"The 2016 Palmer is a blend of 47% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot. Opaque garnet-purple colored, it slowly glides out of the glass with compelling notes of blueberry compote, warm cassis and kirsch with emerging hints of violets, cigar box, black tea, sandalwood and Sichuan pepper. Medium to full-bodied, wonderfully rich, concentrated and packed with latent energy, the palate literally grows in the mouth, revealing layer upon layer of black, blue and red fruits and tons of floral sparks, framed by super ripe, incredibly fine-grained tannins and finishing with epic length. It’s a wine that makes you wanna drape yourself languidly over a chaise lounge, glass of Palmer in hand, sighing with deep satisfaction, “This is so wonderfully Palmer.”
“We had 2009 and 2010, we’ll have 2015 and 2016,” Palmer’s CEO Thomas Duroux told me, alluding to the comparisons being made throughout Bordeaux to the last great pair of vintages. “But of course,” he added, “they are two very different expressions.” There was some mildew pressure at Palmer in 2016, which is a larger problem at organic/biodynamically managed estates such as this. Subsequently, the crop was a relatively modest 29 hectoliters per hectare, down from an average of say 35 hectoliters per hectare. “It was a milder summer, not too much heat,” Duroux further observed. “So there was not too much alcohol this year and nothing jammy.”"
Lisa Perrotti Brown MW 98+ Punkte (Nov. 2018)
"The 2016 Palmer is a blend of 47% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot cropped at 29 hectoliters per hectare between 3 and 18 October. Matured in 65% new oak (my sample coming from a used barrel), the bouquet is perhaps not quite as intense as some of its peers and takes time to click into fifth gear. Eventually it offers tightly wound blackberry, briary and mineral scents; it is very focused, but maybe less extrovert and more classic in style compared to recent vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with a gentle grip on the entry, quite firm in the mouth with slightly tarry black fruit, hints of black truffle developing towards the finish that feels masculine and linear. It has very impressive length, completing what is an intellectual Palmer, one that I suspect will really blossom in bottle."
Neal Martin 95-97 Punkte (Apr. 2017)
Quelle: www.robertparker.com