CHÂTEAU COS D'ESTOURNEL
2014 2ème Cru Classé Saint Estèphe
65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc. For Aymerich the 2014 Cos was a late born baby - and he is clearly a proud father as he finds it bewitching. It certainly is a great wine. Deliciously fragrant nose of dark red fruit and some sweet rolling tobacco. This is nicely dense, there is a lovely, very precise feel to the intense dark core. A rather luxurious texture is backed up by the deliciously fine grained tannins, this finishes very long and very focused, just such good balance. Rating: 96 L&S (Apr 2015)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
The 2014 Cos d'Estournel has a wonderful bouquet. Compared directly with Montrose, there is a notch more exuberance and precision, with layers of rich but delineated plummy black fruit laced with rose petals and dark chocolate. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. There's a lovely depth of fruit and a sense of symmetry plus sapidity that compels you back for more. Silky texture, this is a Cos d'Estournel that will give a lot of pleasure in the coming years. Tasted at Bordeaux Index's 10-Year-On tasting. Drinking range: 2026 - 2060 Rating: 93 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2024)
Inky plum in colour, this kicks off with cloves, turmeric, black pepper and graphite, this is still tight and not yet fully opened, I suggest a long carafe if approaching any time soon. The tannic architecture is on full display, and the concentration of ripe black fruits suggests long ageing ahead. Drinking range: 2024 - 2040 Rating: 94 Jane Anson, Decanter (Feb 2024)
Inky depths to this wine, from the first pour you are aware of the exceptional quality, really standing out in this horizontal tasting of the appellation. Inky in colour, heading to soft ruby around the edges, brushed velvet texture, and loaded up with graphite, turmeric, cassis, mint leaf, clove, chocolate and mandarin peel. Impactful and confident, just a shame that the bottle is so heavy. Michel Reybier owner, Aymeric de Gironde director. Drinking range: 2022 - 2042 Rating: 96 Jane Anson, Decanter (Oct 2022)
The 2014 Cos d’Estournel has another intense bouquet with blackberry, graphite, tobacco and mint aromas, almost Pauillac in style. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin that exert plenty of grip. This is surfeit with sappy black fruit, graceful and tensile with a beautiful, svelte finish that fans out gloriously. There is real panache to this wine, persistent and satisfying, the aftertaste of graphite and tobacco extraordinarily long. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2022 - 2055 Rating: 96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2018)
Very deep crimson. Clean, fresh attack. Very rich and smooth and worked. Intense and attention-grabbing. Sweeter and plummier than some – which is arguably not an attribute in a St-Estèphe. Drinking range: 2023 - 2038 Rating: 17 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Feb 2018)
The 2014 Cos d'Estournel is rich, powerful and seductive, with notable unctuousness but a medium-bodied frame. Plum, blackberry jam, bittersweet chocolate and lavender notes flesh out in an effortless, sumptuous wine that will provide superb drinking for the next few decades. The 2014 needs time to shed some baby fat, but it is quite impressive, even in the early going. The blend is 65 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 33 % Merlot and 2 % Cabernet Franc. Drinking range: 2022 - 2044 Rating: 95+ Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Feb 2017)
Intense, with a roiling core of luscious loganberry, blackberry and black currant fruit. Singed spice, apple wood and black tea accents emerge steadily on the finish. Has a rare combination of density and precision. Will cruise in the cellar. Drinking range: 2020 - 2035 Rating: 94 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Jan 2017)
The Château Cos d'Estournel 2014 is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc picked between 25 September and 10 October at 33.7 hectoliters per hectare. The pH came in at 3.77 and an IPT of 87, quite high compared to some other properties in the northern Médoc. It has "cool" nose, by that I mean it is not a flamboyant set of aromatics like the 2009 or 2010, but rather "streamlined" and focused, very delineated with black fruit intermingling with incense and iris. It is very controlled. The palate is medium-bodied with supple, but "full" tannins in the mouth that lend this Cos d'Estournel impressive volume. There is an unerring purity here, a gradual crescendo of intensity towards a peppery finish that lingers long. This is an impressive Grand Vin - classic Cos d'Estournel. Tasted three times with consistent notes. Drinking range: 2022 - 2045 Rating: 93-95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2015)
Dense black fruits nose - exotic; described as 'bewitching'. Wonderful texture and depth, great richness with fine firmness to back it up. The best 'modern' Cos for years. (Outstanding St-Estèphe, Decanter.) Drinking range: 2020 - 2040 Rating: 95 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2015)
The 2014 Cos d'Estournel brings together gorgeous textural richness and ripeness, yet retains considerable aromatic freshness. Mocha, red plum, raspberry jam and rose petals are all beautifully nuanced. I very much like the sense of translucent energy here. Sweet floral and spice notes add to the wine's racy, voluptuous personality. Today, my impression is that the 2014 Cos will reward consumers with a long window of pure drinking pleasure. The blend is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. Rating: 92-95 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2015)
Dense colour. Really very luscious indeed. A streak of St-Estèphe iron filings but surrounded by the more opulent fruit. Fine and refined. More fun than Lafite! Masses of tannins and density. Shorter than some vintages, such as 2005! Drinking range: 2024 - 2045 Rating: 18 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2015)
Bilberry fresh the nose has fragrance the start of the palate fresh. Richness in the middle fruit power hints of liquorice the tannins are supple the back palate fleshy and rich. Drinking range: 2027 - 2040 Rating: 90-95 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Apr 2015)
After a stylistic wobble in 2009, Cos has made a run of impressive wines in recent years. The 2014 is right up there with the very best of them: deftly oaked, spicy and green pepper scented with a core of sweetness framed by fine-grained tannins and underpinned by tangy acidity. (One of Tim's Top 10 Left Bank Reds.) Drinking range: 2022 - 2035 Rating: 97 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2015)
I love the style of this Cos with so much Indian spices constituting the aromas and flavors here. Full body, fine tannins and an ultra-long finish. Excellent structure and length yet this maintains finesse. Rating: 96-97 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Mar 2015)
Château Cos d'Estournel
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.