‍Château Palmer has always transcended fashions and trends to instead tap into a single voice: its terroir. The finesse and elegance of its Margaux roots, the softness and sophistication of its texture, the nobility of leather and the gentle caress of velvet. An almost identical blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, rounded off with a touch of Petit Verdot, forge the Palmer style. The aromas offer an immersion in a bouquet of flowers, fruit, and spices, enveloped in a fleshy, generous structure.

BUT ALL OF THIS REQUIRES PATIENCE : for long ageing in barrels and foudres – more than 20 months – is essential to fully instil the wine with the expression of its soil. Slowly, it develops the ample flesh and body needed to mature and grow into its robe of tannins. After being “captured” in the bottle, Palmer’s wine is still in the early stages of its life. It can age for years and decades, before it finally unveils the full scope of its aromatic richness and complexity.

THE NEW-OAK AND OLD-OAK BARRELS are combined in vats for the final assemblage several weeks before bottling. This helps homogenize the wines. With the composition complete, the historic cellar of the estate then welcomes some of the precious bottles for an initial ten-year aging cycle. For Château Palmer, these ten years herald an age of reason, a crucial first step on the long road to its full disclosure. The ongoing tale of a vintage and its terroir.

WHY ARE SOME WINES SO UNFLINCHINGLY UNIQUE? So brilliant in their nuances that they appear to transcend the palettes of Merlot and Cabernet, or any grape variety for that matter. So evocative in their bouquet that their aromas, flavors, and textures merge to form something more. An emotion, images, a sense of belonging. Despite the progress made in winemaking in recent years, we are still unable to fully answer this simple question…