TN: Cos d’Estournel 2009

Musigny 151 · Post by **Musigny 151** » Sun Jul 26, 2020 4:10 pm

It came from a half bottle. I really disliked this wine en Primeur, but I owed it to myself to taste it again, but I wasn’t going to spring for full bottles, and the halves were cheap enough. This is the second time I have had it from half bottle, and I have to say I am glad I only have one left.

This is an exercise in masochism. It was extracted, it was enormous, it was heavy and it completely lacked the following: character, complexity, freshness, evolution or any indication of where it was from. I have tasted tomatoes grown hydroponically with as much interest. I do recognized there will be some who love it, and it has been given 100 points several times by known critics. For me, I just could not finish my glass, and had to open another bottle.

jckba · Post by **jckba** » Sun Jul 26, 2020 4:35 pm

I didn’t bite on any of this mostly due to its pricing which was pretty much always outside my comfort zone but I have to think that you should bury your remaining split for a double Blanquito (ie Blanquito equals 5 years and double Blanquito equals 10 years) in the hopes that it develops a little and makes it somewhat tolerable. What did the alcohol register at and was it ever present?

I picked up a case of the 2010 when I found it for under 2 bills but never tasted it, have you and if so, was it just as flagrant or ... ?

Musigny 151 · Post by **Musigny 151** » Sun Jul 26, 2020 5:21 pm

Rated 14.5, but ran hot. Probably higher.
The 2010 was a much better wine en primeur, but I never tasted it out of bottle.

Nicklasss · Post by **Nicklasss** » Sun Jul 26, 2020 5:26 pm

Interesting to read, event if i don't own any 2009 Cos. I would be interested in some of your quick comments about "other 100 pts 2009'' like Pontet Canet, Léoville Poyferré or Palmer, to compare, if you had them.

Undrinkable is a very strong statement for the 2009 Cos. Did you mean "drinkable without any kind of real pleasure" instead?

I opened a white Mâcon-Azé that was barely drinkable 2 days ago, but i will keep the leftover for cooking.

Nic

Musigny 151 · Post by **Musigny 151** » Sun Jul 26, 2020 6:05 pm

Not undrinkable in a flawed way. This was undrinkable because I truly loathed the wine. It wasn’t an absence of pleasure, it was unpleasant to drink. I poured a glass of $15 rose and it was enjoyable.

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Sun Jul 26, 2020 6:12 pm

I've found modern Cos to be a pretty unattractive wine, for the same reasons you list for the 09 version. Even the 02 was a turn off, it as all licorice and spicy sweetness, not huge scaled but still a touch hot.

I wonder, is the 2016 Cos a better wine, have they started to recalibrate towards some semblance balance?

robert goulet · Post by **robert goulet** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:38 am

I use the Cos as my prune juice back up for regular bowel movements

JimHow · Post by **JimHow** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:38 am

The 2009 Cos sounds like the 2009 GPL.

Chateau Vin · Post by **Chateau Vin** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:54 am

Wow, that’s a bummer for the burn they put on your wallet...I wasn’t impressed by the 2000 version of it either...

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 2:59 pm

Was the 96 the last great Cos?

greatbxfreak · Post by **greatbxfreak** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 3:24 pm

I didn't like it en primeur either. Extremely overextracted and overripe fruit. One American wine critic, known for his controversial ratings, slated it and called it machine oil!

The responsible for this failure was Jean-Guillaume Prats, who totally miscalculated the vinification of the vintage.

Funny thing, he could make great 2003, 2005 and 2010, still with a touch too much. He made 18 vintages up to 2012.

In 2013, owner of Cos since 1998, M. Reybier, got a new man, Aymerick de Gironde, who took Cos back to the Saint-Estephe roots, and this property has been since then true Saint-Estephe. 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 are top, top wines. Aymerick de Gironde left Cos for Troplong Mondot in 2017 but M. Reybier and Cos' technical director, Dominique Arangoïts keep the Saint Estephe style very much alive.

DavidG · Post by **DavidG** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 3:58 pm

So which is worse, the 2003 or 2009 Cos?
I bought a couple of the 2003 to see for myself after the Parker/Robinson dustup over the wine.
Huge, ripe, massively concentrated freak of a wine. Sort of raisiny but not flabby.
Fantastic as a cocktail but not as a wine.
Still have one left.

Izak: de Gironde left for Troplong Mondot in 2017 - any changes in style at Troplong expected to accompany that move?

greatbxfreak · Post by **greatbxfreak** » Mon Jul 27, 2020 9:50 pm

My wine critic colleagues who tasted AdG's vintages say yes - more elegant, not fist punching and heavy as before, but high quality is maintained. I haven't had the possibility to taste these vintages.

Musigny 151 · Post by **Musigny 151** » Tue Jul 28, 2020 5:39 pm

DavidG wrote:So which is worse, the 2003 or 2009 Cos?
I bought a couple of the 2003 to see for myself after the Parker/Robinson dustup over the wine.
Huge, ripe, massively concentrated freak of a wine. Sort of raisiny but not flabby.
Fantastic as a cocktail but not as a wine.
Still have one left.

Izak: de Gironde left for Troplong Mondot in 2017 - any changes in style at Troplong expected to accompany that move?

I think the dust up was over the 2003 Pavie.

The 2003 was not a pleasant wine, but the 2009 is worse. In the words of the great Monty Python sketch, “these are not wines for drinking but hand to hand to hand combat”

Comte Flaneur · Post by **Comte Flaneur** » Tue Jul 28, 2020 6:36 pm

Or...’for laying down.......and avoiding’

Jean-Guillaume Prats hosted a 67 Pall Mall Lafite tasting which I listened into but did not participate in (because three Carruades were in the mix) and he was astonishingly unimpressive.

He had nothing to say about the wines.

He seems to be living off his father Bruno’s coattails.

Why on earth Lafite hired him baffles me.

Musigny 151 · Post by **Musigny 151** » Tue Jul 28, 2020 6:54 pm

I threw him into a tizzy once when he proudly introduced Cos new third wine Goulee. Sadly Gouley is slang in England for testicle.

Comte Flaneur · Post by **Comte Flaneur** » Tue Jul 28, 2020 7:07 pm

It’s bollocks, isn’t it?

greatbxfreak · Post by **greatbxfreak** » Tue Jul 28, 2020 9:40 pm

It's Goulée not Gouley. And it means in English "gulp" (to drink a large portion of something in one slurp) not testicles or bollocks.

I don't think JGP is involved in winemaking, more in financial management I suppose.

You can compare Pavie 2003 to Cos 2009. Both totally overblown and over-extracted wines.

DavidG · Post by **DavidG** » Tue Jul 28, 2020 10:14 pm

Ah yes thanks for the reminder. I bought a 2003 Pavie for the same purpose.

Musigny 151 · Post by **Musigny 151** » Wed Jul 29, 2020 2:18 am

greatbxfreak wrote:It's Goulée not Gouley. And it means in English "gulp" (to drink a large portion of something in one slurp) not testicles or bollocks.

I don't think JGP is involved in winemaking, more in financial management I suppose.

You can compare Pavie 2003 to Cos 2009. Both totally overblown and over-extracted wines.

I can promise you Izak you would not enjoy a kick in the goulies (plural form). Whether the spelling s the same or not, they do sound alike.

JGP was definitely involved in the winemaking, as he was the one who showed the wines and answered the technical questions. When John Gilman went to taste the 2010s, he asked him (Gilman) if it might not be too painful to taste the wines after his evisceration of the 2009.

Totally agree Pavie 2003 is a horrid wine.

marcs · Post by **marcs** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 3:41 pm

Haven't tasted the 09, but I thought the 2003 Cos was just fine. Yes, heavier and richer than normal, more chocolatey, but had some earthiness underneath that reminded you that you were in France. Had solid structure and felt like a legit hot-vintage wine and not a sloppy mess. Definitely not new school Napa. Nota bene -- 13.5% alcohol, not attainable in Napa and also not attainable many years in Bordeaux these days it seems.

marcs · Post by **marcs** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 3:55 pm

I think the issue here is that some people fail to appreciate the experience of having your palate assaulted with waves of vinous intensity, and thus are not qualified to communicate the true nature of a wine such as the 2009 Cos d'Estournel. Too offer a different perspective, I have taken the liberty of combining highlights from Jeff Leve's six different 100-point reviews of this wine into a single note that expresses the overwhelming perfection of the 09 Cos:

A wine of intensity. Intense concentration, intense aromatics, intense palate presence and an intense finish. But everything is in balance and harmony here. This powerful wine coats every inch, nook, and cranny of your tongue, cheeks, gums, and palate with pure essences of black and blue fruit complemented by chocolate and kirsch. The seamless finish lasts over 60 seconds. While your palate is coated with layers of fruit, nothing is overwhelming. The surreal texture is off the hook. The wine coats and stains your palate. The perfume explodes with a drawer full of spices, smoke, coffee bean, incense, truffle, blackberry, blue fruit, vanilla, clay, earth and liqueur scents. Intense, the wine is packed and stacked with flavor. Powerful, pure and mouth filling, the wine coats your palate with layers of pure black and blue fruit, licorice, lead pencil and spice. Inky in color, the aromas pop from the glass and fill your nose with licorice, incense, crushed stone, cassis, black and blueberries, espresso bean and spice. This is so plush, it feels like Jean-Guillaume Prats hand polished the berries one at a time before fermentation.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 4:06 pm

That is great, Marcus. Perhaps Jeff himself will comment on your summary.

For the rest of us, how would the 2009 Cos be if diluted: 1 part filtered water to 1 part Cos? Is it worth a try?

Or mix the undrinkable 2009 with the awful 2013 and serve the concoction to someone you really, really dislike?

marcs · Post by **marcs** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 4:42 pm

LOL I posted on this lower-traffic site rather than the same thread on Wineberserkers precisely to avoid having it appear to Jeff that I was calling him out. I do find his level of enthusiasm for these types of wines entertaining.

greatbxfreak · Post by **greatbxfreak** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 6:44 pm

Guys,

I've to confess, I was wrong concerning 2009 Cos. I wrote from my memory and didn't check with my Cos profile. My TNs from November 2017 on 2009 are more or less similar to Jeff's:

Cos d'Estournel 2009 98p

Tasted in November 2017. 65% C.Sauvignon + 33% Merlot + 2% C.Franc. Creamy and aromatic nose of black fruit with the scent of yoghurt, distinguished and intense. Great acidity, extremely complex and very long on the palate. Silky with great elegance. Absolutely nothing to complain about here. Perfect modern Bordeaux with style. One to enjoy over many years to come.

It was 2010 Cos I was not too happy about:

Cos d'Estournel 2010 96p

Tasted in May 2013. Black fruit en masse but also alcohol (cherry vodka) very, very evident on the nose and palate, extremely powerful wine on the palate with really fat fruit and tannin. The fruit is on the border of over-ripeness and this wine is extremely massive and imho not at all typical Bordeaux. Close to Napa Valley style. Either you like it or you hate it. I've to be neutral here and I can't abstract from the fact that this is high-quality wine.

Comte Flaneur · Post by **Comte Flaneur** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 8:32 pm

Let’s hope Lafite don’t allow JG Prats anywhere near the winemaking.

Imagine a Parkerised Lafite? The notion is just too ghastly to contemplate.

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 8:48 pm

Comte Flaneur wrote:Imagine a Parkerised Lafite? The notion is just too ghastly to contemplate.

A sure sign of the apocalypse...

Comte Flaneur · Post by **Comte Flaneur** » Thu Jul 30, 2020 8:56 pm

Yes Patrick! the end of days ...

DavidG · Post by **DavidG** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 2:55 am

stefan wrote:That is great, Marcus. Perhaps Jeff himself will comment on your summary.

For the rest of us, how would the 2009 Cos be if diluted: 1 part filtered water to 1 part Cos? Is it worth a try?

Or mix the undrinkable 2009 with the awful 2013 and serve the concoction to someone you really, really dislike?

This should be easy for an accomplished mathematician like you, Stefan: 50 Jeff Leve points!

Nicklasss · Post by **Nicklasss** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 3:09 am

Comte Flaneur wrote:Let’s hope Lafite don’t allow JG Prats anywhere near the winemaking.

Imagine a Parkerised Lafite? The notion is just too ghastly to contemplate.

I want to see a Parkerized Lafite. That would help Lafite to get a 100 pts mark!

I don't mind too much as i left the 1000 $/bottle Lafite for 100$/bottle Bourgogne 1er Cru.

Nic

Jeff Leve · Post by **Jeff Leve** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 4:54 pm

marcs wrote:I think the issue here is that some people fail to appreciate the experience of having your palate assaulted with waves of vinous intensity, and thus are not qualified to communicate the true nature of a wine such as the 2009 Cos d'Estournel. Too offer a different perspective, I have taken the liberty of combining highlights from Jeff Leve's six different 100-point reviews of this wine into a single note that expresses the overwhelming perfection of the 09 Cos:

A wine of intensity. Intense concentration, intense aromatics, intense palate presence and an intense finish. But everything is in balance and harmony here. This powerful wine coats every inch, nook, and cranny of your tongue, cheeks, gums, and palate with pure essences of black and blue fruit complemented by chocolate and kirsch. The seamless finish lasts over 60 seconds. While your palate is coated with layers of fruit, nothing is overwhelming. The surreal texture is off the hook. The wine coats and stains your palate. The perfume explodes with a drawer full of spices, smoke, coffee bean, incense, truffle, blackberry, blue fruit, vanilla, clay, earth and liqueur scents. Intense, the wine is packed and stacked with flavor. Powerful, pure and mouth filling, the wine coats your palate with layers of pure black and blue fruit, licorice, lead pencil and spice. Inky in color, the aromas pop from the glass and fill your nose with licorice, incense, crushed stone, cassis, black and blueberries, espresso bean and spice. This is so plush, it feels like Jean-Guillaume Prats hand polished the berries one at a time before fermentation.

I have no issue with you posting my tasting notes, agreeing with them or not. I do have an issue with you cobbling lines from various notes written over the years, as far back as 2013 to create something that provides a false narative. It is inane and childish and misleading. Please don't do it again. You can link to any of my notes at any time. This is the link to my page on COS, with 71 unique vintages tasted: https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/bo ... estournel/

That being said.... Yes, I think 2009 COS is a great wine. In the years to come, as a guess, in about a decade, it will be thrilling to taste. You, or others do not need to agree. I have tasted the wine at least 7 times since it was first in barrel. And I have always loved it.

FWIW, I probably enjoy a wider range of Bordeaux styles than most. Sticking with Cos, as you can see from my notes, I am a big fan of 82, 90, 96, 02, 03, 05, 09, 10, 15, 16, 18 and 19. Those vintages from from classic, to sunny, to cooler years. I like what thee vineyard produces. I am not stuck on one style over another, though I have my preferences.

It is the summer. I am around and like everyone on here I imagine, my schedule is not very booked

So, if you have questions, and want to chat about wine, I am open....

It is an extremely textural experience, which I value. You do not. Some folks do. Some do not. That is why they make more than 1 flavor of ice cream.

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 5:25 pm

>>
It is inane and childish and misleading.
>>

Also a pretty funny parody (rather than satire), Jeff. I doubt that any regular reader of BWE thought that Marcus gave an accurate summary of your reviews.

BTW: I like reading your tasting notes, which I find give accurate descriptions. Our tastes differ, but I can generally tell whether I will like a wine from your review of it.

EDIT: Oops, sorry, Jeff. Blanquito got taken in by it.

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 6:39 pm

stefan wrote:I doubt that any regular reader of BWE thought that Marcus gave an accurate summary of your reviews.

Wait! That wasn’t an actual Leve tasting note?!?! Then what the hell am I supposed to do with this supposedly ‘intense’ case of 2009 Cos that I just ran out and bought???

William P · Post by **William P** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 7:02 pm

Blanquito wrote:[

Then what the hell am I supposed to do with this supposedly ‘intense’ case of 2009 Cos that I just ran out and bought???

Hand sanitizer.

Bill

stefan · Post by **stefan** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 7:10 pm

Patrick, Leve's real reviews drove the price to $400 at K&L. You might still be OK if you auction the wine at K&L as when Marcus' "synopsis" of Leve's reviews are circulated the price is likely to rise even higher, and people regularly bid more than retail for K&L auction wines.

Blanquito · Post by **Blanquito** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 8:06 pm

William P wrote:
Blanquito wrote:[

Then what the hell am I supposed to do with this supposedly ‘intense’ case of 2009 Cos that I just ran out and bought???
Hand sanitizer.

Bill

Lol.

Jeff Leve · Post by **Jeff Leve** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 8:53 pm

Blanquito wrote:
stefan wrote:I doubt that any regular reader of BWE thought that Marcus gave an accurate summary of your reviews.
Wait! That wasn’t an actual Leve tasting note?!?! Then what the hell am I supposed to do with this supposedly ‘intense’ case of 2009 Cos that I just ran out and bought???

Send it to me! I will find Magdelaine to send to you

Jeff Leve · Post by **Jeff Leve** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 8:54 pm

Comte Flaneur wrote:Let’s hope Lafite don’t allow JG Prats anywhere near the winemaking.

Imagine a Parkerised Lafite? The notion is just too ghastly to contemplate.

Different terroir, different wine. Trust me. Prats is involved in everything from top to bottom at Lafite as well as at all the Rothschild properties.

Jeff Leve · Post by **Jeff Leve** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:00 pm

stefan wrote:>>
It is inane and childish and misleading.
>>

Also a pretty funny parody (rather than satire), Jeff. I doubt that any regular reader of BWE thought that Marcus gave an accurate summary of your reviews.

BTW: I like reading your tasting notes, which I find give accurate descriptions. Our tastes differ, but I can generally tell whether I will like a wine from your review of it.

Stefan

Had I known it was a parody, I would not be bothered. It never matters, or at least should not matter if people agree or not. Why should they, we? We all have our own likes, dislikes, tastes and prejudices. Some of my favorite people cannot stand wines I champion, and in turn, love wines I would not drink.

My notes are there to inform from both sides of the fence. Readers can run as fast as they can buying every bottle in sight. Or they should run as fast as they can from the wine and never look back. Either way, I have done a good job for everyone. I am hoping there is no ambiguity in my notes and they when readers taste the wine, they have a similar experience, pro or con.

marcs · Post by **marcs** » Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:40 pm

I think it was pretty clearly marked as a combination of a bunch of different notes and thus a parody.

Just look at it as a more palate-coating, intense, and extracted version of regular Jeff Leve!