1988 Château Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Bordeaux France Wine Tasting Note
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1988
Château Mouton Rothschild (Pauillac)
Firm, classic, austere and structured, the tannins have a rustic quality that takes away from the cassis, cedar and tobacco filled character. This is not a poor example of a classic Pauillac, but it's certainly not a wine I'd pour as a great example of a First Growth. My guess is, further aging is not going to add much. At close to 30 years of age, it is, what it is. 6,010 Views Tasted Feb 8, 2016Tought, hard, tart and dry, I do not know who gave this wine 100 Pts at one time, or how they came to it, because there is very little, there, there. The wine was dominated by tart red berries, earth, tobacco and dry textures. Perhaps hours of decanting would soften the wine, but it would also lose what little aromatics it has to offer. This is not a wine to seek out at auctions. 7,394 Views Tasted Dec 17, 2013The wine is better on the nose than nose than the palate. The fruit is starting to dry out. The tannins are hard and the earth, tobacco, spicy cassis and cranberry filled wine lacks elegance and charm. This is not a wine that will get better with age. If you like old school, traditional Bordeaux and you own a bottle, I'd drink it sooner than later. 9,793 Views Tasted Nov 24, 2012 |
When to Drink Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time
Chateau Mouton Rothschild is not a wine to drink on the young side. The wine is usually far too tannic, concentrated, and reserved during its youth. Young vintages can be decanted for an average of 3-6 hours, give or take. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment.
Chateau Mouton Rothschild is usually better with at least 15 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage character. Chateau Latour offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 18 and 60 years of age after the vintage.
Serving Chateau Mouton Rothschild with Wine and Food Pairings
Chateau Mouton Rothschild is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.
Chateau Mouton Rothschild is best paired with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Mouton Rothschild is also good when matched with Asian dishes, Chinese food, rich fish courses like tuna, salmon, mushrooms, and pasta.
Aile d'Argent, the white wine of Mouton Rothschild with wine and food matches are perfect for the table. Aile d'Argent is best paired with all types of seafood, sushi, sashimi, crab, lobster, chicken, veal, pork, and a myriad of different cheeses.
Aside from their three Classified estates in Bordeaux, the company also produces wines in the Napa Valley with Opus One, in Limoux with Domaine de Baron'arques, and in Chile, where the Rothschild family formed a partnership with Concha y Toro in Chile to create Almaviva.
When added to all their branded and negociant wines, like Mouton Cadet, in total, the company sells more than $350,000,000 worth of wine each year! Part of the reason for their success in creating an international brand has to do with their nonstop marketing all over the world.
In fact, Chateau Mouton Rothschild was one of the first 1855 Classified chateau to begin marketing in China. To further their connection to the country of China, for the 2008 vintage, Chateau Mouton Rothschild chose Xu Le, the Chinese-born artist to design their label.