Louis Gaspard d’Estournel inherited Cos and Pomys in 1791. Deeply convinced that the terroir of the hill of Cos was exceptional, he took many risks to enhance his estate, investing massively in the acquisition of neighboring land.
He would expand his vineyard from 14 to 45 hectares. Forever passionate about innovation, he introduced numerous technical improvements including the use of glass stoppers and experimented with new grape varieties.
Louis Gaspard d’Estournel was filled with curiosity about and openness to the world around him. His pursuit of new markets led him to Asia, where British officers stationed in India would begin savoring his wine as early as 1838.
This interest in overseas markets fueled a passion for faraway places that would serve as inspiration for the singular architecture of his estate, a sumptuous palace dedicated to wine, topped with monumental pagodas.
Louis Gaspard d’Estournel would remain an enigmatic and original figure amongst his peers. This, coupled with his obsession for the foreign and the exotic, would earn him the nickname of Maharajah of Saint-Estèphe.
Throughout his lifetime Louis Gaspard d’Estournel remained closely involved in the management of Cos d’Estournel. He fought endlessly to promote his estate, even if it meant having to sell it to finance his debts before acquiring it once again.
Driven and tenacious, he would acquire many plots of wines, some of which were among the choicest of the region, to achieve his lifelong goal of making Cos d’Estournel a first-tier estate and producing one of the world’s most outstanding wines.
Louis Gaspard d’Estournel would live to see his wine designated a Deuxième Grand Cru du Médoc by the negociants of Bordeaux but sadly enough, he passed away two years before the 1855 Bordeaux Classification officially recognized Cos d’Estournel as a Second Growth Estate.
