Bordeaux marks milestones with commemorative bottles
Bordeaux loves an anniversary, particularly when it coincides with an exceptional vintage. From the newly released 2025s to rare golden bottles from earlier decades, these commemorative editions combine fine wine with some of the region’s most collectable packaging.
Bordeaux loves a milestone and, if it falls in an exceptional vintage, all the better. A couple of recently released 2025s celebrate significant anniversaries, and it is a wonderful vintage in which to do so.
Exceptional weather conditions produced limited yields but stunning quality, even if the market did not respond enthusiastically across the board to the en primeur offer.
Here are a few bottles that should be on your shopping list, both for the beauty of the wine and the bottles in which they come.
Château Gruaud Larose turns 300
Château Gruaud Larose, the second growth of Saint-Julien, celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2025 and has produced the bottle to prove it.
Established in 1725 by Joseph-Stanislas Gruaud, it became known as Gruaud Larose in the 18th century. The château was built in 1879 by Baron Sarget, who gave his name to the estate’s second wine, Sarget de Gruaud Larose. Jean Merlaut and his family bought the property in 1997.
The bottle for the 300th vintage is etched and screen-printed with golden leaves from the Cabernet Sauvignon vine, the signature grape variety of the Médoc. Appropriately, Cabernet Sauvignon represents 77% of the 2025 blend.
It is available in bottle, magnum, double magnum, imperial and jeroboam formats. Buying en primeur means collectors can not only choose their preferred size but also customise larger formats for a special occasion of their own to commemorate.
A century of Brane-Cantenac
In Margaux, another second growth, Château Brane-Cantenac is celebrating its 100th anniversary under the ownership of the Lurton family with a special golden label for the 2025 vintage.
Léonce Récapet acquired Brane-Cantenac in 1925 and the property has remained in the family for five generations. Léonce’s daughter Denise married François Lurton in 1923, and their second son, Lucien, inherited Brane-Cantenac in 1954.
Living well into his 90s, Lucien became known as one of the great architects of the Médoc, bequeathing his love of wine and vineyards to his children. Henri Lurton has overseen the estate since 1992. In 2022, he passed ownership to his children while continuing to lead the management of the property.
The embossed sun on the golden label was inspired by a raised medallion discovered on a 19th-century bottle of Brane-Cantenac.
It is appropriate given that sunshine is a defining theme of the vintage, but also serves as a fitting tribute to Lucien Lurton, whose name means ‘bringer of light’.
Bordeaux’s golden years
There is a long tradition of golden bottles in Bordeaux. Château Mouton Rothschild released its 2000 vintage in a bottle decorated with a golden Augsburg Ram.
Since 1945, the château has commissioned an artist to create a label for each vintage. For the millennium vintage, Baroness Philippine de Rothschild decided to make the bottle itself a work of art, as well as paying homage to the name of the property.
The design was inspired by the Augsburg Ram, a 16th-century silver-gilt drinking vessel from the collection of the château’s Museum of Wine in Art.
Relief-enamelled directly onto the glass, a golden ring around the neck of the bottle echoes the collar around the ram’s neck. The coat of arms, property name, vintage and signature are also screen-printed onto the bottle in gold.
The 2000 vintage was exceptional and the arrival of the new millennium made it particularly auspicious. The market loved it. Released at a négociant price of €250, it is now trading at around €1,550.
Angélus celebrates promotion
In 2012, Château Angélus created a golden version of its characteristic bell label to celebrate its promotion to Premier Grand Cru Classé A.
The technique used a similar raised enamelling process at 600°C, after which the bottle was covered with 21.7-carat gold and fired at 500°C.
The year also marked the 230th anniversary of the Boüard de Laforest family’s arrival in Saint-Émilion. Some large formats remain on the market, ranging from magnums to 18-litre melchiors.
Although the bottle does not command the same premium as the Mouton Rothschild 2000, it is trading at more than double its release price despite coming from a less celebrated vintage.
Château Margaux honours Paul Pontallier
In 2015, Château Margaux released a striking golden bottle to commemorate not only an exceptional vintage, there is something about Bordeaux years ending in five, but also an historic year for the estate.
It marked the bicentenary of the château’s buildings, which date from 1815, and the inauguration of new facilities designed by architect Norman Foster.
It was also the final vintage overseen by Paul Pontallier, managing director of Château Margaux from 1989 to 2015, and the bottle serves as a tribute to him.
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A magnificent screen print of the Palladian château was applied directly to the glass, replacing the classic label.
Talbot marks a century of family ownership
In 2018, Château Talbot, also in Saint-Julien, celebrated 100 years of ownership by the Cordier family, which remains at the helm of the estate today.
The elegant silk-screened image on the bottle represents one of the pillars supporting the barrel cellar, which in turn evokes the vines rooted in the terroir. It is a modern and original design.
A celebratory year for Bordeaux
The excellent 2020 vintage prompted the release of several commemorative bottles.
Château Léoville Poyferré, keeping Saint-Julien particularly busy, celebrated the centenary of the Cuvelier family’s ownership. Today, Sarah Lecompte Cuvelier represents the fourth generation of the family at the helm. The gold-inlaid bottle cleverly depicts the terroir of the property.
Further north, the vintage marked both the 200th anniversary of Château Cos d’Estournel and 20 years of ownership by Michel Reybier.
Its golden bottle was decorated with an image of the estate’s distinctive Asian-inspired architecture, which dominates the approach to Saint-Estèphe.
Château Smith Haut Lafitte and Château Ducru-Beaucaillou also released celebratory bottles in 2020, although both opted for redesigned labels rather than fully decorated glass.
As well as redesigning its label, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou etched its 300th anniversary in the estate’s signature orange on the shoulder of the bottle.
Château Smith Haut Lafitte created a striking black and gold label for both its red and white wines to celebrate 30 years of ownership by the Cathiard family.
Collectable anniversary cases
There are also several recent anniversary collections worth seeking out, should you be able to find them.
Château Rauzan-Gassies, the second growth of Margaux, is celebrating the 90th anniversary of its purchase by the Quié family. Paul Quié bought the vineyard in 1946 and, since 2000, the property has been run by his grandchildren, twins Anne-Françoise and Jean-Philippe.
To celebrate this three-generation history, the estate created a wooden case containing six bottles, with two bottles from each of three important vintages.
The 1966 vintage honours their grandfather Paul Quié, the 1996 commemorates his son Jean-Michel Quié and the 2016 celebrates the current owners, Anne-Françoise and Jean-Philippe Quié.
Between two Barton birthdays
There is another celebratory collection from the Barton family, owners of Châteaux Léoville Barton and Langoa Barton.
The year 2021 marked the 200th anniversary of the Bartons’ arrival in Saint-Julien, when the family purchased Château Langoa Barton. To celebrate, the estate launched a label hand-drawn by Anne-Lise Yandell.
A collection of four images traces the family’s history, focusing on origin, heritage, nature and evolution, all of which are signatures of the property and the family. Together, they form a distinctive and colourful label for the celebratory 2021 vintage of Château Langoa Barton.
The individual images also appear in limited-edition packaging designed by Patrice Begnier, containing bottles of the 1994, 2000, 2009 and 2016 vintages alongside a magnum of 2021 that brings all four images together.
Only 200 coffrets were produced.
The year 2026 marks the 200th anniversary of Château Léoville Barton. The estate is looking to the past for its celebratory label, reviving the famous Art Deco design used by the property from the 1930s until the 1960s. Fingers are crossed for the vintage.
Looking to Bordeaux’s future
Not all celebratory collections look backwards.
Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste, the classified growth of Pauillac, christened its new gravity-fed cellar with the 2025 vintage.
The vintage represents the culmination of a decade-long renovation of the vineyards and cellar led by François-Xavier Borie and his daughter Emeline, who now heads the family estate.
The 2025 bottle is screen-printed with an image of the elegant château. It is available in 75cl bottles, magnums, double magnums and imperials, including mixed cases containing different sizes for those unable to make up their minds.
Bottles worth keeping
These commemorative bottles are beautiful both inside and out, serving as elegant and long-lasting souvenirs of Bordeaux’s past and future. In some cases, they may also prove to be a good investment.
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