CHÂTEAU PALMER

2002 3ème Cru Classé Margaux

Grapes Cab Franc, Cab Sauv, Merlot
Colour Red
Origin France, Bordeaux
Sub-district Haut Médoc
Village Margaux
Classification 3ème Cru Classé
ABV 13%

Great colour intensity. The nose shows well-integrated wood as just a creamy rounding to the dark fruit favours, like a fruit pudding in a juicy, 'coulis de fruits' style. Elegant and harmonious, never becoming aggressive, not too extracted, very fine. They think it is better than the 2001 and it is hard to disagree. L&S (Mar 2005)


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Plenty of upfront raspberry and blackberry fruits, not as elegant as the 2001 but with structure and concentration. Touches of white pepper spice, along with gunsmoke and cigar box as it opens, this is enjoyable and has a skip of acidity that keeps your mouth watering and keeps momentum drawing you forward through the palate. Harvest September 26 to October 7, 60% new oak. Palmer avoided some of the heavier rains that affected much of Bordeaux during harvest (just 5mm on this spot in the biggest storm of September 20), and was seen as one of the wines of the vintage. Impressive, and surprising. Drinking range: 2021 - 2040 Rating: 94 Jane Anson, Decanter (Dec 2021)

The fruit on the nose is ripe giving sweetness and richness. Black cherry and blackcurrant fill out the palate backed by rounded tannins a lovely supple feel. Although there is lots of power on the back palate there is an underlying freshness that gives elegance and charm on the finish. 2012-20 Rating: 93 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Dec 2013)

A successful wine for the vintage, this blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 8% Petit Verdot boasts complex notes of menthol, black currants, plums, licorice, and a hint of cappuccino in its stunning aromatics. Dense, medium to full-bodied, with high levels of tannin in a big, full-bodied style (much in the spirit of such classic Bordeaux vintages as 1966, 1986, and 1996), this wine possesses superb purity and serious length, but should be purchased only by those with considerable patience and a good, cold cellar, since it will need plenty of time. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2028. Rating: 94 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com (Apr 2008)

Château Palmer

Margaux Troisième cru 1855 What is now Château Palmer was originally part of a larger Château d'Issan but was divided among heirs and came into the ownership of the Gascq family in 1748. The widow of the last of the Gascqs, in 1814, and apparently having met him on a stagecoach, sold the estate to an Englishman, General Charles Palmer, and Château de Gascq became Château Palmer. He extended the estate and built quite a reputation for his wines (especially in London) but financial difficulties forced him to sell up in 1843 and, by the time of the 1855 classification, the reputation of Château Palmer had slipped sufficiently to rate "only" 3rd Growth status - a status it has exceded for most of its subsequent history. The present château was built at the end of the 1850's. In 1938 the Société Civile de Château Palmer was formed to take ownership of the estate, with the Sichel and Mähler-Besse families as leading shareholders, a situation which persists to this day. Château Palmer sits between Margaux and Cantenac, just east of Issan. The 55ha of vines are planted to 47% each of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot with the balance being Petit Verdot. The Grand Vin spends 21 months in wood (45% new). The second wine is Alter Ego de Château Palmer. In the best years of General Palmer's reign, the wines of Château Palmer were regarded on a par with those of Château Margaux and, indeed, during the worst years of the 1960's Palmer probably had a better reputation. Today, despite huge improvements by its neighbours, Palmer sits very squarely as the leading Margaux estate that isn't actually Château Margaux.

This wine isn't currently part of a mixed case, but you can always browse our full selection of mixed cases here.
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