Chateau Palmer 2015

JAMES SUCKLING: "I am breathless with the dark-berry, lavender and burnt-orange aromas. Some salt. Just so formidable and deep. Stunningly sexy on the palate with a density and power, yet it leaves things so clean and bright. You want to drink it and enjoy it now, but it has the structure to last forever. Drink in 2022."

WEINWISSER: "50 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 44 % Merlot, 6 % Petit Verdot. 37 hl/ha. Intensives dunkles Purpur mit lila und violetten Reflexen. Extrem würziges Bouquet mit viel schwarzem Pfeffer, Trüffelnoten, Cassis und Brombeeren – schon zu diesem Zeitpunkt ein schier grosses Nasenkino! Im Gaumen samtig, anmutig, verführt jetzt schon mit runden, recht schmeichelnden Tanninen, viel Lakritze und Maulbeeren im langen, erhabenen und aromatischen Finale. Das Palmer- Team vergleicht diesen Jahrgang mit einer Mischung aus 2005, 2009 und 2010. Für mich ist das ganz einfach ein riesengrosser Palmer. Nicht spektakulär, sondern beruhigend. Auf extrem hohen Niveau. Margaux- Nonchalance. Als ich anfing, Primeurweine zu verkosten, schien mir der Palmer beim Jahrgang 1985 um eine Nuance besser als der Château Margaux. Das Gefühl hatte ich heuer – nach 30 Jahren – auch wieder! Und irgendwo fand ich beim 2015er auch gewisse geschmackliche Parallelen zum 2005er und 1985er. Es ist der absolut beste Margaux der Appellation."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "This is extraordinary. The wine is so silky, it is effortless to taste and drink. The fruits paint your palate. But the wine is light on its feet. Sensuous, sexy and racy, the fruit offers a melange of red and black cherries, plums. In the finish you find a griotte sensation that sticks with you for close to 60 seconds. This perfect mix of elegance and purity should age effortlessly for decades."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Bottled relatively late in mid-September 2017, the 2015 Palmer is a blend of 44% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Sauvignon with a small portion of Petit Verdot. Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, it offers vibrant red currants, black cherries, wild blueberries, earth and mineral characteristics to begin, with slowly unfurling floral notes of violets and dried roses plus compelling baker’s chocolate and fragrant earth layers. Medium to full-bodied, generously fruited and possessing firm yet very, very fine-grained, mind-blowingly ripe tannins, the multifaceted palate features something of a skip in its step in terms of freshness, while it goes beguilingly earthy on the finish with some mineral hints. Very classy, elegant and sophisticated, this vintage is downright regal in its juxtaposition between poise and audaciousness. Think 2005 Palmer with a tick more fruit intensity, perfume and passion."

JEB DUNNUCK: "One of the gems in Margaux is unquestionably the 2015 Palmer. Possessing more elegance and purity, as well as concentration, than the Alter Ego, it offers up a gorgeous bouquet of crème de cassis, caramelized cherries, charcoal, and graphite, with just a hint of spring flowers in the background. A final blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot that was brought up in 70% new oak, this full-bodied, ripe, incredibly polished 2015 is already hard to resist given its elegance and purity, yet should be at its best from 2023-2043. If you have more than one bottle, it's sensational today as well."

FALSTAFF: "Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Zarte Edelholzwürze, schwarze Beerenfrucht, reife Herzkirschen, ein Hauch von Orangenzesten, einladendes Bukett. Kraftvoll, schokoladige Textur, straffe Tannine, schwarze Kirschen und Nougat im Abgang, bleibt minutenlang haften, hat das Zeug zum großen Klassiker der Zukunft."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "Generous, rich and powerful, this is a sumptuous wine. With just a slight preponderance of Cabernet Sauvignon, it has structure as well as clean, clear black-currant flavors. Produced from biodynamically grown grapes, it delivers an explosion of fruit as well as serious tannins. Drink from 2027."

DECANTER: DECANTER:"Six months from the last time I tasted this wine and it is a little more closed than it was, as the 2015s begin to retreat inwards for a few years. Still no mistaking the quality of this vintage, and it remains a brilliant Palmer, that is equal to the greatest years. Still extremely young, with rich, deep textured fruits, tons of blueberry and raspberry fruits, all expressed with clarity and purity. Grilled cedar, liquorice and crushed stone minerality. Harvest September 22 to October 7. At this point the estate was fully in conversion for certification, working 100% organically and biodynamically."

WINE SPECTATOR: "This is dark and muscular in style, brimming with bramble, warm tar and paving stone notes that are matched by the deep layers of fig, blackberry and cassis fruit. A gorgeous bittersweet chocolate detail adds spine to the finish while violet and iron elements lurk in reserve. Another large wave of fruit and dark earth courses through the finish. Best from 2025 through 2045. — JM"

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Tasted blind. Dark, blackish crimson. Too dense to have much aroma? Sweet start and very dramatic. Luscious and attention-grabbing. Alcohol makes its presence felt but overall in balance and pretty gorgeous."