robertparker.com; William Kelley:

Bursting with aromas of sweet cherries, berries and violets, the 2023 Alter Ego de Palmer is medium- to full-bodied, fleshy and supple, with a rich core of sweet, plummy fruit framed by ripe tannins and succulent acids. Ample and penetrating, it's an immensely charming blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot.

Thomas Duroux continues to produce singularly textural, powerful wines at this historic 66-hectare Margaux property, where he has introduced a new focus on parcel-by-parcel viticulture and vinification, as well as pioneering biodynamic methods, over the last two decades. Today, cover crops are the order of the day, much of the vineyard isn't hedged, and fruit trees are being planted in the rows as part of an agroforestry initiative. The core of Palmer derives from the plateau around the château, where soils consist of a millefeuille of sandy gravel, clay-rich gravel, sandy gravel again—and then a meter of pure clay; and it's old-vine Merlot, planted on these soils, that lends Palmer its richness and flesh. There are other parcels dotted around the appellation, of course, including a large block of coarser gravel surrounded by trees, not far from Bel Air Marquis d'Aligre. Maturation now lasts for two years, with the first in barrique and the second in large foudres, resulting in more harmonious oak integration and retaining greater purity of fruit.

Published: Apr 09, 2026

falstaff.at:

Tasting vom 24.05.2024: Peter Moser

Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Intensive dunkle Waldbeerfrucht, zart nach Lakritze, reife Kirschen, zartes Nugatkaramell, feiner Vanilletouch ist unterlegt. Mittlere Komplexität, rotbeeriger Touch, feine Tannine, Kirschen, salzig im Nachhall, ein lebendiger, anregender Speisenbegleiter.