Chateau Mouton Rothschild First Growth Wine Crate

Chateau Mouton Rothschild is arguably the most prestigious of all the First Growth vineyards, It's definitely the most famous among collectors due to name recognition and popularity at auction.

The Mouton wooden wine crate has a rare format. Since the 2000 vintage, every one was made oversized by a few inches. This makes quite a difference because most wine crates from Bordeaux are about the same size.

Traditional Bordeaux Format: 19 1/2" L X 13" W X 7" H

Vintage 2000+ Mouton Wine Crates: 22" L X 14" W X 7 1/2" H

This presents a bit of a problem for storage as most wine cellar cubbies designed for wine crates are generally to match the traditional format. Unless the cellar build has some wiggle-room on the cubby holes, your Mouton Rothschild wine crates will be stacked either on the floor or on top of the racks.

The crates are also quite a bit heavier than the traditionals by about 3 pounds which is significant. This is because of the overall construction. The sides, base and lid are about a quarter-inch thicker. It's a very sturdy piece.

Besides the size and weight of each crate, what distinguishes a Mouton Rothschild from any other is the artwork. Every few years the vineyard commissions a different and famous French artist to re-design the ram logo to introduce the vintage. The look of each of these new re-designs is subtle but tastefully unique from the others.

As far as rarity they're very difficult to acquire because so few are made.

Little known fact: Only half of all Bordeaux wines are exported outside of France. The other half is distributed throughout the world. Mouton Rothschild creates around 12,000 cases every year, so this means only 6,000 are available to everyone else! Mouton Rothschild wine crates are, in all literal terms, a 1 in a million item.

We do however have a few available if your interested. Give me a call or e-mail to buy one for yourself while we still have them in stock!

Patrick
www.winecratesandboxes.com
518-475-8625
sales@winecratesandboxes.com

Chateau Margaux Wooden Wine Crate

The majority of investors and collectors in Bordeaux wine consider Chateau Margaux to be the best among the First Growths in terms of quality. Considering all First Growths are considered the 5 best in the world this is quite a distinction!

The birth of the "official" Margaux vineyard occurred in the early 1500's, although the plot of land on which it stands was harvesting superior grapes for wine far before that.

The artwork branding on the Margaux wine crate is of the famous Margaux Chateau which dates back to 1801, and is called The Marquis de la Colonilla: "The Grand Estate of the Little River"

Like most First Growths, Chateau Margaux is made to be carefully stored for a couple of decades in order to reach it's peak condition. Keeping the wine in it's original crate is ideal for this purpose. Fine wine should be kept in a fairly cool and dark environment. This is especially true with Margaux. Most investors purchase a complete case or more with the wooden wine crate included years before the wine is actually released. Since only 6 - 8 thousand cases of Margaux are made every year, original wine crates directly from the vineyard are very rare.

We have a handful of original Chateau Margaux wine crates in stock at the moment, so if your interested in one feel free to give me a call or e-mail

Patrick
www.winecratesandboxes.com
518-475-8625
sales@winecratesandboxes.com

Where to Get Wine Boxes & Crates?

Wine crates are the premier packaging option to store the very best wine bottles made by exceptional vineyards. They're hard to find because so few are made. The only way to get them is by either buying a full case and hoping the original wine crate is included (Expensive), developing a relationship with a high-end retailer (Time consuming) or buying them directly in the open market (Convenient).

The problem with the 1st option; buying a full case, means your going to spend $500+ on the low-end with no guarantee that the wine box or crate will be included. Most of the time the case will be shipped in a cardboard box. The only way to ensure the wooden wine crate is included is by buying directly from the vineyard when you visit. Once you add travel expenses and the headaches of having to bring the wine back home the cost is prohibitive.

The first option is pricey but the 2nd option requires alot of your time. High-end wine retailers buy by the case and often have some wine boxes or crates in stock. They usually use the wine boxes and crates for decoration and/or wine storage racks, so it's unlikely you'll be able to pop in and take a few off they're hands inexpensively. A wine store sells wine not wine crates, so if you buy alot of bottles on a regular basis the manager or owner will be more willing to establish a relationship with you. Once that happens you may be able to get your hands on a few over time.

There are some downsides to this option though. Granted, you may get some wine crates for free (Although you bought alot of bottles, had extra travel costs and spent alot of your time) your going to get the wine crates or boxes that the wine store can't use or doesn't want. This means they're going to be full of stickers, staples, markings, nails and probably damages. Your going to need to spend even more of your time removing these things to make sure the box is looking it's best for your project.

Finally for the 3rd and last option you can buy them directly from a source such as www.winecratesandboxes.com where you simply purchase the amount of crates or boxes you want and their quickly delivered to your door. On top of that they come refurbished without any stickers, staples, nails etc. This means you don't have to deal with any of the prep work. You also have the option of buying them with lids, which is nearly impossible to find anywhere else.

Here's a listing of pages & links to buy wine crates from:

Original wine crates w/o Lids:

Original Wine Crates w/ Lids: 

Wholesale Wine Crate Pallets: 

Wine Boxes w/o Lids:

Wine Boxes w/ Lids: 

Wine Crate Panels: