Mouton Rothschild 2000

I have never been a huge fan of the 2000 Mouton Rothschild apart from the spectacular gold engraved bottle. The contents inside just left me nonplussed ever since I originally tasted it from barrel. Now 17 years later I have no reason to alter that view and on this occasion it is outperformed by the 2013 Opus One. This Pauillac is rather ordinary on the nose, missing the precision and detail that Philippe Dhalluin brought back when he took over the winemaking duties. The palate is balanced with decent freshness, and quite hard tannin at the moment, lacking the harmony and precision that recent vintages have exuded. But as I mentioned, the bottle looks fantastic. Tasted blind at a private lunch in Hong Kong.

Score: 89

Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2018-2030 01 July 2018

(a blend of 86% cabernet sauvignon and 14% merlot; pH 3.85; 69 IPT; 12.3% alcohol; 85% selection for the grand vin; 85% new oak): Bright deep ruby with the barest hint of garnet; still very youthful. Enticing, complex nose of cassis, smoky cedar, violet, underbrush and kirsch; very Pauillac, if in a ripe style. Dense, rich and suave in the mouth, with lively acidity nicely framing the rich flavors of blackcurrant, blackberry jam, milk chocolate, grilled bread and spicy underbrush. Finishes with noble tannins and outstanding chocolatey persistence. A great Mouton and much better than another recently tasted bottle that had shown some signs of premature evolution. Though this wine comes across as quite smoky and chocolatey, Tourbier points out that Mouton has been using barrels with a medium or medium-plus toast since 1994 (more heavily charred barrels were used here from 1989 through 1993). The excellent millennium vintage featured a hot and humid year characterized by a very large crop and a fairly rainy first part of the year, but a very dry and warm second half resulted in considerable hydric stress (especially on the Right Bank.)

Score: 95

Ian D'Agata, Vinous.com 01 August 2011

The 2000 Mouton Rothschild is at its best with about 24-48 hours of decanting. A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot, the wine offers a saturated ruby/purple color in addition to reticent but promising aromas of toast, coffee, licorice, creme de cassis, and roasted nuts. Dense, chewy, and backward, with tremendous purity and density in addition to obvious toasty oak, it is full-bodied, powerful, tannic, and backward. Twenty-four to 48 hours of aeration only hints at its ultimate potential. This blockbuster will be exceptionally long-lived. It is not as expressive as the other first-growth Medocs, but give it time. As I predicted in my first report on the millennium vintage (April, 2001), Philippine de Rothschild could be expected to do something special with her presentation of 2000. She has exceeded everyone's expectations with a work of art. Those who have seen the extraordinary packaging of the 2000 Mouton Rothschild must certainly realize this is a brilliant achievement. The bottle is extraordinary, and likely to have nearly as much value empty as full! Her genius is obvious, but it's what's inside that counts! Anticipated maturity: 2015-2050+.

Score: 97

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2015-2050+ 01 April 2003

The 2000 is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot, and the wine comprises 80% of the production, which averaged 35 hectoliters per hectare. A potentially immortal wonder, Mouton's 2000 is so thick, it almost needs to be drunk with a spoon. At the same time, it has brutally high tannin. There is a lot going on in this backward effort, including phenomenal concentration and extract, and a huge nose of smoke, creme de cassis, truffles, and new saddle leather. A wine of enormous constitution and awesome power, but neophytes and readers unwilling to invest twenty years of cellaring should look elsewhere. If the tannin becomes more integrated, and the wine increasingly seamless, it will merit its lofty rating. However, if the tannin becomes more abrasive, or the wine totally shuts down, the score will drop.

Score: 96 - 98

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2060 01 April 2001

Full medium ruby. Exotic aromas of cassis, roast coffee and sweet oak. Sweet, thick and oaky, with superb breadth of flavor; at once chewy and smooth. An impressively rich, ripe, oaky Mouton with palate-staining length and strong finishing oakiness. But less noble and scented than the young 2002, which may be every bit as dense.

Score: 94

Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar 01 May 2003

Dark red. Fruit-driven aromas of cherry, redcurrant, cassis, leather and smoke. Fruity and juicy in the mouth, but currently showing only modest flesh. Tannins seem a bit dry.

Score: 86 - 89

Stephen Tanzer, Vinous.com 01 May 2001