Château Palmer

Château Palmer is a true star of the Margaux appellation, situated on the Left Bank of the Bordeaux region. Named after a British officer, Major General Palmer, who settled in Bordeaux in 1814, it is located in the centre of the Margaux appellation, and its vineyards (Cabernet Sauvignon 55%, Merlot 40%, Cabernet Franc 5%) lie on a sparse gravel plateau. Third Classified Growth of the official classification of 1855,Palmer was established as a Super Second long before Léoville Las Cases, Ducru-Beaucaillou and Pichon-Lalande and is the top estate of the Margaux appellation after Château Margaux. Blessed with an exceptional terroir located in the immediate vicinity of the Gironde estuary, Château Palmer is rather unusual for the Médoc, with its high proportion of Merlot, making it the closest in style of any leading Médoc properties to the great wines of Pomerol and St-Emilion. After building its reputation on vintages that have become legendary, Château Palmer continues to make history under the direction of the talented Thomas Duroux, who has overseen the chateau’s first 100% biodynamic (in 2017), following a journey that began back in 2008.

“The opaque blue/purple-colored 2011 Palmer reveals a stunning bouquet of licorice, truffles, camphor, spring flowers, black raspberries and black currants. One of the superstars of the vintage, this brilliant 2011 possesses superb concentration and purity, medium to full body, and remarkable length of close to a minute. A tour de force in winemaking, the Palmer team merits accolades for achieving this level of quality in a more challenging vintage than either 2009 or 2010. The “wine of the vintage” in Margaux, tiny yields of 20 hectoliters per hectare, a final blend of 55% Merlot and 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, and a severe selection (only 55% of the production made it into Palmer) are the reasons for this success. Winemaker Thomas Duroux continues to fine tune this already brilliant estate, producing first-growth quality wines year after year. Drink 2012-2042.” ROBERT PARKER, WINE ADVOCATE

Enjoy with braised lamb with giant white beans.

“A vintage that I have tasted a few times this year, and an excellent one to be reminded of at the 10 year window. Layers of blueberry, plum, cassis and rosemary, sculpted and heavy on the rose and violet floral aromatics that speak of its appellation. As it opens, the smoky notes become more evident, and this is sensuous but reflective of a cooler summer than the blockbuster 2009 and 2010 that preceded it. A hail storm at the end of June meant this is a small yield at 21hl/ha - the lowest since 1961 (until 2018). Needs another two or three years to really open up, but you might be lucky with a few hours in the glass - the most recent bottle of this wine that I had (August 2021) was absolutely singing and ready to go. One of the very few Palmers with no Petit Verdot in the blend, and a rare Merlot dominance, both of which make this an unusual bottle. Drink 2022-2042.” 94 POINTS – JANE ANSON