Château Palmer 2021

Offers an almost juicy edge, making this difficult vintage stand out from the pack while giving its core of black cherry and black currant some energy. Subtle alder, tobacco and warm earth accents underscore the finish. Shows a late mineral twang, with just a wisp of the vintage's austerity. Serious kudos here. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2035. 7,500 cases made.

A showstopper of a wine that offers a fragranced nose of purple flowers, blackcurrant, cola and liquorice. Smooth and silky, this has a gorgeous weight and texture, full and filling, a density of chalky, almost chewy tannins but bright, juicy acidity. Excellent construction, delicately layered but builds to an impressive whole that has such allure on the palate. A joyous wine brilliantly delivered.

This wine is very fragrant, with blackberries, blueberries, black olives, bark and forest floor as well as some minerals and stone. Medium-bodied with racy and firm tannins that build to a fresh and steely finish. Needs three to five years to soften. You can almost taste the skins. Reminiscent of the 1995 Palmer but with more precision. 56% merlot, 41% cabernet sauvignon and 3% petit verdot. Best after 2028.

The 2021 Palmer, which is 80% matured in foudres and the second year in regular barriques, has a very intense and well-defined bouquet. I feel that this is the first vintage where Duroux’s incremental increase in foudres is moderating the impact of wood on the nose, now much more discreet and terroir-driven, with pure black fruit and a touch of brine/seaweed. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, quite velvety in texture, with a keen line of acidity and a judicious sprinkling of cracked black pepper on the finish. This Palmer seems to ride the challenges of the growing season and comes out the other side with a very classically styled wine that has intellectual heft.

Dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, subtle brightening on the rim. On the nose, fine nuances of oak and liquorice, ripe cherries, subtle hints of cloves and cinnamon, candied orange zest. Medium-bodied and tightly meshed with notes of red cherry, a lively acidic structure and red berries on the finish. An elegant and animating food wine with definite ageing potential, but lacks the usual volume. (9/1/2024, store, drink + 25)

The 2021 Château Palmer is 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Petit Verdot. It's similarly ruby/plum-hued yet is more tight and focused, with beautiful blue fruits, violets, graphite, and spicy oak aromas and flavors. As with all the top 2021s, it has incredible purity, polish, and refinement, with silky tannins, a flawlessly balanced mouthfeel, and outstanding length. It’s one of the few 2021s that demands 4–6 years of bottle age and will have upwards of two decades of prime drinking.

Palmer 2021 shows a black, viscous color. Youthfully closed, very full and sweetly concentrated, it offers fine, floral top notes on the nose. The fruit profile is very dark for Palmer, with chocolate, coffee, and licorice. On the palate it starts rich and opulent, very full and expansive, with great structure and plenty of suppleness. With high intensity and volume at the core, the finish feels a touch less massive than usual yet still carries all the hallmark traits and plenty of fruit. Incredibly long, super-fine and racy, extremely fresh. This needs time and can age for a very long time. Truly a great 2021 Palmer.

Kunz barrel sample 2022: (organic, 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot, 22 hl/ha) Silky, dense, finely creamy, complex, fresh bouquet with delicate cassis cream, damson plums, flint, currants, mint, cedar, nougat. Densely woven, creamy, multi-layered, velvety palate with powerful, sweet, fresh fruit, plenty of tannin, a finely concentrated, creamy structure, varied, intense aromatics, and a very long, dense, full finish with many lingering flavors.

(Organic, 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot, 22 hl/ha) Silky, dense, finely creamy, complex, fresh bouquet with delicate cassis cream, damson plums, flint, currants, mint, cedar, nougat. Densely woven, creamy, multi-layered, velvety palate with powerful, sweet, fresh fruit, plenty of tannin, a finely concentrated, creamy structure, varied, intense aromatics, and a very long, dense, full finish with plenty of lingering flavors. 19/20 2029 - 2060

Vivid ruby and violet colour, this is a brilliant wine, inky and with clear supple give to the tannins. Give it a full 8 to 10 years before drinking, and here you feel that they have sacrificed very little to the vintage, this feels entirely Palmer in character. Savoury but abundant blue and black fruits, plenty of crayon, cocoa bean and slate, with a floral prettiness and a mouthwatering finish. 27hl/ha yield, harvest September 24 to October 16, 55% new oak (first year in barrel, second year in larger oak casks of 3,000 l).

The 2021 Palmer is deep purple-black in color. Notes of Morello cherries, fresh blackberries, and boysenberries pop from the glass, followed by suggestions of cinnamon stick, Sichuan pepper, aniseed, and crushed rocks, with a hint of roses. The light to medium-bodied palate has a racy backbone and rounded tannins framing the exuberant black fruits, finishing with a burst of energy.

Once again, what a delight—Palmer 2021 is absolutely irresistible. A vibrant wine with a straight, well-defined structure that unfurls on the palate with a silky touch, ultra-fine grain, and, above all, remarkable length. A wine you can start enjoying in about ten years.

If Alter Ego displayed finesse, Palmer consolidates its exceptional level with depth. Filigreed and highly detailed, the bouquet reveals many nuances in a careful, pertinent manner. The wine aims for precision, from the first aromas through to the finish. The tannins, velvety with exceptionally fine grain, deliver a quiet, very reliable power, while the acid structure gives muscle and a touch of salinity. Everything is measured, with an exceptional high-definition, pixelated logic. A Palmer with a bright future ahead, and I believe it will easily stand comparison with other vintages in the decades to come. Finesse always pays off; the hardships endured take on full meaning. Thomas Duroux, the estate’s director, can be very proud of his teams.

Dark, intense, and beautiful color. Very aromatic nose—fine, pure, and fruity—becoming complex when the glass is swirled. Delicate on the attack, subtle and perfumed mid-palate, the wine caresses the palate before tightening, a touch more austere on the finish. Good, sappy, enveloping length. Blend: 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot. Alcohol: 13.3% – pH: 3.71. IPT: 72. Yield: 22 hl/ha. For both Palmer and Alter Ego, 55% of the harvest will be aged in the second year not in barriques, but in 30-hl foudres.

Clearly, one of the wines of the vintage, this is superb, and quite an accomplishment for the vintage. The wine is rich, concentrated, firm, and elegant with layers of black and red fruits, spice, dried flowers, tobacco leaf, and cocoa. The palate is loaded with sweet, ripe, energetic berries, dark chocolate, plums, espresso and a hint of mint. The refined, lifted end notes keep on going. With some age, this could score even higher. The wine blends 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Petit Verdot. Yields were a paltry 22 hectoliters per hectare, so not much wine was produced. Drink from 2027-2060.

95–97. Barrel Sample. The wine is dense with warm tannins supporting black fruit tones and acidity. Juicy and spicy, the wine's Cabernet Sauvignon shows so well with black currant flavors. It is fresh and it obviously it will age well.