Cabernet Sauvignon origins are from the Gironde in southwest France, but is now planted across the world in climates that accommodate this late ripening grape. It is the dominant grape in wines made in Bordeaux’s Médoc and Graves regions. This small, thick-skinned grape, produces darkly colored wine, high in tannin and relatively high in acidity with hallmark aromas of blackcurrant and can stylistically change from austere in its youth to lush depending on the region, and winemaking style.
Cabernet Franc
Ca-ber-NAY FRANK
Cabernet Franc is grown all over the world, but the best expressions are generally found in France, specifically in the Loire, South West, and Bordeaux as a key part of many blends. Medium bodied and more aromatic than Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc’s aromas can have an herbaceous tinge depending on the ripeness level.
Merlot
Mer-LO
It would be easier to detail where Merlot is not grown than vice-versa, as it is one of the most widely planted grapes in the world. Depending on the terroir, the style can vary quite a bit. Generally, Merlot is fleshy and more fruit driven and with less aggressive tannins than its oft more austere blending partner, Cabernet Sauvignon, which also makes it more accessible in its youth. The quality and character can vary from crowd pleasing sweet plummy fruit to extraordinary complex velvety texture of a great right bank Bordeaux.
Cos d’Estournel, a classified Second Growth in Saint-Estèphe, has changed ownership several times, but the most notable contribution to quality has been that of the Prats family.
Bruno Prats owned and ran the property from 1970-1998, making several improvements that yielded great wines before selling the estate to the Merlaut family. Michael Reybier purchased the estate in 2000 from the Merlauts and then hired Bruno’s son, Jean Guillaume Prats, who continued to make strides in quality including lowering yields, modernizing the cellars, and introducing gravity flow to the winery.
Cos, which in Gascon means “hill of pebbles,” is among the top producers in Bordeaux, perennially making wines that seamlessly balance power and elegance with a unique aromatic and flavor profile imparted by the soil and cool maritime breezes.
