Gericht zoeken
 | 2018 Ch. Palmer - Margaux GCC | € 265,00 (€ 320,65) |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
Van catastrofe naar triomf. Er is een weg, en die vinden we op Palmer. Sinds 2009 hanteert Palmer een biodynamische werkwijze (gecertifieerd in 2014). In juli 2018 moest Thomas Duroux letterlijk toekijken hoe mildiou het potentieel rendement van 38-39 tot 11hl/ha herleidde. Massa’s tannine concentreerden zich op deze kleine hoeveelheid fruit met de zeldzaamste, meest intense en duurste Palmer van de geschiedenis tot gevolg. De hoeveelheid neerslag die normaal over een jaar verwacht wordt, viel op zes maand tijd. Vochtigheid en warmte brachten mildiou waartegen bio-jongens niet zijn bestand. De kans dat dit zich herhaalt is haast nihil, denken ze. Ze nemen het sportief op: “Le mal est fait”. Er bleef gemiddeld anderhalve tros per wijnstok over en daarmee zou het moeten gebeuren. En het gebeurde: de zomer van 2018 werd de warmste sinds 2003, maar bleef gespaard van een hittegolf. De oogst werd uitgesteld in de aanloop naar hogere fenolische rijpheid; ze namen een maand de tijd om 60hl te plukken... Palmer 2018 is excellent, fruitig, rijkelijk en volmondig, maar dan “off the charts”! Het alcoholgehalte bleef nochtans beperkt tot 14,3%vol en de pH was met 3,83 “pas déconnant”. Warme zomers leiden tot minder zuren ter ondersteuning van tannine die op zijn beurt het fruit moet structureren. Extractie werd tot een minimum herleid. Met een assemblage van 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot en 7% Petit Verdot is er nog iets méér Merlot dan gebruikelijk. Risqué, maar uiteindelijk blijft Palmer “très margalais” en een ware Margaux. Palmer voorziet een élevage van 20 maand met levering in 2021 of 2022. 2018 brengt de meest unieke Palmer ooit, met slechts 6.000 kistjes en géén Alter Ego. IN DE PERS 100 Neal Martin – vinous.com (Maart 2021) The 2018 Palmer is a legend in the making. I had an inkling out of barrel, but such was its intensity that I wanted to assess it in bottle before I felt confident in saying so, because this could have gone either way. It storms from the glass with black fruit and floral scents, crushed violet and incense that knock your senses sideways while retaining brilliant delineation and focus. The palate is not quite as bold and brassy as when I tasted it from barrel, though I can vouchsafe that among over 20 vintages of Palmer that I have tasted at this stage, this is easily the most extroverted and powerful, displaying a kind of millefeuille of intense black fruit counterpoised by a razor-sharp line of acidity. This audacious Palmer was still revving its engines 48 hours after opening. There will never be another Palmer like this, sui generis. It was a massive risk. But by throwing caution to the wind, something extraordinary was born. Drink 2030-2070. 94-96 Neal Martin – vinous.com (Oktober 2019) The 2018 Palmer was affected by mildew, losing two-thirds of the crop, equating to 11hl/ha – in other words, one bunch per vine. It was picked between September 13 and October 15. The intense bouquet offers multilayered black fruit laced with pressed iris, incense and even a touch of lavender. This Palmer explodes from the glass unlike any other that I have tasted over the last two decades. The palate is full-bodied, but I would not describe it as "exotic" but rather a Palmer of larger "dimension" than normal. It has a slightly chalky texture, very good structure and a fine bead of acidity keeping everything in check. The alcohol is just below 14% so there is no warmth toward the finish, but I suspect this Margaux will close down for a few years before really showing what it can do. Pretty awesome. Drink 2028-2065. 100 Antonio Galloni - vinous.com (Maart 2021) The 2018 Palmer is even more impressive from bottle than it was from barrel, and that is saying something. Rich, exotic and beautifully layered, Palmer is a real head-turner in 2018. Inky dark fruit, chocolate, licorice, espresso and sweet floral notes build over time, but it is the wine's stunning depth and textural voluptuousness that elevate it into the realm of the truly sublime. As I wrote in my initial review, the 2018 Palmer is a freak of nature from yields of just 11 hectoliters per hectare harvested over an entire month. Mildew was especially punishing. There is no Alter Ego, just the Grand Vin. Kudos to CEO Thomas Duroux and his team for what I can only describe as a truly magical wine. Drink 2033-2068. 95-98 Antonio Galloni – vinous.com (April 2019) The 2018 Palmer is a freak of nature from yields of just 11 hectoliters per hectare harvested over an entire month by CEO Thomas Duroux and his team. Rich, unctuous and flamboyant in its ripeness, the 2018 possesses off the charts intensity from start to finish. Blackberry jam, espresso, crème de cassis, licorice, menthol, lavender and cloves develop in a palate-staining, hedonistic Palmer that oozes with personality. This extravagantly ripe Margaux won't be for everyone, but it is a stunning, head-spinning wine that may, in time, very well join the ranks of the truly epic Palmers. A wine of pure and total pleasure, the 2018 is nearly impossible to resist. The blend is 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot. In 2018, Palmer bottled just their Grand Vin and no Alter Ego. 98 James Suckling – jamessuckling.com (Februari 2021) 94-95 James Suckling – jamessuckling.com (April 2019) It is the essence of cabernet fruit with density that is so thick that it has the texture of grape puree. Full body and melted tannins that give the wine a sense of velvet. Very soft and juicy. With air, it goes to bright, crushed black currants. Tar. Fresh tannins give it energy. I have never tasted anything like this in all my 38 years as a wine critic in Bordeaux. From tiny berries of cabernet sauvignon (53 per cent), 40 per cent merlot and seven per cent petit verdot. 100 Jane Anson - decanter.com (Februari 2021) 98 Jane Anson – decanter.com (April 2019) Possibly the most talked about estate in the vintage, with its mildew-induced 11hl/ha yields making waves all the way back at harvest time. They made it through though, and have made an exceptional wine that will clearly be discussed and enjoyed for years to come. There's no denying that the yields have had an impact - even in the colour you see a rich, velvety density with the violet edging that suggests a good pH (it's 3.83, so a touch higher than usual). There is a stunning sweetness to the cassis and bilberry fruits, and it retains the finesse and floral aromatics of Palmer even with the concentration, complexity and depth on show here. It also has the signature of the vintage, and despite the volume of tannins it feels silky and seductive, and you wonder if it will close down at all. This certainly has a long life ahead of it. Sadly there is no Alter Ego in 2018, for the first time since it was created in 1998, with the production of the grand vin down by about 50% on a normal year. Harvest ran from 13 September to 15 October, and 90% of production went into the grand vin due to the low yields. No sulphur was added to the fruit until after malo, and it is aged in 70% new oak, already barely discernible. Thomas Duroux said, by the way, that if mildew pressure happened again to this extent, he would treat despite his strong commitment to biodynamics. Let's hope it doesn't come to that. 98 Lisa Perrotti-Brown – roberparker.com (Maart 2021) The 2018 Palmer is composed of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot. The wine has a 3.83 pH and 14.3% alcohol. Very deep garnet-purple in color, it explodes from the glass with atomic scents of blackberry preserves, crème de cassis and blueberry pie, plus suggestions of red roses, clove oil, dark chocolate and cedar chest with hints of Chinese five spice and menthol. The full-bodied palate is decadently styled, offering layer upon layer of black fruit preserves and exotic spices, framed by exquisitely plush tannins and seamless freshness, finishing wonderfully fragrant and with epic length. It's an amazingly beautiful beast of a wine—one for the hedonists! Drink 2023-2053. 97-99 Lisa Perrotti-Brown – roberparker.com (April 2019) The 2018 Palmer is composed of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot. Grapes were harvested September 13 to October 15, and the wine has a 3.83 pH and 14.3% alcohol. Very deep purple-black in color, the nose is a little reticent to begin, but with coaxing, it slowly emerges to show fragrant violets, underbrush, mossy bark and iron ore with exponentially growing notions of crème de cassis, Black Forest cake, plum preserves, hoisin, Christmas cake and red roses with wafts of dusty earth, Indian spices and cracked black pepper. Full-bodied, concentrated and downright powerful in the mouth, it has a solid structure of firm, wonderfully plush tannins and masses of fragrant accents, finishing very long and very spicy. By the time I finished tasting this, the nose had exploded in this fragrant bomb of fruit, earth and floral notions. This is one of those 2018 wines that has a beguiling brightness that comes from the many floral, spice and mineral accents among all that rich fruit. WOW! 98 James Molesworth – winespectator.com (Februari 2021) 97-100 James Molesworth – winespectator.com (April 2019) The level of glycerine sets this apart, giving the cascade of plum, currant, blackberry and black cherry fruit extra oomph, while seeming to heighten the purity at the same time. Beautiful violet, incense and juniper notes flash in the background. This is packed with iron-laced grip, but remains seamless and extremely long. I suspect this will be one of the most talked-about wines of the vintage. 95-97+ Jeb Dunnuck – jebdunnuck.com (April 2019) A massive beast of a wine, the 2018 Palmer checks in as a blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 7% Petit Verdot that comes from mildew decimated yields of 11 hectoliters per hectare. The vineyard manager commented that he had never seen conditions so favorable for mildew during the spring, and with the estate holding fast to their biodynamic viticulture, the result was a loss of over 70% of the normal production. Unsurprisingly, with barely any grapes to go around, no Alter Ego was produced. The 2018 reveals a saturated plum/purple color as well as a dense, full-bodied style that carries loads of plum, blackberry, and currant fruits as well as notes of scorched earth and graphite. The tiny yields certainly resulted in a massive, concentrated wine (it has the highest IPT ever recorded at the domaine), yet it lacks the purity and precision as well as weightless style of both the 2015 and 2016 at this point. Regardless, it's one thrilling, singular mouthful of a Palmer that has masses of ripe tannins, terrific balance, and a blockbuster finish. It's going to require upwards of a decade of bottle age and should live for just about forever. 18,5/20 Julia Harding – jancisrobinson.com (April 2019) Analytically the most powerful Palmer ever in terms of the tannins and the alcohol. Thanks to mildew, their yields were a measly 11 hl/ha and the total production about 6,000 cases. No Alter Ego this year. ‘A wine that will mark the history of the property’, according to technical director Thomas Duroux, like 1961. ‘A miracle from the vintage’, he thinks. 40% Merlot, 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot. Harvested 13 September to 15 October. Barrel sample. Black with barely a purple rim. Intense, concentrated cassis and blackberry, super-ripe but absolutely not overripe, a little bit of alcohol on the nose, lightly floral even with all this concentration. Very dark, almost a little tarry, black olive. Dark and rocky. On the palate, incredible concentration and density but with no thickness or astringency. So dense but so clean-lined and precise. Tannins are dry and compact but smooth and there’s an amazing freshness that seems to come from the compact tannins. And your mouth feels clean on the finish. So moreish even though at the moment you would have to take small sips. Great finesse to the texture even in such a big wine. Dark, dark and savoury on the finish. No sweetness even though the fruit is pure and ripe. (JH) 14.3% Drink 2028-2045 18,5-19/20 Bettane & Desseauve (April 2019) 98 Jean-Marc Quarin – quarin.com (April 2019) 97-99 Roger Voss – wineenthusiast.com (April 2019) 19,5-20/20 Revue des Vins de France – rvf.com (April 2019) 98-100 Jeff Leve – winecellarinsider.com (April 2019) |