The brilliant 2009 Les Pagodes de Cos actually has more Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend than the grand vin (69% versus 65%) in addition to mostly Merlot and a small quantity of Petit Verdot. As powerful as the Cos in terms of alcoholic clout (14.5%), the full-bodied, round, generous Les Pagodes de Cos exhibits lots of creme de cassis and floral notes intermixed with hints of wood/barrique and spice. Juicy, succulent and remarkably fresh and well-delineated, it merits considerable attention from consumers. It should drink well for 15-20 years. Oddly enough, the second wine is superior to many vintages of Cos in the 1960s 1970s and 1980s!

Spices, nutmeg, dark fruits on the nose, follow through to a full body, with very precise tannins and a long finish. A beautiful and racy wine.

The 2009 Les Pagodes de Cos takes a few swirls of the glass to unfurl, perhaps never quite clicking into fifth gear. Tobacco-stained black fruit, briary and woodland scents eventually emerge; with decanting I suspect this would transmute into an attractive bouquet. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, quite symmetrical and extremely well balanced. It is not the most powerful or complex northern Médoc and yet there is surfeit elegant and poise. Enjoy this now and over the next decade. Perversely, I prefer this to the Grand Vin!

Bright red-ruby. Sexy aromas of currant, chocolate and flowers, plus hints of cedar, smoky oak. Plump, lush and fine-grained, showing a remarkably seamless texture for a second wine. Very ripe flavors of currant, mocha, beefsteak tomato and chocolate turn a bit roasted in the glass. Finishes with a smooth dusting of tannins and ripe, chocolatey persistence. I'd drink this wine over the next decade. (This chateau's flagship wine is clearly more delineated, more tannic and longer than this wine but it's still a bit too ripe for my taste.)

(69% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 1% petit verdot; 14.5% alcohol; 50% new oak) Very dark ruby. Flattering nose offers ripe blackberry, minty minerals, licorice and dry herbs. Enters fresh and sweet, then turns a little rigid due to drying tannins, but with plenty of ripe black fruit flavors and lively acids. A pretty floral note and a hint of bitterness resonate on the moderately long finish. It's a shame about the drying tannins: with its attractive balance and easy-drinking charm, this wine is in some respects more successful than the flagship Cos.

Tasted blind. Mid crimson. Smells of fermented blackcurrant pastilles. Intense with some woodsmoke elements. Certainly dramatic! Perhaps a little over-extracted. Wait quite a while for this. (JR)

[69CS/30M] Dense, currently wood dominated on the nose, but clearly very ripe fruit behind; rich, generous, powerful wine with abundant tannin that is well masked by the fruit matter, and not astringent or excessive; that said, a faintly raisiny warmth of flavour, moderate complexity, but considerable 'power' in the Bordeaux context; very good, slightly bitter, raisiny fruit persistence. Tiring! Like the Cos itself, good - of its type; but you have to like that type.... where a touch of alcohol fierceness, hardness, burn is almost inescapable. 2017-30