1982 Chateau Cos d’Estournel 2eme Cru Classe, Saint-Estephe 1x750ml

Vinous 95

The 1982 Cos d’Estournel is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot. I have always fallen for the aromatics of this 1982: roasted chestnut and a touch of aniseed that combines effortlessly with the melted red berry fruit, touches of tar developing with time. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin, perhaps not quite as extravagant as it showed a few years ago, but there is genuine depth and grip here. There is that lovely savory, lightly spiced finish and a very persistent aftertaste that is thoroughly enjoyable after 36 years. This is a wonderful 1982 that will give pleasure for many more years. Tasted at the Cos d’Estournel vertical at the property. [Neal Martin, 10/03/2018]

Anticipated maturity: 2018-2038

Robert Parker 95

Tasted at Pebbles/Zachy’s 1982 dinner in Hong Kong. I have always loved this Cos d’Estournel, far more than either Montrose or Calon-Segur. Here it has a sensual nose of dark cherries, hot gravels, a cheeky scent of aniseed and roasted chestnuts. It has such personality and charm that you don’t care whether it was cropped at 250hl/ha (joke). The palate is full-bodied with good density and weight in the mouth. It is very harmonious with a fine seam of acidity and touches of roasted herbs and bay leaf towards the finish that perhaps is just beginning to lose its cohesion with age. Still, a Saint Estephe that you cannot help but enjoy. Tasted November 2012. [Neal Martin, 11/01/2012]