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Château Mouton Rothschild 2020 Sotheby’s ‘super-lot’ auction to benefit Bordeaux firefighters

16 November 2022 By Arabella Mileham

Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA has teamed up with Sotheby’s to auction a ‘superlot’ of wines – including the estate’s only Nebuchadnezzar of the 2020 vintage – the proceeds of which will raise funds for firefighters of the Bordeaux region to prevent fires.

©SDIS33 – Service Communication-Protocole

As well as the only Nebuchadnezzar of 2020, the ‘superlot’ comprises three Magnums, an Imperial, a double magnum signed by the artist and the family, and six bottles of Château Mouton Rothschild 2020, with a pre-sale estimate of €30,000-200,000. Bidding opens on 23 November and closes on 2 December.

The successful bidder will also be invited to the Château, along with five guests to collect the lot in person from the estate, and enjoy a private tour and lunch with one of the owners.

Proceeds from the sale will go to SDIS 33, Service Départemental d’Incendie et de Secours from Gironde, to help them prevent fires with the best and fastest detection methods available. It follows the major wildfires that ravaged parts of the Bordeaux region this summer.

Château Mouton Rothschild’s owners, Camille Sereys de Rothschild, Philippe Sereys de Rothschild and Julien de Beaumarchais de Rothschild, said that their decision to donate the entire proceeds of the sale to the firefighters of the Gironde department was in order to “add our voice to the universal expressions of gratitude and admiration they so richly deserve and support their work in a practical way, especially in terms of prevention,” they said.

Despite the fires, the region remained unscathed and the 2022 vintage is widely expected to be a great vintage.

The auction comes ahead of the annual unveiling of the artist and artwork of the 2020 label of Château Mouton Rothschild on 1 December – a tradition that dates back to 1924, when Baron Philippe de Rothschild (1902-1988), commissioned the poster designer Jean Carlu to create the Mouton Rothschild label. However it was only in 1945 that this was repeated, when Baron Philippe marked the return of peace after the Second World War, with a “V” for Victory mark on the label, which was drawn by painter Philippe Jullian. A leading modern or contemporary artist has been chosen to design the label every year since then, including some of the most celebrated artists of their day, including Dalí, César, Miró, Chagall, Picasso and Warhol. The works are on permanent display at Château Mouton Rothschild, which has recently reopened following refurbishment.

Jamie Ritchie, worldwide chairman, Sotheby’s Wine & Spirits, said that the quality of Château Mouton Rothschild’s wines had never been higher, and this was reflected by the increase in global demand and the link between art and wine “added to the story about each vintage and to their allure to collectors.”

“It is not unusual for wine lovers to pursue owning a complete set and this sale provides the first opportunity to acquire the newest vintage in this long and distinguished sequence.” he said.