Andrey Ryazanov

10

Good stuff — 6 years ago

George Chen

9.3

Older bottle so it’s hard to know when I bought it....guess that’s the fun part! — 7 years ago

Matt Perlman

8.9

I won this random brunello in a charity auction as part of a lot with some Bdx and Burg that I actually wanted. Popped it tonight with spaghetti bolognese and it was actually pretty damn enjoyable. Big wine for sure, but smooth and not too hot despite 14.5% alcohol. Ripe raspberry and black cherry, dried fig, cedar, potpourri, some sweet wood that’s well integrated. Polished and fruit-forward, not exactly what the cool kids are drinking but I had a decent time. — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Is there any meal better than steak (Ribeye) and well aged Claret? This is another 1991 Bordeaux experiment of mine. 1991 was a vintage with horrible frosts and a less than favorable growing season, right? A vintage critically panned. This is my 3rd recent 91 from a good producer. And again, it didn’t disappoint. Like 97 and 07, it’s better with the right bottle age than young. Magic evolution happened in the bottle way down the road. This 91 is in great form with a fair amount of life ahead of it. On the nose; a little ripe fruit funk, wonderful dark & lighter red cassis, ripe blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, plums, hues of blueberries, black raspberries, dry cranberries, vanilla, light cinnamon, rich, black turned earth, cedar, soft leather, dry stones, dry top soil, notes of dry herbs and fresh & dry red flowers. The body/palate is medium, round, ripe & still fresh. The tannins nearly completely resolved. Ripe, floral fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, plums, hues of blueberries, black raspberries, dry cranberries & half cooked rhubarb. Vanilla, light cinnamon, touch of clove & nutmeg, rich, black turned earth, cedar, soft leather, dry stones, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, notes of dry herbs, a little band-aid and fresh & dry red flowers. The acidity drips over the palate and the long, well balanced, still structured, nice tension, good length finish lasts over a minute. Again, love & appreciate the 12.5% alcohol. What a beauty with and without the steak. Next time you’re in your fine wine retail shop and see a quality producers 91 that’s been well stored, buy it and have it with a Ribeye. Photos of; their exotic Estate, Chateau interior, newer barrel room and their vines as viewed from the front of the Chateau that are across the road. Producer notes and history...Cos d’Estournel has a long distinguished history in the St. Estephe. Louis Gaspard d’Estournel, gave his name to the estate after founding in 1811. It did not take long before Cos d’Estournel became famous with wine lovers and royalty all over the world. In those early days, Cos d’Estournel did not sell through Negociants. The owner preferred selling his wine directly to his customers. In fact, Cos d’Estournel was exported to numerous countries across the globe, with a large portion of the production being sold to India. It was that connection to India that inspired much of the unique, east Indian design we see at Cos d’Estournel today. Cos d’Estournel was one of the first Bordeaux Chateaux’s to bottle, label and sell their own wine. This practice continued until the death of Louis Gaspard d’Estournel in 1852. If you’re at the property, the statue on the bench in the front courtyard is of the founder, Louis Gaspard d’Estournel. The Estate was then purchased by an owner that sold their wines on the Place de Bordeaux using the negociant system. If the Chateau was not selling their wines through the negociant system, it would never have been included in the 1855 Classification. Imagine that! So, it turned out to be a fortuitous decision. Cos d’Estournel was sold to the Charmolue family owners of the neighboring Estate of Chateau Montrose. They continued to own the estate until 1917, when it was bought by Fernand Ginestet. This purchase was the beginning of the next major step in the development of Cos d’Estournel. Decades later, the grandchildren of Fernand Ginestet, Jean-Marie Prats, Yves Prats and Bruno Prats took over ownership and management of Cos d’Estournel. In 1995, Bruno Prats sold the property to the Merlaut family, owners of the Taillan Group. The next era in the development of Cos d’Estournel took place in 2000, when Cos d’Estournel was bought by the industrious and wealthy Michel Reybier, who earned his fortune in the food industry. Michel Reybier hired the son of Bruno Prats, Jean-Guillaume Prats to manage Cos d’Estournel. Things further improved with the efforts of Jean-Guillaume Prats who helped design the most modern wine making at that time. A complete renovation of Cos d’Estournel took place in not only the wine making facilities and cellars, but in parts of the Chateau as well. While the wine making facilities are completely modern with their 100% gravity design, the outward appearance retained the original design and feeling that has always been a part of Cos d’Estournel. On October 15, 2012, Jean Guillaume Prats announced he was leaving Cos d’Estournel to join LVMH (Pichon Baron). Jean Guillaume Prats was replaced by Aymeric de Gironde. Following the departure of Aymeric de Gironde in 2017, the owner, Michel Reybier took over managing the Estate. What makes the remodel special is that the cellars of Cos d’Estournel are entirely operated by gravity. There are no pumps of any kind to force the wine. The purpose is to allow a gentleness to the wine and improve its purity and allow for the expression of their terroir. It set a new benchmark for cellars not only in the Left Bank, but in all of Bordeaux. Perhaps, the most inventive part of the cellars is the four 100 hectoliter lift tanks or wine elevators that replace the pumps used in the traditional pumping over and the racking off processes, which introduce air and often destabilize the marc. From the moment the grapes arrive, everything travels by the flow of gravity. Jean Guillaume Prats called this process a “pumpless pump over.” The 91 hectare vineyard of Cos d’Estournel is planted to 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The vineyard is located extremely close to the border between Pauillac and Saint Estephe at the southern tip of the Saint Estephe. The Estate has very old Merlot vines as well, which date back more than 100 years. Part of the terroir is situated on the hill of Cos, which is at a high elevation for the Medoc at 20 meters. They also make a second wine called Pagodes de Cos. This is a great wine to buy in very good vintages. Especially, if your budget prohibits you from purchasing their first wine. — 8 years ago

Alyssia McCain

9.5

Vintage on 9/21/2015. This is my first Ripasso and I didn't know what to aspect. However, I'm in love. It's a bit grapey but I think that's the part I like best. I didn't even realize that is practically finished the bottle myself. — 10 years ago

Michael Morgan

9.0

Really impressive balance. Silken and beautifully mouth filling. Soft tannin and fresh acid. Complex. Blue and black fruited. 93 points. Boom! — 11 years ago

Joseph Dolinaj

9.1

Classic French Rose. Semi dry palate with hints of Strawberries. Pleasant surprise. — 11 years ago

Alex Urevick-Ackelsberg

9.4

I loved this wine! — 6 years ago

Matt

9.5

This is gorgeous tonight. Continue to find that Mas de Boislauzon is consistently one of the best value CNDP around, true to place and terroir driven on all fronts, from traditional cuvée to their prestige offerings. I think the hearty amount of Mourvedre and plenty of holdings in sandy dominated soils of the N/NE part of the appellation make for a remarkably dense, balanced and textural wine. I feel like some 07’s have hit their mark in the last couple years and this is in a sweet spot to me. Nose is meaty, lifted with smoke, hot stones, porcini, truffle, espresso bean, plum marmalade, lavender pastille. Palate is more kirsch, compote, cinnamon, licorice whip, candied bacon, woodsmoke, and stones again. Structurally theres a great interplay of moderate but present acid and granular tannin. Perfect foil for a bacon and mushroom cheeseburger 🤤 — 7 years ago

E & K G

9.3

Part of a 2004, 2008, 2010 vertical. All double decanted. The 2008 was still very energetic with the darker fruit coming out front and you could still feel a bit of “heat” on the palate, but in a good way that highlighted the flavors. Starting to round out but still very much alive vs the 2004 that was much more “calm”. — 8 years ago

Jiga Hitorn

9.3

So so good. Strawberries — 8 years ago

Maddalena de Zambiasi

9.2

Diretto questo vino, subito profumi di fruttini e bacche nere, prugna disidratata, spezia dolce / piccante.. il sorso è sincero di rusticita' composta quasi elegante , minerale di grafite e carbone..morbidezza glicerica e freschezza equilibrano il sorso mentre la trama tannica perfeziona la chiusura.
Filosofia, vini e ospitalità da provare!!!! — 9 years ago

Chip Hughes

9.1

Blackberry. Iron. Schist. Plenty of grip, but lift and freshness to match. Best Effet Rouge to date! #roussillon #carignane #syrah #grenachenoir — 9 years ago

Debra Kendall

8.9

You may think it's a red but actually a rosé. Delicious. — 10 years ago

Jonathan Wood

9.2

Delicious and smashable. — 10 years ago

Chip Hughes

9.0

Lime leaf, savory, saline. Massive and commanding. Just the thing for shrimp, galangal & green curry. — 10 years ago

Leslie Glen

9.5

Fabulous. Creamy and crisp and complex. Love it. — 10 years ago

Michael Piaker

9.6

17 April 2015. Frankly Wines, New York, NY. — 10 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.4

2000 vintage. Part of a vertical with 1984, 1988 and 1998. A little hot on the nose. Cedar and plush cassis. Some cinnamon and nutmeg. Velvet and plush tannins. A little short on the finish if I was being strict. Very decent. Underrated vintage. Was still powering on after 2 hrs in the glass. — 11 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

Pontet Canet tasting and dinner with Alfred Tesseron.

2016 is such a beautifully, ripe and elegant vintage. The 16 stands tall from the other vintages we tasted.

The body is rich, bold and thick. Beautiful dark fruits of ripe, ruby; blackberries, plum, dark cherries, strawberries and amazing blue fruits shine as it sit on the palate. There is more balance in the 16...fruits and earth. Saddle-wood, tobacco, leather, dry soil, dry & moist clay, dry stone, rich dark earth, lead pencil, bright, fresh, red, blue, dark flowers with violets. Very nice acidity with a beautiful finish.

Don’t even touch a bottle for 15 plus years. This nice now but, you will only be cheating yourself out of a very special wine 15 plus years from now.

Photos of; Clyde and Alfred at the bar, their Amphora style cement tanks they ferment part of each vintage now, road signs of the good neighbors they keep and Chateau Pontet Canet. — 6 years ago

Tobin Trevarthen

9.4

Part of vertical. This year was 50/50 Cab/Merlot. A soft and really well balance wine. The kind of profile that I like. — 8 years ago

Maciej Kurka

9.0

Not as deep as Coutet but the flavors were solid. — 8 years ago

Olivier Huguenin

9.2

Énorme nez qui part de l'anchoiade vers le moka avec une couleur improbable ( sans aucun tuilé) pour un vin de 17 ans. La bouche est très classe, complexe, belle longueur — 9 years ago

with Nicolas, Fricot and 1 other

Heritage Fine Wines

9.1

"The rock of the angels" produces this great white Grenache blend from southern France. — 9 years ago

Justin Ennis

9.2

A very special bottle of the 1986 Joseph Phelps Insignia. This was out of a 6L Imperial. Part of a limited artists series done by the Wine Spectator. Very delicate in flavor with hints of dried herbs and mint. Very cool to try! — 10 years ago

with MH and Will

Jerry Raphael

9.1

Excellent Zin and one of my favorites. Just loaded and drinking great for a 13 year old Zin. Part of a family dinner in Haddonfield. — 10 years ago

Rajat Parr

Founder Sandhi Wines & Domaine de la Côte, Evening Lands Vineyards, Seven Springs & Maison l'Oree

9.7

Just the BEST!
A rare bottling. Produced from the second crop. — 10 years ago

Pierre Morel

10

Now this is just pure liquid GOLD!
fantastic Saint Joseph. Perfect Syrah. ***** — 10 years ago

Robert Vernick

9.5

This wine was drinking beautifully. Right in the optimal window, but it will stay there awhile so no rush. Great nose (dark cherry, tobacco, cedar, leather), good acidity and very nice complex long finish. Best part is that it was hard for my tasting partners to identify correctly. — 10 years ago

Tobin Trevarthen

9.6

Part of the Long Shadows Collection. Wonderful collaboration. — 12 years ago