2023 Aile d'Argent Blanc, Château Mouton Rothschild, Bordeaux

50% Sauvignon Blanc, 44.5% Sémillon, 5% Sauvignon Gris, 0.5% Muscadelle. Cask sample.

Gently aromatic with pear and citrus notes. Fresh and minerally as well. Good mid-palate weight, the ripe fruit adding a touch of sweetness. Oak well integrated. Refreshing finish.

Drink 2025 - 2030

It is a blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 44.5% Sauvignon Gris and 0.5% Muscadelle.

Evoking aromas of white flowers, lemon oil, lime tree leaves and spring flowers, the 2023 Aile d'Argent is medium to full-bodied, charming and enveloping with a fleshy core of fruit and a mouthwatering, long finish. While not as dense or fleshy as previous iterations, this vintage is a notable success within its context.

Drink 2025 - 2040

The 2023 Aile d’Argent contains a little more Sémillon than usual 44.5%) to add texture to the blend. It has a lovely bouquet of grapefruit and hints of lime cordial, chamomile, and lanolin. The palate is very well balanced with a fine bead of acidity, fresh and focused, with just a slight bitter lemon note imparting tension. A hint of ginger rises on the aftertaste. Superb.

Winemaker Emmanuel Danjoy and co-owner Philippe Sereys de Rothschild were on hand to guide me through their 2023s at Mouton-Rothschild. “We started picking on September 7, and then for the next two weeks, we just picked the Merlot, Cabernet Franc and young Cabernet Sauvignon blocks, so by September 23, we had only picked one-third of the crop,” Danjoy tells me. “So, all the Cabernet Sauvignon was picked in the final week of September. The vines relaxed after the September showers, giving us more polished tannins. This year, we used slightly less pressed wine as we had lots of tannins from the skin to choose from.”

Drink 2026 - 2038

The 2023 Aile d’Argent is a rich, heady, wine that very much captures the radiant style of the year in its generous textural feel. Tangerine peel, spice, menthol, lime, dried flowers and light tropical accents abound. The 2023 is a serious dry white. There’s a bit more Sémillon in the blend and a greater emphasis on texture and structure than usual, while the oak imprint and exotic character of some previous editions have been toned down.

Drink 2025 - 2030

This château makes a fabulous white. Their 2023 Château Mouton Rothschild Aile D'Argent Blanc is based on 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 44.5% Semillon, and a splash of Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle, raised in 45% new oak. Ripe pineapple, crushed citrus, white flowers, and hints of toast all emerge from this beauty. A richer, medium-bodied, vibrant white that will shine on the dinner table, it should also have well over a decade of prime drinking.

50% Sauvignon Blanc, 44.5% Sémillon, 5% Sauvignon Gris and 0.5% Muscadelle.

The density and beauty to this is so attractive, with a lush and flavorful character, yet it’s neatly framed by acidity and minerally undertones. Lively and salty. Part of the vineyard is on limestone, which gives that sea-salt undertone. Savoury. Fresh at the end.

Lovely sweet, rich nose, some honeyed notes with dried flowers, lemon balm, tangerine and oyster shell. Ripe and clean, a great balance of soft sweet lemon and peach with stony apricot and touches of lime. A great initial burst of flavour with high acidity giving a mouthwatering freshness. Clean and precise, fresh, finessed and deep. 0.5% Muscadelle completes the blend.

Drink 2027 - 2037

Great depth and freshness, fleshy nectarine and spiced pear, fennel and oyster shell, grilled oak and generosity. Balances salinity and flesh, expertly judged. Harvest August 29 to September 6, 45% new oak for ageing. Co-fermented Muscadelle with Sauvignon Gris.

Drink 2025 - 2038