CHATEAU COS D'ESTOURNEL 2eme Grand Cru Classe, Saint-Estephe 2021 Bottle

Description

Château Cos d’Estournel, named after its 19th-century owner Louis-Gaspard d’Estournel, is renowned as a leading estate in St-Estèphe, celebrated for producing exceptional wines. The 2021 vintage is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc, resulting in a dense and structured wine with polished leather and cedar aromas. Wine Enthusiast awarded it 96 points for its concentrated tannins and impressive structure. Decanter rated it 95 points, noting its rich dark berry profile and sophistication, with hints of tobacco and dark chocolate. James Suckling also rated it 95 points, highlighting its floral notes and elegant, fine tannins. The Wine Advocate awarded it 93+ points, praising its muscular character and promising aging potential through 2026 to 2050.

*****

Château Cos d`Estournel is named after its 19th century owner, Louis-Gaspard d'Estournel, and it was he who built the bizarre oriental edifice that is a landmark for any tourist in the Médoc. Today Cos d'Estournel is without doubt the leading estate in St-Estéphe. It is located in the south of the appellation on the border with Pauillac and its vineyards are superbly sited on a south-facing gravel ridge with a high clay content, just north of Lafite.

Cos d'Estournel is typically a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc - do not be fooled by the relatively high Merlot content, as these are full-bodied, dark, brooding tannic wines when young which develop a complexity and intensity that can rival many top growths from Pauillac.
In 1998 the Prats family sold Cos d'Estournel to The Tailan Group.

WINE ENTHUSIAST 96 points
Dense and seriously structured, this wine with its polished leather and cedar aromas is concentrated in tannins. The wine's structure dominates, partnering acidity and ripe texture. Drink from 2028. — Roger Voss

DECANTER 95 points
Super rich dark berries on the nose, fragrant and seductive, this draws you in both from the nose and colour with a deep, inky purple and pink tone. Charming and lively, this is sophisticated with a minty, fresh, high-toned fruit profile that is poised and focussed, delivering each element in a straight line right now. Not so expansive but layered vertically with tobacco, coffee, dark chocolate and vanilla notes alongside bramble fruits. It’s tightly packaged but so refined, elegant and classy. One to watch for sure. 2% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Drinking Window 2027 - 2050 - Tasted by Georgina Hindle(at Bordeaux, 01 Apr 2022)

JAMES SUCKLING 95 points
Floral aromas with violets, lavender and currants. Lead pencil, too. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins that caress and please. Elegant and sophisticated. Linear line of tannins running through this. Needs two or three years to soften. Hold for now.

VINOUS (94-96) points
Drinking Window 2031 - 2051
From: 2021 Bordeaux En Primeur: Back to Classicism (May 2022)
The 2021 Cos d'Estournel is a wine of real breadth and volume. It is also quite a departure from recent vintages in that strong Cabernet aromatics are very much front and center. Cedar, tobacco, dried herbs, menthol and licorice lend notable complexity to the bouquet. I expect the 2021 will need time to be at its best. Cos is usually much more alluring in its youth than the reticent but hugely promising 2021. - By Antonio Galloni on April 2022

THE WINE ADVOCATE 93+ points
Reviewed by: William Kelley
Drink Date: 2026 - 2045
The 2021 Cos d'Estournel is one of the denser, more muscular wines of the vintage, wafting from the glass with aromas of dark berries, cassis, charcoal, sweet cigar wrapper and subtle hints of smoked meats, framed by a touch of toasty new oak. Medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy, it's rich and quite concentrated for the vintage, with a chassis of sweet, generously extracted tannin and a long, lusty finish.
Published: Feb 08, 2024

JANCIS ROBINSON 17++ points
Dark and reticent with a touch of cassis as the wine opens. Linear and firm with a rich but fine tannic frame. Solid through the mid palate and on through the finish. Structured and with plenty of matière. Well within itself so room to develop. (JL)