Château COS D'ESTOURNEL 1996
Saint Estephe
Founded in the 19th century by Louis Gaspard d'Estournel, the Château de Cos d'Estournel is filled with the traveler's soul of its founder. The latter was a travel lover and he therefore brought some exotic touches to the building as a tribute to his journeys. The property quickly stood out for its quality and rose to the 2nd Grand Cru Classé rand in 1855. Today, this vineyard is owned by Michel Reybier and covers 67 hectares.
Framed by the Gironde to the east and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, it benefits from a micro-climate acting as a temperature regulator. In old Gascon, "Cos" means "hill of pebbles", a name justified by the geological peculiarity of the terroir: Quaternary gravel has piled up, thus forming a hill about twenty meters high at the top of which the castle. dominates the river. Only grapes from vines over 20 years old enter the wine of Cos d'Estournel, the rest of the harvest being intended for the Second Wine. Practicing essentially manual work, the estate uses new oak wood for aging, which subtly emphasizes the aromas with a fair woodiness. Finally, a final selection limits production to between 200,000 and 380,000 bottles.
It is a subtle and strong wine at the same time which offers a particularly interesting aromatic complexity as it ages. The greater proportion of Merlot gives this wine both richness and suppleness and its aging potential is impressive.