Critic Review
Cellar Favorite: 2009 & 2010 Cos d’Estournel (Feb 2025)
The 2010 Cos d'Estournel is cut from a different cloth to the previous vintage. This is much fresher on the nose and crucially displays more typicité, yet it delivers just as much punch as the 2009. Black fruit commingles with melted tar and smoke. A sprig of wild mint surfaces with continued aeration. The palate possesses immense gravitas and dimension, analogous to a magnificent suspension bridge. It is less ostentatious than the 2009, with firmer grip and greater control and sapidity on the finish. Whilst I can understand some might prefer the 2009, the 2010 Cos d'Estournel is just more...Cos d'Estournel, though be warned, it would still benefit from a couple more years in bottle. Magnificent.
Neal Martin - 97
Fairest of Them All: Cos d’Estournel 1928 – 2015 (Oct 2018)
The 2010 Cos d’Estournel has long been my preference over the 2009. That vintage kowtowed to the crowd and yes, to critics. The 2010 is less compromising but more intellectual. It has a scintillating, pixelated bouquet with intense black fruit, asphalt and mint aromas – vivid and bright, much more focused and certainly less flamboyant than the 2009. The palate is medium-bodied with a huge chassis; a Saint-Estèphe clearly built for the long-term with enormous grip and enthralling tension. As before, there is a liberal sprinkling of white pepper towards the finish and is exceptionally long. The 2010 is the finest Cos d’Estournel until the more finessed 2016 comes along. It is a deeply impressive wine but it will appeal more to those that prefer classic Bordeaux to one boasting tons of fruit, as pleasurable as that might be. Tasted at the Cos d’Estournel vertical in London.
Neal Martin - 97
The 2010 Clarets: A Modern Classic (Jul 2013)
Full, bright ruby. Superripe but vibrant nose offers liqueur-like cassis, graphite, mocha and exotic oak scents; smells thick! Then plush, dense, large-scaled and seamless, offering extraordinary breadth and a 3-D texture to its dark fruit, graphite and mineral flavors. This very modern style of Cos finishes with outstanding, building, palate-saturating persistence and utterly sweet tannins.
Stephen Tanzer - 94
Bordeaux 2010: All That Glitters... (May 2011)
(a blend of 78% cabernet sauvignon, 19% merlot, cabernet franc 2% and 1% petit verdot; 3.51 pH; IPT 91; alcohol 14.5% alcohol; a 55% selection for the grand vin Saturated bright ruby. Captivating, intense aromas of dark berries, red cherry, mint and tobacco. Dense, sweet and fruity in the mouth if still a bit youthfully tight, with great purity to the flavors of red and dark berries, exotic herbs and licorice. Finishes smooth and extremely long, with wonderfully silky tannins. This very big wine will need plenty of time, but I have no doubt this will be remembered as a great Cos. Jean-Guillaume Prats pointed out that though the analytical numbers (IPT, alcohol, acidity) are very similar to those of the '09 Cos, the two wines could not be more different. When it comes to wine, he emphasized, the numbers do not tell the whole story. I should point out that the 2010 Cos contains only 19% merlot, down from the 33% of 2009—and merlot that had overripened at that.
Ian d'Agata - 93-96
Squares & Circles: Bordeaux ‘10 At Ten (Apr 2020)
The 2010 Cos d’Estournel is a quite brilliant wine, although on this occasion it does not reach the rarefied heights of Montrose. It is endowed with precise black fruit laced with coniferous trees and undergrowth, a touch of Cuban cigar with time. The palate has more body and density than Montrose, but not the same crystalline character. Still, it is a great achievement and will offer decades of pleasure. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.
Neal Martin - 96
Squares & Circles: Bordeaux ‘10 At Ten (Apr 2020)
The 2010 Cos d’Estournel is initially backward on the nose, yet it eventually unfurls to reveal pixelated black fruit, crushed stone, cedar and pine cones, wonderful precision and focus. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannins that frame the multi-layered black fruit laced with cedar and black pepper. Great body, superb length and outstanding precision on the finish - what more would you want? Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.
Neal Martin - 97
