Rothschild

We've heard a lot recently about the growing appetite for wine, especially French wine. Decanter reports that the 2008 vintage of Chateau Lafite Rothschild (the Luxist Awards winner for Best International Red Wine) will bear the Chinese symbol for the figure eight on the bottle. The symbol is in celebration of Chateau Lafite Rothschild's partnership with CITIC, China's largest state-owned investment company on the peninsula of Penglai in Shandong province, an area said to be China's Bordeaux.

A spokesperson for Lafite Rothschild commented that the "shape of the symbol seems to offer a perfect representation of the slopes of the vineyard and commemorates the launch of our Chinese wine project." The small symbol might also help the wine be even more popular in China, the figure eight is considered very auspicious. The Decanter article also mentions the speculation that Château Mouton-Rothschild may choose a Chinese artist to design the label for its 2008 vintage.

China has been buying into the Bordeaux region of France for a while but the opposite move is also taking place. Decanter reports that Bordeaux first growth Chateau Lafite is working on a vineyard in China. Chateau Lafite has a very high reputation on China and has partnered with CITIC, China's largest state-owned investment company on over 60 acres of vines on the peninsula of Penglai in Shandong province. The Penglai peninsula is on its easternmost tip of the province and wine companies there already produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Some say the region is China's Bordeaux. A website for the region promotes the fact that it is located at north latitude 37º along with Bordeaux and Napa Valley.

Interest in wine in China has risen dramatically over the past few years and with its large population and spending power that interest is only expected to increase. The presence of Domaines Barons de Rothschild, Chateau Lafite's parent company, in Penglai adds tremendous clout to the wine growing region and will garner worldwide interest similar to what happened when Domaines Barons de Rothschild made its first forays into South American vineyards.

The latest artist to grace the famous label of Château Mouton-Rothschild will be Lucian Freud. Freud, who is the grandson of Sigmund Freud, is one of the most famous and most collectible of the modern artists (his picture Benefits Supervisor Sleeping sold for over $33 million last year). Freud's label for the 2006 vintage of Château Mouton-Rothschilld shows a playful image of a red-striped zebra and a potted palm tree that recalls one of his earliest works, The Painter's Room from 1944. It is a far cry from the controversy-causing portraits which often show his famous and non-famous subjects with their lumps and bumps exposed. As is tradition, Freud will be compensated for his work with cases of the Mouton bearing his label. Picasso, Dali, Andy Warhol and even Prince Charles are among the artists who have designed for the label before. Check out the gallery below for some of the most famous labels.

Every year since 1945 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild has had its labels designed and illustrated by different contemporary artists, including many famous names -- Prince Charles did the honors last year (yes, he apparently dabbles in watercolor). This year is no exception, and so for the much anticipated 2005 vintage Italian artist Guiseppe Penone has created the above design, which represents the growth of the vine leaf and an open hand coming in to grasp a glass of Mouton.

Although it's considered quite an honor to have the opportunity to create a label, no payment is made to the artists -- instead they're given cases of Mouton, including (of course) bottles from the year in which their label was used (a value of $170-$800/bottle).