2021 Chateau Cos d'Estournel - 2eme Cru St. Estephe

Decanter.com – 95 pts – GH: *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.* - 04/2022

Falstaff Magazin – 94 pts – PM: *Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Feine dunkle Waldbeeren, reife Herzkirschen, ein Hauch von Edelholz, zart nach Schokolade, kandierte Orangenzesten. Komplex, saftig, Nuancen von Brombeeren, präsente, straffe Tannine, salzig-mineralisch im Abgang, ein Hauch von dunklem Nougat im Nachhall, verfügt über Reifepotenzial.* - 05/2022

Vinum Magazin – 17,5/20 pts: *Zurückhaltend ausbaugeprägt; beginnt fleischig, die Tannine sind sehr rund und geschmeidig, endet fruchtig und auf dezenten Kräuternoten; besonders stilvoll, harmonisch und stimmig: dürfte abgefüllt noch höher notieren.*

WeinWisser – 18,5/20pts – GL, TW: *64 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 30 % Merlot, 4 % Cabernet Franc, 2 % Petit Verdot, 35 hl/ha. Komplexes Bouquetmit frisch gepflückten Waldhimbeere, Schattenmorellensaft und Palisander, dahinter Preiselbeergelee, heller Tabak und eine zarte Graphitnote. Am subtilen Gaumen mit seidiger Textur, reifem Extrakt, perfekt balancierter Rasse, engmaschigem Tanningerüst und muskulösem Körper. Im konzentrierten Finale schwarzbeerige Konturen, tiefschürfende Terroirwürze und fein sandige Adstringenz. Setzt dieses Jahr auf Seriosität!* – 04/2022

JancisRobinson.com – 17++/20pts – JL: *64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. 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.* - 04/2022

Vinous.com – (94-96) pts – AG: *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.* - 04/2022

Vinous.com – (93-95) pts – NM: *The 2021 Cos d'Estournel has an attractive nose, more complex than the Pagodes (as you would expect), graphite and subtle cigar box scents permeating the black fruit and the Cabernet Sauvignon more expressive at this stage vis-à-vis the Merlot. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. One of the most velvety Cos d'Estournel wines I have encountered at this stage, though linear and strict on the saline finish. This is old-school in some ways, and a bit grumpy in its youth – a wine that will oblige cellar aging. A Saint-Estèphe for the patient among you. (12.74% alcohol).* - 04/2022

Thewinecellarinsider.com – (95-97) pts – JL: *Earthy, spicy, black raspberries, blackberries, flowers, and black currants create the nose and the core of its medium/full-bodied palate. Soft, silky, fresh and polished, there is a nice sweetness and refined edge to the fruit on the palate, finishing with layers of vibrant, peppery, tea-stained, black currants with a gentle hint of herbs on the backend. The wine was made from blending 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc,13% alcohol, pH of 3.7. The yields were 35 hectoliters per hectare. The harvest took place September 23 to October 7. The Grand Vin was produced from 50% of the harvest. The wine is going to approachable early in its life. Drink from 2025-2055.* - 05/2022