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| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.6 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 101 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Purple Tooth on 2/25/2024 & rated 93 points: A beautiful specimen of fully mature Bordeaux from a great era and an overlooked vintage. Healthy bottle at top shoulder fill in my cellar for more than 2 decades, this is one of the lot of wines that I loved/love and bought when I first fell in love with older Bordeaux. The Bouquet opens with liquid earth and flowers and then it greets the mouth with fine hints of barnyard intermingled with flowery fruit. Really classy and delicate looking in the glass, can be mistaken for a Burgundy. I didn't want to guzzle it too fast so I opened a mystery bottle from 1994 (that shall remain nameless, yes you read right, 1994) to keep us company that unfortunately cast a light on the wrinkles on this mysterious lady and wowed us and took us away into another beautiful candle lit room. I came back to this after dinner and realized the wine was still intact and now fully awake. Still floral and delicious, the last 1/3 of the bottle was definitely as good as the first thrid (showcasing more flower shop notes and snapped mushrooms), even though we skipped a beat on the second. All in all, a beautiful wine that is stuck here and slowly fading. Every day, this wine is better than tomorrow. DRINK
93++ (738 views) | | | Tasted by oldwines on 2/9/2024 & rated 94 points: Pre-Super Bowl Gentlemen's Dinner (New Jersey, USA): In my cellar since release. Decanted around 3:30pm and served with the second course around 7pm. This was a little funky when decanted, very earthy but not “bretty” with the air this faded. It was also ever so lightly bricked. When served it had lost the funk and darkened to a rich lightly translucent garnet. Quite minerally and complex with notes of cassis, red berries, leather, mushrooms and hints of tobacco and the nose and palate. This kept getting better in the glass until finished. So youthful and delicious. Smooth as silk in the mouth. This was a rather miraculous bottle amount three marvelous and equally miraculous 1983 Bordeaux. Overall, all three wines were very similar and of great quality with nuances separating them. As they sat in the glass, the subtle nuances were visible but initially in the glass they were almost indistinguishable. (769 views) | | | Tasted by Collector1855 on 12/29/2023 & rated 94 points: Tasting dinner. Typical 80ies Medoc. Highly aromatic with tertiary forest floor notes. Lots of struture still but the tannins are now dissolved so that they are not scratchy or drying as in the youth. Drink now and in the next 10 years. (1269 views) | | | Tasted by Musinus on 9/30/2023 & rated 85 points: Dark purple with a hint of peripheral bricking. Aromas of honey, black plum, and olive (takes a musty turn with aeration) Flavor profile quite similar with addition of brandied raisin. Sweet, mature, a hint of bitterness on the finish. (943 views) | | | Tasted by Windacre in the Slope on 5/6/2023 & rated 94 points: Part of a 83 tasting. Star to me. Earthy and musky nose. Effervescent with a nice chew, with earth leather and a silky finish. (1430 views) | | | Tasted by Heynetty on 4/22/2023: Pale garnet
Red cherry, red plum, blackcurrant, dried violet, sweet tobacco, vanilla smoke, baking spice, leather, wet leaves,
Dry, high acid, medium (+) fine grained tannin, medium (+) intensity , medium (+) body and long finish
Beautiful balance of primary , secondary and tertiary elements. Plenty of each. The complex flavors are concentrated but push forth to an epic long finish delivering real finesse on the palate. Outstanding quality . What a treat! (1348 views) | | | Tasted by AhSoNice1990 on 3/21/2023 & rated 92 points: Lovely - clearly in decline but still very drinkable. A little bit of brett but this subsequently opened up after being decanted about an hour or so - wonderfully and surprisingly fruity on the nose and a very leathery, smooth and delightfully long finish, very pleasantly impressed. (1363 views) | | | Tasted by mrharlow on 6/12/2022: On opening strong barnyard - decanted in cellar overnight and opened up to cigar and dark old fruit on nose. Long finish with lot of fruit on palette. Great bottle. (2349 views) | | | Tasted by mye on 4/25/2022: Blinded. Clearly old bordeaux. Some of that dusty, cigar, left bank. Resolved dried berries and some herbs. The herbaceousness hinted at cab franc but there's enough fruit to sway me to left bank. Guessed late 80s St Estephe, specifically Montrose as I recall old Cos to be more rustic and this had a sweetness. Lovely btl. (2420 views) | | | Tasted by aerosol on 12/25/2021 & rated 94 points: I got a glass here now and it’s been open for 2 hours. Don’t even think about trying it for less time in the decanter ! The nose is a little bit of rubber and burnt electric wire and then burns off to yield barnyard . The palate is smooth and silky, fruit forward with both red and black cherry, some hint of green and cola, and soft integrated tannins . Wow, Cos does not disappoint and I strongly suggest you drink this over several hours as this will transmogrify over the evening . (2269 views) | | | Tasted by Sundbyberg on 10/20/2021 & rated 94 points: My 7th vintage of Cos: 1982, 1983, 1989, 1992, 2000, 2003 and 2006.
Besides the 2003, which I scored 96 pts, this was my best vintage of this chateau. Sure, the 82 was nice, but it was too sweet and had too much fruit. This is just perfectly balanced in every aspect, and with deep, blue fruit.
We double decanted and after 3 hours this was fine, but an additional 1-2 hours would have been even better.
Perfect fill and perfectly stored since release. (2546 views) | | | Tasted by Sean Tay on 6/25/2021 & rated 94 points: Pronounced nose intensity with notes of mint, spices, toast, charred wood, forest floor. Medium acidity and tannin. Medium+ finish (2649 views) | | | Tasted by paulst on 3/28/2021 & rated 92 points: Earth and cedar; narrow; light blackberry; balanced finish. (2257 views) | | | Tasted by paulst on 3/10/2021 & rated 93 points: Light earthy blackberry; supple; balanced; long blackberry finish. (2238 views) | | | Tasted by derrington on 2/27/2021 & rated 91 points: Bricking evident, good clarity, poured first glass without decanting. Tannin present with tertiary flavors of tobacco, cedar, bell pepper, and a hint of olive. Decanted the rest of the bottle. Tannin subsided, rounder with a definite currant notes in the background with tobacco and cedar in balance. Definitely should not hold on much longer if you have this in the cellar. I can't imagine any upside to keeping longer. It out performed very well for a lesser considered vintage. It paired well with the steak grilled over cherry wood. (1707 views) | | | Tasted by dream on 2/22/2021 & rated 91 points: Bottle in excellent condition and fill bottom neck. Plenty of browning color and certainly a bit long in the tooth at this point but still a fine glass of aged Claret. There are tasty flavors of dark sweet earth and leathers with a surprising hint of smoky eucalyptus. The texture is soft and subdued and the finish is smooth and elegant with lovely notes of graphite minerals and decayed dark chocolate. Drink up for sure and a very nice surprise! (1813 views) | | | Tasted by blanquito on 2/20/2021: Delicious, tertiary wine on the gentle back slope of life. This is all about a lighter, spicy, red-fruited experience these days, almost Burgundian in presentation, with cinnamon, red zinger, and cranberries married to earthy, leathery, smoky and savory notes. Lots of integrated acids and tannins which in combination give this an orange tea essence. Certainly on the drier side of things at this stage, but it has enough sweetness to give balance to the acids and mostly vanished tannins. Juicy and tasty with nice persistence. As you can tell, this is my kinda mature claret but then I always prefer wines which sacrifice power and sweetness for nuance and elegance. (1401 views) | | | Tasted by racerchris on 1/17/2021: Not a powerhouse, not a star, and already on a long slow decline, but it was a great accompaniment to our grassfed beef burgers tonight. (1362 views) | | | Tasted by hprphf on 11/27/2020 & rated 88 points: Pencilbox, light palate. 88 (1344 views) | | | Tasted by LWI on 9/2/2020 & rated 94 points: Wonderful, almost primary fruit with black currants; slimmer in the mouth, yet elegant, complex finish. Wonderful accomplishment in this vintage. (1662 views) | | | Tasted by racerchris on 8/28/2020 & rated 92 points: Rich dark fruit with herbal overtones and a just hint of #2 pencil. Very much an excellent bottle of wine but I lowered my score by a point because the acidity seemed a bit high, throwing off the balance. (1484 views) | | | Tasted by CGandur on 5/25/2020: brilliant !! (1793 views) | | | Tasted by GrapeScott on 5/16/2020 & rated 92 points: Very cedary nose, with brazil nut, sandalwood and cassis aromas. Has a bit of oxidized nutty/sherry notes initially which blew off with aeration, revealing cedar, cherry and raspberry flavors on the midpalate. With air, it continued to fill out and gain complexity, suggesting it still has quite a bit of life ahead. It's been almost 20 years since I last had this wine (at which time it was remarkable), and time has been pretty kind to it. Smooth finish with only a whisper of tannins and lingering flavors of cedary oak and red currant on the medium-plus finish. (1706 views) | | | Tasted by maxima on 12/18/2019 & rated 83 points: Palette et réduit...mince et insipide.
Un peu de feuille et de terre,
du graphite et un peu (je suis poli) de fruit.
Y'en a qui s'esclaffe devant un vin de la sorte, pour
moi 0 intéret, encore du hit and miss avec ces vieilles bouettes.
PS: J'aime mieux boire un vin 3, 5 ou 10 ans trop tot que de
boire ce genre de vin... dieu merci que je n'ai plus rien
de cet acabit en cave! (2966 views) | | | Tasted by rsharma on 5/12/2018: Drank at Corey's house. (3824 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| Château Cos d'Estournel Producer website – Read more about Chateau Cos d’EstournelRed Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.France Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)
Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings
2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.comBordeaux Bordeaux Wine Guide
Vins Bordeaux (Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux)
History of Bordeaux
History of 1855 Bordeaux Classification
"2009 is all about ripeness, with wines impressively packed with ripe fruit and high alcohol levels. They are showy, in-your-face, and full of pleasure. The 2010s have the fruit and alcohol levels of the 2009s, but with a compelling freshness on the finish that balances the fruit and provides a perfect sense of structure." - Ben Nelson
"2016 is a landmark vintage in certain spots of Bordeaux and it should be remembered as one of the most inspired campaigns of the last 40-50+ years." -Jon Rimmerman
"The quality of red Bordeaux in 2016 was universally lauded – although the response to the en primeur campaign was muted. Quantity was high too, with the equivalent of 770 million bottles of wine produced. An exceptionally dry summer with cool nights eventually, thanks to mid September rain, resulted in small, thick-skinned, ripe grapes, and the wines are marked by high tannin and acidity, with superb aromatic fragrance." - Jancis Robinson
"2017 was complicated, but there are some excellent wines. Expect plenty of freshness and drinkability from wines that will offer excellent value, and others that will rival 2016 in terms of ripeness and ageability. But they are likely to be the exception not the rule, making careful selection key." - Jane Anson
"In the past, a vintage such as 2022 may have been overripe, raisined and low in acidity but 2022 had a sneaky little reservoir in its back pocket - a near perfect marriage of cool/cold/rain the previous winter and the previous vintage that literally soaked the soils (a key to why 2022 is not 2003...or 1893)." - Jon RimmermanMédoc Vins du Médoc (Conseil des Vins du Médoc) - Read More about the Medoc
VdB
The eight precisely defined appellations of the whole of the Médoc (from Blanquefort Brook to the north of the Bordeaux built-up area, almost to the Pointe de Grave) may claim the Médoc appellation. But there is also a specific territory in the north of the peninsula which produces exclusively wines with this appellation. In the great majority, the Médocs come from the north of the peninsula. The great individuality of this region is that the number of vines has increased more recently here than elsewhere, apart from a few isolated spots where vines have grown for many years. Today, the size of the small estate has brought about the development of a powerful co-operative movement. Four co-operatives out of five belong to the group called Unimédoc which ensures aging, bottling and marketing a large proportion of their wines.St. Estèphe Read more about St. Estephe and its wines Whereas the first activity recorded in Saint-Estèphe goes back as far as the Middle Bronze Age, the first vines date from the Roman Occupation. But it was the Bordeaux merchants who by aging and selling Saint-Estèphe wines themselves were largely responsible for this appellation's fame. And in the nineteenth century, noted for its prosperity, the great estates of today were created. The movement continues today with the merging of small estates.
A land of great wines, Saint-Estèphe is situated almost in the centre of the Médoc, close to the Gironde Estuary. The appellation is equidistant from Bordeaux and the Pointe de Grave.
The beds of soil are characterized by their remarkable diversity, the result of their undulating relief and excellent drainage. Quartz and well-rounded pebbles mingled with light, sandy surface soil are found everywhere, giving the wines a distinctive finesse. And the subsoil is made up of the famous Saint-Estèphe limestone, which outcrops on the west of the commune.
Tasting
Thanks to ideal conditions of climate and geology, Saint-Estèphe wines are characterized by their sturdy qualities and robust constitution. Accordingly, they can be laid down for a very long time while yet preserving their youth and freshness. Distinguished by a subsoil which is more clayey than that in the other communal appellations which lie by the river, the wine here attains a distinctive individuality : a very rich tannic structure, a fine deep red colour and an exceptional backbone with aromas of great finesse.
Production conditions (Decree dated September 11, 1936):
In order to have the right to the Saint-Estèphe appellation of controlled origin, red wines must:
- come from the communes of Saint-Estèphe, "excluding any parcels in that area which are situated on recent alluvium and sand on impermeable subsoils",
- satisfy precise production conditions : grape-varieties (Cabernet-Sauvignon, Cabernet-Franc, Carmenère, Merlot Noir, Petit Verdot, Cot or Malbec), minimum of sugar (178 grammes - 6.27 oz. - per litre of must) degree (an acquired 10°5) base yield (45 hectolitres per hectare). |
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