Pagodes de Cos 2016

This has good energy, with a light briar note running through the mix of raspberry, plum and cherry paste flavors. Subtle chalk and iron streaks add texture and cut on the finish. Best from 2021 through 2031. 18,333 cases made.

Coffee, toast and caramel on a nose that’s slightly lacking in fruit; better on the palate. Crisp acidity, rich fruit and a cool mineral vein running through. Plenty of flesh and substance make this an enjoyable glass.

A red with very deep and intense fruit character, yet rich tannins to back it all up. Full-bodied, layered and powerful. The second wine of Cos d’Estournel is serious again in 2016. Try from 2025.

Fully ready to go, the wine opens with smoky notes, Morello cherries, spice, and cocoa with a hint of blueberries. Medium-bodied, soft-textured, sweet, and spicy, the finish leaves you with sweet cherries and a dash of Indian-spiced chocolate. Drink from 2024-2030.

Dark ruby, with an opaque core, purple reflections, and a discreet bright rim. On the nose, ripe cherry fruit, delicate hints of plum, fresh orange zest, tobacco nuances, and some nougat. Juicy, elegant, discreet sweet fruit, well-integrated tannins, a fine acid structure, and a touch of nougat on the finish, with a cherry flavour on the back palate.

The second wine of the estate is no slouch. The 2016 Pagodes de Cos has some grand vin character in its cassis and graphite aromas and flavors. Showing more incense, graphite, and hints of flowers with air time, this medium to full-bodied, rounded, beautifully textured effort is well worth a case purchase. Drink this beauty, the equal to most estates’ top wines, while you wait on the grand vin to come around.

50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46.5% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 0.5% Cabernet Franc. Purple with garnet highlights at the rim. Playful bouquet with plenty of violets, followed by morello cherries and cherry tobacco. On the powerful palate, a silky texture leads into gripping tannins, giving the body a sinewy feel; a touch of astringency on the finish.

Kunz barrel sample 17: (50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46.5% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, 0.5% Cabernet Franc, 13.02% vol. alcohol) Spicy, mineral bouquet, black cherries, tobacco, cedar, mocha, mint. Silky, medium-bodied, elegant palate with fine, sweet fruit, dense structure, good tannins, powerful aromatics, long, full, sweet finish. Has room to improve.

Violet on the nose, floral, small red fruits, a hint of vanilla. Fresh on the palate, crisp fruit, spicy, very silky tannins, long finish.

The nose is racy and offers minerality, a small frame and fine concentration. It reveals notes of blackcurrant, wild blackberry and, more subtly, wild red fruits, combined with fine touches of Cuben pepper, cocoa, toasted notes and toasted hazelnut. The palate is fruity, juicy, suave and balanced, with lovely definition, fleshiness, good structure, fine grain, attractive freshness, appealing minerality, a vibrant guiding energy, and a tangy backbone. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of crisp/juicy blackcurrant and juicy cherry, and more delicately fleshy raspberry and fleshy/juicy blueberry, combined with discreet hints of tonka bean, cardamom, flowers (in the background), as well as an imperceptible hint of hazelnut and tea (in the background). The tannins are fine and well-handled. A very discreet hint of grey pepper appears on the finish.

Dark, intense, and vibrant color. A medium-intensity nose with ripe fruit. Soft on the attack, melting on the mid-palate, very fragrant and juicy, the wine caresses the palate on the finish. It ends long and, above all, impossible to spit out.

The 2016 Pagodes de Cos is deep garnet in color. It gallops out with vibrant notes of crushed blackcurrants, warm blackberries, and Morello cherries, plus suggestions of tilled soil, tapenade, and iron ore. Light to medium-bodied, the palate is wonderfully elegant, with delicately played, silky tannins and fantastic tension framing the perfumed fruit, finishing on a mineral note.

Dense and full of dark fruits, this second wine from Cos d'Estournel comes from specific parcels. With blackberry fruits and rich, generous tannins, the wine has weight and concentration. The freshness at the end is so typical of the vintage. Drink from 2023.