Alter Ego De Palmer 2015
SKU
AEMC201510 UCAU
-
2015 has been received good scores from all the critics
-
"Most serious Alter Ego ever. More inner Ego now!" James Suckling
-
Known as Château Palmer's second wine, but a very worthy wine in its own right
-
1 or more bottles$154.99
Editors notes
"Most serious Alter Ego ever. More inner Ego now!" James Suckling
"This is one of the most stunning estates in the Medoc and when their wine is good, it is very good.
Fine florality and black fruits on the nose. Classy and classic St-Julien flavours. Has fleshed out a bit from the past – an attractively elegant, well-expressed wine.." Decanter Magazine
Details
-
Wine Type
-
Vintage
-
Variety
-
Brand
-
Location
-
Cellaring
-
Closure
-
Alcohol Percentage
-
Bottle Size
-
Oak Type
Tasting Profile
-
Light (Light)Full (Full)
-
Low Tannin (Low Tannin)Tannic (Tannic)
-
Sweet (Sweet)Dry (Dry)
-
Low Acidity (Low Acidity)High Acidity (High Acidity)
-
Aroma
- Blueberry
- Boysenberry
- Herbal
-
Palate
- Blue Fruits
- Cassis
- Graphite
Food Pairings
-
Pork -
Red Meat
Critic Scores & reviews
-
James Suckling
95*"Very solid and powerful with dried mushroom and wet earth aromas and flavors. Complex. Full and chewy yet so polished and long. Spicy, meat and gorgeous. Most serious Alter Ego ever. More inner Ego now!. 52% merlot, 41% cabernet sauvignon, and petit verdot 6%."
-
Decanter
91"Fine concentration of naturally rich floral fruit from 52% Merlot. More structure to come from perfectly integrated tannins."
-
Neal Martin
92*"The 2015 Alter Ego de Palmer is a blend of 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 52% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot. It has a very open, ravishing, quite precocious bouquet with ripe black cherries, fresh dates and crème de cassis that gain intensity in the glass. The palate is more refined, reins it all back in thanks to quite tensile tannin, a crisp line of acidity, moderate depth in the mouth and a gentle grip. There is a touch of tarriness and cracked black pepper towards the finish with very good length. Give this 5-7 years in bottle Rated 90-92"
-
Jancis Robinson MW
16*"Very rich on the nose. Very sweet and with sufficient freshness. Very very round. Just on the right side of soupy - but you really have to drink this pretty young, I think. Drink 2020-2027 Rated 16.5/20"
Other vintages
Love this wine? Here's a list of other vintages we have in stock if you'd like to try them as well.
Current auction
All current auctions for this wine & any different vintages.
Locations
France
Wine is being produced throughout France and has been done for over 2,500 years with certain Châteaux dating their history back to Roman times, around 6th Century BC. Ranking second in the world in per-capita consumption and first in total production quantity. More so than the overall quantity of wine is the quantity of truly great wines coming out of France makes the nation the envy of wine-making nations worldwide.
Two concepts pivotal to the higher end French wines, in particular, are the idea of 'terroir' and the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) system. Terroir refers to the way the geography, geology and climate find their way into the glass, telling a story of the origin of the wine. The AOC was set up in 1935 and has the primary goal of protecting the authenticity of the wines and the livelihoods of the producers. Appellation rules strictly define which varieties of grapes and winemaking practices are approved for classification in each of France's several hundred geographically defined appellations, which can cover entire regions, individual villages or in some cases, like in Burgundy even specific vineyards.
Classic wine regions in France include Champagne (home of Champagne), Burgundy (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay), Bordeaux (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot), Alsace (Aromatic varietals), Loire Valley (Chenin Blanc, Crémant) and the Rhône Valley (Syrah, Grenache Mourvedre)
The Bordeaux classification of 1855 is still in use, as is the Sauternes and Barsac Classification of the same year. Wines from certain regions can be bought En Primeur, which is when the wine is sold prior to it being bottled.
Bordeaux
Bordeaux has a rich history of winemaking, dating back to the Roman times. Today, it is known as one of the most significant wine regions in the world, with a reputation for producing complex, full-bodied red wines. The region is home to a diverse range of terroirs, each with its own unique microclimate, soil composition, and grape varieties.
The left bank of Bordeaux is dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, which thrives in the region's gravelly soils. These wines tend to be bold, tannic, and complex, with notes of blackcurrant, cedar, and tobacco. On the right bank, Merlot is king, producing wines that are softer and fruitier, with notes of plum, cherry, and chocolate.
Aside from the red blends, Bordeaux is also renowned for its sweet wines, particularly from the Sauternes and Barsac appellations. These wines are made using a unique process that involves botrytis, or "noble rot," which concentrates the sugars in the grapes, resulting in a lusciously sweet and complex wine.
Bordeaux's classification system has evolved over time, with some estates moving up or down the ranks depending on the quality of their wines. Today, the system includes five growths, with Premier Cru being the highest and Deuxièmes Crus being the second-highest. There is also a separate classification for the sweet wines of Sauternes and Barsac, with Chateau d’Yquem holding the highest rank.
Overall, Bordeaux is a region that continues to captivate wine enthusiasts around the world with its rich history, diverse terroirs, and exceptional wines.
Medoc
Home to over 650 vineyards and spanning over 4,900 hectares, Bordeaux’s Médoc wine region comprises four of the most distinguished wine villages in the area: Saint-Estephe, Saint-Julien, Pauillac, and Margaux. The peninsula of Médoc is home to coastal lagoons, sand dunes, and pine forests. It is known to have formed into a peninsula over time as the Garonne and Dordogne rivers carried in large quantities of mineral rich silt and light reflective, well drained gravel, which turned out to be perfect for harvesting red wine grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. The main aromas of the beautifully refined red wines from this area are: spices, oak, red fruit and vanilla.
The region of Médoc is divided into three areas: the Landes du Médoc, the Bas-Médoc, and the Haut-Médoc. The Landes du Médoc is located in the entire western half of the peninsula. Although there are no vineyards here, the land is still important because its pine trees protect the grape vines from the harsh cold winds blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The Bas-Médoc( lower-Médoc) runs downstream on the estuarine side of the peninsula. The wines produced here are usually more affordable than those produced in Haut-Médoc. Haut-Médoc (upper-Médoc) is the most well-known of the three sections. The wines produced here are some of the most expensive wines worldwide and were famously ranked in The Médoc Classification of 1855, which is to this day in use.
About the brand Chateau Palmer
Once a part of the ancient estate, château d'issan, divided by the heirs of the foix-candale family in 1748, 50 hectares of vineyards came to the gascq family. Though without association to any noble château, the wine produced became château de gascq, quickly established in the market and served at the court of versailles under louis xv.
Château palmer, is a winery in the margaux appellation d'origine contrôlée of the bordeaux region of france. The wine produced here, was classified as one of fourteen troisièmes crus (third growths) in the historic bordeaux wine official classification of 1855. The property is situated in the communes margaux and cantenac, and its wine is considered to be one of the two most popular third growths.
Since 1998, the château has been producing also a second label, not a second wine, alter ego de palmer, selected from the same quality terroirs, but employing different wine-making techniques and different proportions of grapes. In order to produce an earlier-drinking wine. Some 40% of the estate's production, is now sold as alter ego de palmer. The result has been a significant reduction in the quantity of wine sold as château palmer (from nearly 20,000 cases before the introduction of alter ego de palmer to 11,000-12,000 cases currently). The previous second wine, la réserve de général, is not a component of alter ego de palmer, but is now sold off in bulk.
You May Also Like
Customer Reviews
Write Your Own Review