Château Cos d'Estournel 2021
IN BOND
Delivery 2024
Appellation - St Estèphe
Owner - Bernard Arnault and Albert Frère
64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot.
Second wine – Les Pagodes de Cos
Annual production – 400,000 bottles
TASTING NOTES
"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)"
93/95
Neal Martin, vinous.com, May 2022
"The 2021 Cos d'Estournel is very promising, offering up rich aromas of dark berries, plums, exotic spices, loamy soil and rose petals, followed by a medium to full-bodied, deep and seamless palate that's impressively vibrant and concentrated, with powdery tannins, bright acids and a long, penetrating finish. Only 53% of the production made it into the grand vin, and the blend is 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Technical director Dominique Arangoïts reports that Cos was spared by frost and coulure at flowering, harvesting between September 23 and October 4, and fermenting a touch hotter than has been the case in recent years, at around 28-29 degrees Celsius."
94/95
William Kelley, Wine Advocate (260), April 2022
"A firm red with solid, compact tannins. Medium to full body with plenty of blackcurrant, pencil-lead and graphite character. Compact and structured throughout, with a firm finish. Linear and muscular tannins at the end that are very formed and curated. It will be interesting to see how this one evolves. 64% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot."
94/95
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, May 2022
"The 2021 Cos d'Estournel is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it struts out of the glass with classic scents of blackcurrant pastilles, ripe juicy plums, and cedar chest, followed by hints of crushed rocks, pencil shavings, and cinnamon stick. Light to medium-bodied, the palate is tightly wound with firm, grainy tannins and integrated freshness supporting the intense, mineral-laced fruit, finishing long and savory."
2028-2060
93/95
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, May 2022
"This vintage, which can be overly straight and austere, benefits from the house style of Cos, where they are happy to add a twist of gourmet glamour, and I am seriously impressed with this wine. It showcases the successful sides of a cool vintage in spades, with bitter black chocolate, cool blue fruits, lemongrass and turmeric and black pepper spices. 55% new oak. 3.79ph. 53% of overall production is for the 1st wine, the rest in Pagodes. Easily one of the wines of the vintage."
96
Jane Anson, JaneAnson.com, April 2022