Château Cos Labory 2022

A mix of floral tones, dark fruit and smoke; juicy and crisp, with breed and finesse, character and bite, very nice length, red-fruited, spicy finish.

The 2022 Cos Labory offers up a high-toned, baked bouquet of berries and prunes, followed by a medium to full-bodied, firm and somewhat drying palate.

Sleek and well-built in feel, with a beam of violet, iris, red currant and dark cherry notes that have melded together nicely. Shows a singed apple wood frame on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2026 through 2036. Tasted twice, with consistent notes. 6,000 cases made, 1,000 cases imported.

Blackcurrants, vanilla, roses and sweet cherries. Fresh and sapid, the tannins are filling with a really chalky, powdery texture alongside fleshy, almost chewy but juicy fruit and a cool, lifted finish. Clearly ripe, but this keeps an enjoyable energy and sense of fun. It feels like they've taken a light hand with the ageing and the wine is all the better for it.

A solid red with blackcurrants, cedar, sweet tobacco and hints of hot asphalt. Full-bodied, this has powerful tannins that are chewy and intense. More structured than I remembered. 55% cabernet sauvignon, 36% merlot, 7% petit verdot and 2% cabernet franc. This is the first vintage bottled by the owner of Cos d’Estournel, who bought the estate in 2023. Try after 2028.

The 2022 Cos Labory is a fine effort from the château in the year when Michel Reybier and his team at Cos d'Estournel finished élevage and did the bottling. The 2022 offers tons of textural depth and overall intensity, but it comes across as on the edge of overripeness. Former owner Bernard Audoy began his harvest on September 14, a full week after Reybier and his team started picking at Cos.

Ripe, dark fruits and flowers show on the nose with ease. Polished, ripe, and round in texture, you get sweetness, hints of chocolate, and juicy black cherries, all carried by freshness on the finish, leaving just a touch of dark chocolate on the back end. This is the last vintage for the new owners. Starting in 2023, the team of Cos d'Estournel took over the vineyard and the production of the wine. The blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc. Drink from 2026–2042.

Deep dark ruby in colour with an opaque core, purple reflections, and subtle brightening on the rim. On the nose, aromas of ripe black cherry, tobacco, fine herbal spices, and orange zest. The palate is taut and tightly meshed with supporting tannins, dark berry fruit, mineral and persistent on the long, spicy finish.

The 2022 Château Cos Labory comes from the team at Cos D'Estournel and is based on 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot, with the rest Cabernet Franc, raised in 50% new French oak. This saturated purple-hued beauty boasts a great nose of smoky red and black fruits interwoven with notes of graphite, tobacco, and crushed stone. It’s a rich, full-bodied, concentrated 2022 with sweet tannins and no hard edges. It already offers pleasure, yet I wouldn’t be surprised to see this still going strong at age 30.

Restrained start, black-berried contours, tarragon and juniper. On the compact palate, a finely austere texture, sandy extract and a dense body sheathed in plenty of muscle. In the focused, finely aromatic finish, sloe and a grainy astringency.

Last full year under the brothers Bernard, Stéphane and Martial Audoy, owners since 1984. The new team under Cos d'Estournel is thought to have overseen the final ageing of this wine, but it retains that old-school, slightly austere tannic frame that is typical of Cos Labory. Plenty of grip and character, dark brambled fruits and pencil shavings, smoked earth, raspberry leaf, rose bud. 50% new oak for ageing.

A rather flat, heavy profile, dominated by ripe fruit with little nuance.

The bouquet of Cos Labory shows a touch of its élevage with hints of caramel, yet also delivers notes of graphite, peppermint, cherries and chamomile, offering very respectable complexity. On the palate, the wine takes on a linear profile. It is supported by compact tannins that match the mouthwatering, lively edge of the structure. The oak still needs to be better integrated. A wine that continues its climb. One to follow on its journey!

Dark color. Intense nose with ripe, fresh, and fragrant fruit. Full, juicy, intense, deep, and rich palate. The wine unfolds with bright flavor, long and truly very good.

The Cos d’Estournel team took part in the blendings, with the château coming under the guidance of Michel Reybier. This vintage offers structure, energetic tannins, and a tangy profile, fresh as is often the case at this estate, with appetizing smoky and sanguine flavors. It will keep its name and identity.

93-95 Barrel sample. Now under the same ownership as Cos d'Estournel, this estate has produced a lighter, more poised wine than in the past. That brings out freshness and fine black-currant fruits to go alongside the structure.