Guided By The Vineyard

The humble winemaker takes a back seat to nature with Pagodes de Cos , like all wines of THE VINEYARD Château Cos d’Estournel, its CEO RAPHAEL REYBIER.

- Gerrie Lim

The wines of Château Cos d’ Estournel, considered a Second Growth in the 1855 Bordeaux classification, are considered breathtaking, but it’s really the second wine Pagodes de Cos – first made in 1994 and formerly called Marbuzet – that is truly majestic. The plots on which Pagodes is grown tend to mature later than the rest of the vineyard, resulting in wines that have lighter tannins yet retain the gorgeous aromas of fruit. The vines aren’t that old – 35 years on average – so one gets to taste the results of gently determined growth.

At a tasting of four Pagodes vintages – 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2015 – held at restaurant 665°F on Level 38 of Andaz Singapore, my top pick is the 2009, whose intensity and opulence is balanced by a silky freshness, its nose evoking notes of almond paste and melon jam.

The chateau’s CEO Raphael Reybier chooses the 2010. With liquorice and tobacco, and a finish as long as the 2009’s, it exhibits complexity, with unusual characteristics that are the result of the terroir’s ability to adapt to atypical weather conditions – a drier summer, though some rain occurred when merlot flowers first appeared.