sexy aromas of cassis, roasted plum, violet, pepper and exotic spices. Quite dry but densely packed, with pungent cassis, leather and mineral flavours complemented by sexy oak tones and a hint of dried herbs. It grew fuller and sweeter as it opened in the glass. It finishes with major tooth coating tannins that avoid dryness. It is built for long ageing. This tastes richer today than it did from barrel.

This is spicy and peppery with dried fruits and currants. It's full and velvety on the palate showing pretty berries and toasted coffee beans. Long, long finish.