2010 Château Cos d'Estournel St. Estèphe Bordeaux France Wine Tasting Note
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2010
Château Cos d'Estournel (St. Estèphe)
Still young, but even at this early stage, it is impossible not to be wowed by this wine. The layers of depth, intensity, richness, power, and finesse are almost off the charts. The black fruits are perfectly ripe, opulent, flamboyant, and fresh, as well as balanced, pure, and refined. This is a great vintage for Cos that will start showing its best with a few more years of age. Drink from 2028-2060. 6,052 Views Tasted Sep 26, 2022I am shocked by how much fun this was to drink at the tender age of only 9 years of age. Full-bodied, powerful, concentrated, in fact, dense is a good way to discuss this beauty. But the wine is balanced, fresh and complex. Luscious on the palate, the finish focuses on layers of ripe, blackberry and cassis, chocolate, herbs and Asian spice. Decanted about 90 minutes, the wine kept getting better and better in the glass as the night wore on. This is a wine you should have in your cellar if you are a fan of Cos d'Estournel. I am sure this will be even better in 5, 10, 15, 20 and even 25 years from now. 10,822 Views Tasted Nov 28, 2018An exotic nose of spice box, orange peel, herbs, oak, espresso bean, jam, flowers, smoke and forest floor. Full bodied, rich, tannic, powerful, structured to age and showing a lot of freshness in the fruit, the wine is a modern version of a classic vintage of Cos d’Estournel that demands a minimum of a decade in the cellar. 14,218 Views Tasted May 7, 2013Inky purple in color, the nose reeks of plum and blackberry liqueur, incense, blueberry, wood, gravel and smoke. In the mouth this big, powerful, tannic, fresh, structured Bordeaux wine demands attention. This requires serious time in the cellar before being approachable. This is a traditionally styled, muscular, powerful wine which ends with a long sensation of pure, dark berries, plums, freshness and a lot of tannin. Jean-Guillaume Prats calls 2010 Cos d’Estournel, “A perfect definition of Bordeaux wine blending austerity, power and elegance.” Jean-Guillaume added; that he loves the 2009 Cos for its glamorous style, but that is a unique vintage for the chateau. 13,476 Views Tasted Jul 6, 20122010 Cos d’Estournel was produced from 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc and the remainder Petit Verdot. The wine reached 14.5 % ABV which is a little lower than they achieved in 2009. Representing 55% of the harvest, the wine looks as dark as a midnight sky, with coaxing the wine offers smoke, Asian spice, cassis, boysenberry, stone and minerality in the complex nose. Powerful, dense, pure and packed with tannins as well as a wall of fruit, this wine requires serious aging. Long, fresh and mouth filling, while the tannin levels are less than they were in 2009, due to the higher levels of acidity, (which shaped the wines character) the wine feels more tannic. This broad shouldered, muscular wine will not be fun to drink in its youth. In time, it may become the perfect blend of tradition and modern. Tasters who were not happy with 2009 Cos should love this wine, (It’s closer in style to 2005, with a dash of 1986 blended in, than it is to 2009.) 96-98 Pts Prats thinks 2010 Cos is a perfect definition of what Bordeaux does at its best, mixing austerity, power and elegance. While he loves 2009 Cos d'Estournel for its glamorous style, Jean-Guillaume considers it a unique vintage for the chateau. 11,644 Views Tasted Apr 19, 2011 |
When to Drink Chateau Cos d'Estournel, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time
Chateau Cos d'Estournel can be enjoyed early, with a long decanting, but it is not when the wine shows its best. The wine is much better with several years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage. Most vintages demand at least 12 to 20 years before the wine starts showing its best attributes.
Chateau Cos d'Estournel offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 15-40 years of life. Young vintages can be decanted for 2-4 hours or more. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment.
Serving Chateau Cos d'Estournel with Wine, Food, Pairing Tips
Chateau Cos d'Estournel is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift. Young vintages can be decanted for 2-4 hours. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment.
Chateau Cos d'Estournel is perfect for pairing with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted braised, and grilled dishes. Cos d'Estournel is also good with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta.
Cos d'Estournel Blanc and other wines of the estate
Chateau Cos d'Estournel also makes a dry, white Bordeaux wine, Cos d'Estournel Blanc from a 10 hectare parcel of vines. The wine is produced from a blend of of approximately 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon, although that can vary depending on the vintage. The white wine grapes are grown north of Saint Estephe, in the Jau-Dignac and Loirac regions.
In 2018, to improve the quality of their white wine, the estate introduced a second white wine, Pagodes de Cos Blanc. Most of the vines used to produce Pagodes de Cos Blanc were previously used in Goulee Blanc, which is no longer in production.
For the white wine of Cos d'Estournel, the terroir is a mix of sand, clay, small stones and limestone soils. The vineyard is close to their Goulee property, which is in the Medoc, directly north of Saint Estephe which is a naturally cooler terroir.
The debut vintage for Chateau Cos d'Estournel Blanc was 2005. For the first few vintages, the production was close to 100 cases.
Because the initial production was so small, the wine was not available for sale as a future until 2009. At that point, the production rose to close to 200 cases, which was considered enough for their white Bordeaux wine to be offered as a future.
To produce Cos d'Estournel Blanc, the wine is barrel fermented and aged in a combination of new and one-year-old, French oak barrels to maintain maximum freshness. There is no malolactic fermentation or skin contact. The wine is best enjoyed in its youth. The wine is sold as a generic AOC Bordeaux Blanc.
Cos d'Estournel Blanc is best served with all types of seafood and various cheeses.
Chateau Cos d'Estournel makes a second wine, Les Pagodes de Cos, which was first produced with the 1994 vintage. Originally, the second wine was called Marbuzet. The majority of the fruit came from their vineyard called Marbuzet, hence the name. The name was changed after both properties were purchased by Michel Reybier.
Today, the grapes used in the second wine, Les Pagodes de Cos can from time to time, include fruit from Marbuzet, their other estate in St. Estephe, as well as grapes from young vines and declassified wine intended for Cos d'Estournel.
Since 2005, Les Pagodes de Cos has morphed into one of the better second wines in all of Bordeaux. On average, Les Pagodes de Cos is aged in 40% new, French oak barrels.
In 2003, the Reybier group produced their debut vintage of Goulee by Cos d'Estournel from a vineyard they own in the Medoc, which is situated north of St. Estephe. In 2009 Michel Reybier and Chateau Cos d'Estournel purchased vineyards in Tokaji with they obtained the Hetszolo estate.
Michel Reybier is also an investor in Champagne, with a company he owns, The Pressoirs de France group. The company is a large supplier of bulk and inexpensive Champagne to big supermarkets in England. The wine is sold as Michel Reybier Champagne. In 2020, Michel Reybier purchased a large vineyard in Provence, Chateau La Mascaronne.
More than just interests in vineyards takes place in Bordeaux for the owner of Cos d'Estournel. In 2019, they opened a high-end hotel in Saint Estephe, La Maison d'Estournel on the site of the previously named Chateau Pomys. The hotel has 14 well-appointed guest rooms and suites, a restaurant, and a wine-tasting bar. In addition, Reybier also owns the luxury chain of hotels, La Reserve.
Starting with the 2012 vintage, Cos d'Estournel began to use the Tesa system of anti-counterfeiting measures as well, allowing consumers to verify the authenticity of their bottle with the use of a bar code sticker that is placed on the label and the original wood case.