Chateau Cos d'Estournel 2008

95 Points - Jeb Dunnuck    The first vintage made at the new winery, the 2008 Cos d’Estournel is drinking beautifully today, with terrific complexity as well as a silky, polished style on the palate. Made from 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc and revealing copious amounts of crème de cassis and black cherry fruit intermixed with notes of toasted bread, spice, and cedar, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a silky, sexy texture, and sweet tannin. Count me in as a fan. 

95 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate    The medium to deep garnet colored 2008 Cos d'Estournel is blended of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. Pow! The nose explodes with notes of baked cherries, preserved plums, fried herbs, beef drippings and warm cassis with wafts of wood smoke, salami and tobacco leaf. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegant and earthy/savory in character, sporting beautifully ripe, grainy tannins and bags of freshness, finishing on a lingering mineral note. 

95 Points - Wine Enthusiast    This big, smoky wine has great richness and a big, concentrated structure. The feel is dark, solid, based on spice, new wood and ripe black plums touched with red berries, the tannins sheltering beneath. 

94 Points - James Suckling    A very decadent wine on the nose with so much meat, spice and ripe fruit character. Sea shell as well. Full body, tight and structured with silky tannins and a lots of intense fruit. Vibrant wine. 

94 Points - Vinous    The 2008 Cos d’Estournel had one of the most backward, reticent bouquets that I encountered during my tasting. This is so sultry and broody, begrudgingly offering some lovely brambly red fruit mixed with pencil box. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, plenty of black fruit laced with allspice, black pepper and sage, leading to a dense and concentrated finish that should see this age for 20 or 30 years. It does not really serve as a forerunner to the blockbuster 2009 because this is cut from a completely different cloth. 

92 Points - Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar    Good deep ruby-red. Complex aromas and flavors of currant, raspberry, smoke, musky dried herbs, sexy oak tones and minerals. Rich, broad and lush; big, rich and sweet but with an edge of acidity giving lift and grip to the middle palate. At once sexy and serious wine, finishing with broad, horizontal tannins and excellent length. 

91 Points - Wine Spectator    This has a slight hint of the vintage's crisp, angular feel, but there are impressive layers of fruit here, with a bright mineral edge cutting through the damson plum and red currant notes. This has put on a little bit of weight in the bottle, too. Showing well.