Cos d'Estournel 2023

Jane Anson - Inside Bordeauxh

Adrian van Velsen - vvWine.ch

Vinum Wine Magazine

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider

Chocolate, mint, licorice, smoke, tobacco, black and blue blue fruits with hints of Asian spices shows in the aromatic profile with only a few swirls. But, as is often the case, with Cos, it is the palate that offers thrills with its creamy, plush, opulent textures. The fruits are lively, spicy and fresh, leaving you with layers of opulent, black, red and blue fruits with a spicy edge that lingers and expands long after the wine has left has the glass. The wine was made from blending 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot, and 1% Cabernet Franc. The wine is going to be approachable early in its life, yet it has the ability to age for decades. Drink from 2030-2060.

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

With a shortened cuvaison of 21 days instead of the usual 30, lower fermentation temperatures (around 26 degrees Celsius) and the abandonment of crushing, the 2023 Cos d'Estournel shows to striking effect. It opens with a complex, seductive bouquet of mulberries, cassis, flowers, rose petals and exotic spices, seamlessly interwoven with new oak. Full-bodied, deep and layered, it is built around a fleshy, concentrated mid-palate framed by velvety, finely structuring tannins, unfolding with notable fluidity and concluding with an ethereal finish. Impeccably controlled and confidently expressive, it marries charm with a strong sense of place, standing out as one of the estate’s most accomplished recent renditions.

Jeb Dunnuck

Crème de cassis, spicy oak, graphite, and lead pencil shavings, with that classic Saint-Estèphe damp earth character, all emerge from the 2023 Château Cos D'Estournel, a deep purple-hued effort based on 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, and 1% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot that was aged in 50% new French oak. It's a rich, concentrated, powerful Cos offering plenty of tannins, ample mid-palate depth, beautiful sweetness of fruit, and a great finish. This serious, brilliant 2023 deserves 5-7 years of bottle age (you'll be excused for drinking bottles today) and will keep for 40-50 years. Drink 2030-2075.

James Suckling

The finesse is pretty phenomenal here, with such complexity of fruit and vivid, bright flowers. Lavender and rose. Seductive. Ever-so long and precise. Lead pencil and graphite. Reminiscent of old, great Cos, such as 1955 or 1982, but with so much more form and modernity. A renaissance of Cos. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 33% merlot, 1% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot.