Cellar Favorite: 1945 Mouton Rothschild

BY NEAL MARTIN | AUGUST 17, 2026

I have been privileged to drink the 1945 Mouton Rothschild on half a dozen occasions over my career, six more than I ever dreamed. That said, this might be the most profound bottle. It completely transcended the definition of “wine” for two reasons beyond its sensory qualities: Firstly, the provenance, which was impeccable. London merchant Berry Bros. & Rudd purchased this bottle upon release. It lay in their basement cellar and never moved until it was dusted off, carried up three flights of stairs and poured in their director’s room on this occasion. Secondly, the guests on this evening were mainly Jewish, and many noted that the significance of the Année de Victoire label resonated deeply. Keep in mind that Mouton’s Jewish proprietor, Baron Philippe de Rothschild, was forced to flee Bordeaux, his château billeted by Nazis. Upon his return to now liberated France, de Rothschild recruited German prisoners-of-war to help repair the wartime damage at the estate.

It was during this speech that I twigged the date…June 6. D-Day — the day countless compatriots on both sides of the Atlantic lost their lives on the Normandy beaches. Their sacrifices eventually made it possible for Baron Philippe to return home and oversee the fabled wine we were drinking.

The weight of this context almost made drinking the ’45 somehow immoral. On the other hand, Baron Philippe de Rothschild would surely have nodded his approval witnessing a group of wine lovers appreciating his pièce de résistance.

The 1945 Mouton Rothschild is possibly the finest example that I have encountered of this monumental Pauillac. It shows little aging in colour after eight decades. There is the signature scent of wild mint billowing from the glass, intertwined with outrageously pure, slightly decadent, multi-layered red fruit. It is endowed with remarkable delineation and focus, never for a single moment degrading, loosening up or losing focus in my glass. Yet still, the aromatics are tinged with Mouton’s gloss. The palate is armed with ineffable symmetry and poise. Again, the purity of fruit is utterly beguiling, a claret equipped with pinpoint accuracy, framed by chiselled tannins that discreetly maintain structure. Vestiges of raspberry and blackberry laced with graphite and tobacco segue into a satin-textured finish that fans out gloriously. The 1945 Mouton remains the apex of Bordeaux in terms of both sensory pleasure and profundity. 100/Drink 2026-2045

© 2026, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or redistributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.