Château Cos d'Estournel 2007

A beautiful wine with 13.4% natural alcohol, this blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc possesses a deep ruby/purple color as well as a sweet perfume of cassis, incense, charcoal, and subtle oak, round, generously endowed flavors, medium to full body, silky tannin, and surprising depth and length. It can be drunk now and over the next 12-15 years.

Showing very well, with creamy-edged plum and cassis flavors flecked with tobacco and warm paving stone notes, remaining quite fresh and supple through the finish. Not as dense as in the top years, but shows lovely purity and balance. -- Non-blind Cos-d'Estournel vertical (December 2015). Drink now through 2027. 22,000 cases made.

In this vintage, a hot April quickly gave way to a cooler spell, leading the winemaking team to de-leaf early so as much sunshine as possible could reach the grapes. This is not aggressive or vegetal, but supple, with clearly fewer tannins than in most vintages, moving into cured leather and soft autumnal fruit with some earthy notes. You can feel the oak a little more than usual in its spiciness, which adds an edge and fills the structural gaps. Plenty to enjoy here; drink now or over the next decade.

A silky and fine 2007 with mushroom, berry and light coffee character. Just a hint of dark fruits. Medium to full body. Round tannins. Drink now. I underestimated this.

Deep, bright red-ruby color. Aromas of plum, redcurrant and kirsch are complicated by sexy woodsmoke, soy sauce and flowers. Silky and rather lush, with a restrained sweetness and considerable finesse to its moderately ripe, sweet middle palate. Finishes with fine-grained tannins and lingering notes of minerals, herbs, dried flowers and smoke. A lovely 2007.

Medium bodied, bright, fresh, earthy red berries, with notes of spice, earth, tobacco, espresso, fennel and fresh herbs. The texture is soft, there is an easy elegance to the wine. Fully mature, this is as good as it is going to get. So, if you want to enjoy the remainder of the soft fruits, pop a cork before the wine begins its slow fade into old age. The wine was made from blending 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc, reaching 13.4% ABV. Not decanted and just popped and poured was the way to go with this wine.

Extremely dark color, violet-purple. Aromatic, deep bouquet with truffle notes, cloves, Arabica coffee, dried blueberries, and brilliant elements of spicy Cabernet and dark, exotic woods. On the palate, full-bodied with concentrated extract, fairly fine tannins, beautifully balanced, staying mainly in the black-berry register, with an extremely long finish. Hardly noticeable that it might be a difficult vintage: a truly great Grand Cru, a tour de force in the vineyard and also in the selection.

08: 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc. 55% Grand Vin. Extremely dark violet-purple color. Aromatic, profound bouquet with truffle notes, cloves, Arabica coffee, dried blueberries, and brilliant elements of spicy Cabernet and dark, exotic woods. On the palate, ample, concentrated extract, fairly fine tannins, beautifully balanced, staying mostly in the black-berry spectrum, with an extremely long finish. You wouldn’t notice here that this Cos might come from a potentially difficult vintage. A truly great Grand Cru and a masterful achievement in the vineyard as well as in the selection! 09: For the moment, it seems a little less promising than at the en primeur tasting. Beneath the magnificent roasted notes appear red cherries, café au lait, and chocolate notes. On the palate, soft and nicely spicy. A more feminine Cos with finesse. (19/20). 20: Medium-dark wine-red, clearly more rubied, lightened rim. The bouquet shows a red-fruit tendency—red cherries, violets, café au lait, cedar (like the 2000). On the palate, medium weight, slightly sinewy. It still conveys certain primary aromas. The finish shows a grainy texture. Which means it has developed little, without gaining in potential. Worth noting: it is one of the best and great 2007s from the whole Médoc. Drink now and for at least 10 more years. Much better than the generally rather meager reputation of this “bistro vintage.” (18/20).

Logo on the cork: JL (Lafitte Liège) Dark, intense, evolved color. Fruity, oxidative nose. Soft, fruity, tender palate, a touch muted mid-palate that returns smoother on the finish. Medium length.

With its perfumed aromas, this is a wine that has richness and sweetness, with soft velvet power. It has an intense wood element that needs to blend into the rest of the wine, but the sweet black currant and freshness provide a good balance. This is a seductive wine, with a fine solid character.