The 1989 vintage presented almost ideal conditions for vignerons across Bordeaux, with warm and sunny weather resulting in the century’s earliest harvest. Now in its peak drinking phase, this is a rounded and generous blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc and 8% Merlot. A more understated wine from a decade that included some superstar releases from this illustrious 1st Growth estate.
Reviews:
- Wine Spectator: Shows so much ripe and decadent fruit on the nose, from dried berries and raisin to strawberry and sultana. There is a nutty, cedar undertone as well. Very complex and full-bodied, with lots of vanilla bean and ripe plum flavors. This is almost Burgundian in texture: so soft and so attractive, but then the Bordeaux tannins kick in at the end. What a wine.
- Decanter: An extremely early year for the property, with harvest from 6-25 September. One to savour, it has the signature smoked, toasted glamour of Mouton, with cappuccino, crushed bilberry and blackberries, pliable tannins, and a drawn-out finish that gets better and better in the glass. The label, by the way, featured Georg Baselitz, a German painter, to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Producer Information
Château Mouton Rothschild is located in the commune of Pauillac, in the Medoc, 30 miles (50km) northwest of the city of Bordeaux. The grand vin is among the most highly rated and priced wines in the world, and is generally regarded as the most exuberant and powerful of all Bordeaux. It was famously added to the First Growths set out in the 1855 Classification in 1973.The château started life as Brane-Mouton, and was among the best in Bordeaux through the 18th and early 19th Centuries, although there was a dip in quality and price in the 1840s. The Rothschild family bought (and renamed) the property in 1853 and quickly restored its reputation, but not in time for the 1855 Classification of Médoc wines, in which Mouton was only ranked a second growth wine. Lafite, Latour, Margaux and Haut-Brion attained Premier Cru Classé status.
