Robert Parker

"The 2020 Cos d'Estournel is a bold, demonstrative wine, bursting with aromas of cassis, dark berries and plum liqueur mingled with exotic spices, burning embers and petals, framed by a generous application of creamy new oak. Full-bodied, broad and low acid/high pH in style, it's rich and extracted, with a layered, mid-palate and a long, clove-inflected finish. While it isn't anywhere near as extreme as the 2009, the 2020 does appear to mark a move back toward a more turbo-charged style after Cos d'Estournel's shift toward elegance, exemplified by the brilliant 2016—but perhaps that's merely an illusion created by the vintage? Best After 2025" -Robert Parker

Decanter

"You need to take a little time to let the concentrated flavours seep out, this is a long hauler. The tannins build slowly but surely through the palate, sombre and serious right now, particularly for an estate that is known for its exuberance. The opulence is there if you give it time, and as the tannins elongate and relax, richer notes of bilberry fruits, toasted cedar, salted chocolate, turmeric and black pepper spice arrives. Harvest September 10 to 24. A 3.9pH is the highest since 2003, but any threat of low acidity is balanced by high tannins, and relatively low alcohol. A yield of 39hl/ha (43hl/ha in 2019)."

"A broad, rich, enticing wine, built on a core of exotic mulberry and loganberry notes laced with black tea, spices and incense. Rounded through the finish, with the fruit cruising through under a suave gloss of toast. A real crowd-pleaser, with a luxurious feel that makes this hard to lay off of now."

"This wine’s complex structure and powerful tannins are shot through with freshness. It is already impressive, the spice and black fruits in harmony with the texture."