Château Cos d'Estournel 2016
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A voluptuous and fascinating Saint-Estèphe red wine
The producer
Located in the north of the Médoc wine region, Cos d'Estournel majestically appears on a hill in Saint-Estèphe. Like a real Maharadja palace, the Château and its pagodas are both surprising and captivating. In 1791, Louis-Gaspard d'Estournel inherited hectares of vines and built the estate. An adventurer who travelled around the world, his love for exoticism and the Middle East are the reasons behind Château Cos d'Estournel’s unique architecture. Owned by Michel Reybier since 2000, Château Cos d'Estournel continues to shine in the Saint-Estèphe appellation and joins the world's finest wines, standing out due to its unique style and its ongoing quest for beauty and excellence.
The vineyard
The Cos d'Estournel vineyard is located on the edge of a plateau, near the Gironde estuary. Thus, the vineyard benefits from a maritime climate and is protected from bad weather. The vines are planted on two hillsides and a central plateau, benefiting from both ideal exposure and good ventilation.
The vintage
Château Cos d'Estournel’s 2016 vintage benefited from exceptional and unusual conditions. Located in the north of the Médoc, in the Saint-Estèphe appellation, the average age of the vines is high and they benefit from a terroir that is ideal for making a rare wine, with extremely clayey soils. The deep roots have helped to combat the extreme weather fluctuations due to a severe drought in the Gironde department.
The blend
This Château Cos d'Estournel 2016 comprises a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (76%), Merlot (23%) and Cabernet Franc (1%).
The tasting
Château Cos d'Estournel 2016 is exquisitely graceful, full-bodied, but not excessively so, and extremely delicate. So as not to belie the legend, Cos d'Estournel seems to be secretive and intriguing at first, the wine gradually opens up and brilliantly reveals its intense fruit. The wine is full-bodied and exceptionally well-balanced, giving it a very drinkable character. The perfectly integrated tannins are present but graceful. The wine displays finesse and elegance, offering a persistent finish. This Château Cos d'Estournel 2016’s ageing potential is impressive.
The 2016 Cos d'Estournel is blended of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc aged in 65% new and 35% two-year-old French oak for 15 months. Bottled in July 2018, it is deep garnet-purple colored and starts off a little closed and reticent, opening out slowly and seductively to reveal beautiful lilacs, rose hip tea, crushed stones and camphor nuances over a core of crème de cassis, kirsch, wild blueberries and mocha plus wafts of incense and wood smoke. The palate is simply electric, charged with an energy and depth of flavors that seem to defy the elegance and ethereal nature of its medium-bodied weight, featuring super ripe, densely pixelated tannins that firmly frame the myriad of fruit and floral sparks, finishing with epic length. Just. Magic.