The 2018 Goulee by Cos d'Estournel is a very pretty wine that balances fruit intensity with expressive aromatic top notes. Rose petal, mint, dried flowers, licorice and espresso lift a core of red/purplish berry fruit as this stylish, Merlot-based Medoc shows off its considerable allure. The blend is 73% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Cabernet Franc. Yields were just 33 hectoliters per hectare, as opposed to the more typical 45-50. Give it a good deal of aeration.

The 2018 Goulée By Cos D'Estournel comes from the northern Médoc (north of Saint-Estèphe) and is mostly Merlot blended with small amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The northern Médoc excelled in 2018, and readers will love this wine. Lots of black cherry and darker berry fruits as well as leafy herbs, cedarwood, and a touch of tobacco define the nose, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a plump, round, nicely texture mouthfeel, some floral notes with air, and a fresh yet balanced finish. It's the finest version of this cuvée to date and is ideal for enjoying over the coming 5-7 years.

Medium garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Goulée by Cos d'Estournel (a blend of 73% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Cabernet Franc, aged in 20% new oak barriques), rolls effortlessly out of the glass with cheery, open-knit scents of plum preserves, boysenberries and Black Forest cake plus wafts of woodsmoke and pencil lead. The soft-textured, medium-bodied palate is bursting with juicy black fruits, lifted by a lively backbone and finishing with lovely purity.