Chateau Duhart-Milon

Chateau Duhart-Milon is the only fourth growth from Pauillac, but interestingly it did not have a real chateau, and the wine is made in a large warehouse off a side street in Pauillac. The quality has been improving following the acquisition by Eric Rothschild of the nearby Chateau Lafite-Rothschild.

The origin of the name Milon is a mystery, but in the early 18^th century the Seigneur de Lafite, Marquis de Segur, already sold the wine as an additional income. Duhart seems to be the name of a pirate who settled on the banks of the Gironde upon retirement, with his house still featuring on the label nowadays.

In the early 19^th century both the volume and quality was already high. It was under the ownership of Mandavy until 1830. Then the estate was inherited by Pierre Casteja, who also was bequeathed 14 ha of vines following the death of an elderly widow of the Duhart.

Bringing the two vineyards together, Casteja founded the now 40 ha estate and renamed it Duhart-Milon. After Casteja’s death the estate was passed to his descendants, employing Andre Delon as manager. But similar to other estates, phylloxera, oidium, war and depression inhibited investment and development, and the Casteja family had to sell off some vineyards later on.

After WWII the vineyard covers barely 17 ha and the quality plummeted. In the subsequent period the estate had gone through five different owners in just a quarter of a century. To make things worse, the frost in 1956 further added to the devastation.

However, it was rescued by the Rothschild family in 1962, and today the estate is managed by the same team at Lafite. The vineyard was completely cleared, with drainage installed and new vines planted, similar in proportion to Chateau Lafite-Rothschild.

Now it covers 73 ha on an estate spanning 152 ha, with vines being harvested by hand. There are 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot planted, with the soil typical of fine gravel, mixed with sands on a limestone bedrock. The vines are now averaging 30 years of age.

The revitalization of the chai followed, with new enamel lined equipment installed, along with stainless steel vats and temperature-controlled fermentation equipment. The wine is aged in oak barrels (50-55% new), which are produced in the cooperage at Lafite, for 14-16 months, and is racked every three months, then fined with egg white before bottling. The blend of the grand vin is dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, typically 70-80%, with 22000-25000 cases produced per annum.

A second wine called Moulin de Duhart is produced since 1986, typically 5000-7000 cases, from young vines with a more balanced blend. A third wine Baron de Milon is also produced, around 3000-5000 cases. The problem now with the estate is the high price, as they are being taken up by the wave of Lafite-love across the Far East, along with other Rothschild wines.

Recently I have tasted the grand vin as well as the second wine. The grand vin was really nice. My tasting notes are as below:

Very good quality Pauillac with medium ruby color, showing a fairly intense and complex nose of blackcurrant, blackberry and bilberry, cocoa and chocolate, liqourice, tobacco and savory, meaty, cedar and caramel, and earth. Very well-balanced, with the acidity supporting the ripe, velvety tannin. The wine is fairly full-bodied, with fairly intense palate showing flavors of blackcurrant, blackberry and bilberry, cedar, liquorice, cigar box and pencil lead. A fairly long finish, it is ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 5-8 years.

The second wine is nice, though obviously less complex:

Good quality Pauillac with medium ruby color, the nose is reasonably intense and complex, showing blackcurrant and blackberry, liquorice, cigar box, meaty, cedar and earth. Medium in acidity, the tannin is ripe and velvety, providing a good structure on the robust body with reasonably intense palate showing blackcurrant and blackberry, cedar, liquorice and cigar box. The wine has a reasonable finish, and is ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.