1981 Château Cos d’Estournel and 1981
Château Pavie

I’ve always had a soft spot for
the 1981 vintage as well as these two châteaux. This was the first vintage of
Bordeaux that I bought, back in 1984, with some knowledge of the region (or so
I thought at the time) and Cos because the first serious vertical that I ever
attended was of their wines from 1982 back to 1952. Pavie? Well, to be honest,
it was the label that drew me in at first, being all old-timey Bordeaux and
all. The first Pavie that I bought was a 1979 from a wine shop in Boston and
from the get-go I was hooked on the blend of power and finesse that a
St.-Emilion from a great terroir can
exhibit. Being able to visit both of these estates in late June of 1989, on the
same broiling hot day, sealed the deal.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1440417832135-1981+Cos+%26+Pavie+-+Copy.JPG"> 

Ninteen eight-one is what some
would derisively call a ‘classic’ or ‘restaurant’ vintage. In the old days some
would say ‘a useful vintage’ for the fact that the wines are mostly to be drunk
while waiting for “great” vintages to mature or to keep ones’ hands off of
already mature ‘great’ vintages resting in the cellar. That belittles wines
such as these two, I think, because more times than not I crave a graceful,
finely delineated and less dramatic wine than one from a blockbuster
vintage.&nbsp; Both of these bottles deliver the
goods.

Purchased by a good friend on
release here in New York, both the Cos and the Pavie are decidedly at peak but
based on these bottles there’s no need to fear the reaper. The Cos is a
textbook rendition of the old style at the châteaux, with intense cigar box,
dried cherry, licorice and pipe tobacco character and smooth, harmonious
tannins that have all but faded away. As might be expected, the Pavie is more
dramatic in character, but still showing the restraint that’s been typical of
the ‘81s since release, offering a haunting, floral- and spice-dominated
bouquet and plush, seamless plum and cherry flavors. Like the Cos, it’s fully
mature but there’s no sign of undue fatigue, either.&nbsp; In both cases, pretty remarkable for 34 year-old
wines from a vintage that’s now been mostly forgotten, but not by me.

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 1981 Château Cos d’Estournel &nbsp; &nbsp;
 </td>
 <td>
 92/Drink: 2015
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1981 Château Pavie
 </td>
 <td>
 91/Drink: 2015</td></tr></tbody></table>-- Josh Raynolds

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