Château Palmer - Margaux 2016 6b11bd6ba9341f0271941e7df664d056

Beckustator

98 / 100

byYves Beckthe3/20/2019

Rouge grenat aux reflets violets. Quel bouquet ! Intense et complexe avec de très belles notes de cassis, de myrtilles et d'épices. Rafraîchissantes notes de menthe poivrée et superbe expression du Cabernet Sauvignon qui brille de toute sa maturité. Mise en bouche élégante, très expressive. Au palais, le vin reflète bien les caractéristiques olfactives, en particulier la fraîcheur. Viennent s'y ajouter les éléments liés à la structure tannique et à l'acidité. Ces tannins sont dotés d’un grain très fin et confèrent une touche suave mais également de la puissance à l'ensemble du palais. Je pense que Palmer 2016 a encore mille et une choses à nous conter, et je pense que sa note est sujette à évoluer, vers le haut bien évidemment. 2028-2061 98/100

Jeb DUNNUCK

100 / 100

byJeb Dunnuckthe3/1/2019

The finest vintage I’ve ever tasted from this estate, surpassing the 2009 and 2010, the 2016 Château Palmer is a blend of 47% each of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, with the balance Petit Verdot, all of which was brought up in 65% new French oak. This magical effort reveals a saturated purple color as well as a huge nose of crème de cassis, graphite, crushed rocks, and spring flowers, and it develops beautifully with time in the glass. Full-bodied, deep, incredibly concentrated and powerful, it nevertheless just glides over the palate with flawless purity and balance, present, ripe tannins, and a finish that just won’t quit. This is Bordeaux at its most regal and classic. It will be drinkable with just 4-5 years of bottle age and keep for half a century.

Wine Spectator

94 / 100

byJames Molesworththe2/5/2019

This is a very solid rendering, with a core of steeped blackberry, black currant and fig fruit flavors that are juicy and well-defined. The back end picks up lots of graphite, tobacco, anise and violet notes while maintaining focus and energy. Shows latent depth as the fruit echoes steadily. Best from 2023 through 2038.   –JM

Jamessuckling.com

98 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe2/4/2019

Such attractive fruit and alluring ripeness that it draws you in from the get-go. The discreet power here is delivered with a very astute touch. Assorted dark-berry aromas, as well as red plums, abound on the nose. The richness and depth in the mouth is stunning. The tannins are super polished and layered and they draw pristine dark fruit flavors deep into the finish in effortless mode. This is a star of the vintage. A blend of 47 per cent merlot, 47 per cent cabernet sauvignon and six per cent petit verdot. Try from 2024.

Vinous

97 / 100

byNeal Martinthe1/24/2019

The 2016 Palmer was bottled in summer 2018 and matured in 60% new oak. This year it has the same proportion of grape varieties as planted in the vineyard. The gorgeous, extremely pure and floral bouquet features intense black cherries, humidor, crème de cassis and crushed violet. It is quintessential Palmer in every way. The palate is medium-bodied with fine structure and density, matched by perfectly judged acidity. Black fruit infused with pencil lead and hints of black olive gives way to a more cassis-like note toward the finish, which displays superb structure. This is a great Palmer, one from Thomas Duroux’s top drawer. 13.5% alcohol.

Vinous

100 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe1/21/2019

Technical Director Thomas Duroux and his team made one of the most brilliant wines of the 2016 vintage. Palmer is simply exceptional. Rich and dramatically sweeping in the glass, the 2016 is breathtaking. All the elements simply fall into place in a wine mesmerizing beauty. The counterpoint of dark, sumptuous fruit and floral notes makes for an utterly compelling Palmer that will take its place among the estate's finest vintages. Dark cherry, lavender, spice and mocha are some of the many notes that bu into a deep, substantial finish that is truly unforgettable. In a word: magnificent!

Wine Advocate

98 / 100

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe11/30/2018

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.”

Decanter.com

98 / 100

byJane Ansonthe10/30/2018

Wein Wisser

20 / 20

the5/22/2017

47 % Merlot, 47 %CabernetSauvignon, 6 % Petit Verdot,(nur) 29 hl/ha, Lese vom 3. bis 18. Oktober,65 % Grand Vin. Tiefes Purpurmit Granatschimmer am Rand. Konzentriertes,schwarzbeeriges Bouquetmit Brombeere und Cassis, dahinterVeilchen und Iris. Am Gaumen mit cremigerTextur und anschmiegsamenTanninen, viel Cassisdrops und Heidelbeermarkim Rückaroma, was für eineEleganz und Finesse! Im katapultartigenFinale wiederum Heidelbeeren,Schattenmorellensaft und Lakritze. Finessepur! Thomas bevorzugt diesenStil und ich kann ihm da nur beipflichten,daher ist dieser Palmer im Klassikstilauch mein Favorit in der AppellationMargaux!

Wein Wisser

20 / 20

byRené Gabrielthe5/10/2017

Bettane & Desseauve

98-99 / 100

by Bettane & Desseauvethe5/3/2017

La réduction involontaire des rendements (29 hl/ha) liée au passage en bio et à un traitement manqué a concentré la matière à un niveau unique en Médoc. Artistiquement vinifié, cela donne un velouté de texture et une intégration de tannin magiques. Une merveille. Et une très haute expression du merlot, pour une petite moitié de l’encépagement.

Wine Advocate

95-97 / 100

byNeal Martinthe5/2/2017

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.

The Wine Cellar Insider

97-98 / 100

byJeff Levethe4/27/2017

A richly-colored, attention-seeker whose nose pops with truffle, tobacco, black cherries, cigar box, plum and cocoa. Silky, velour textures and polished tannins embrace juicy, sweet, fresh, pure plums and a finish that builds as it lingers. This sublime wine was produced from a blend of 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot, reaching 14% alcohol with a pH of 3.85. Currently being aged in 65% new, French oak barrels, the wine represents 50% of the harvest, which took place between October 3 and October 18. This is the third vintage that was farmed using 100% biodynamic farming techniques, allowing Palmer to become fully certified. 

Vinous

95-98 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe4/26/2017

Sophisticated and polished from the outset, the 2016 Palmer is utterly captivating. Dark shades of fruit, accented by hints of smoke, leather and discreet French oak open up in the glass, but it is the wine'e effortless, gracious personality that stands out most. The 2016 literally hovers on the palate with exquisite grace. I can't wait to see how it ages.

matthewjukes.com

19 / 20

byMatthew Jukesthe4/25/2017

(47 Cabernet Sauvignon, 47 Merlot, 6 Petit Verdot) | 65% new oak | 13.1% alc. | 29 hl/ha. | 78 IPT | 65% of production went into this wine. Winemaker Thomas Duroux explained that 2016 could have been disastrous. The pressure on a biodynamic vineyard, with the amount of rain that fell in the first half of the season was, near-catastrophic. The Palmer team worked their socks off and as we all now know, the rain stopped at just the right time and what followed was a remarkable growing season, refreshed by the famous rains on the 13th September, and remembered as the latest harvest on record - between the 3rd and 18th October. The Grand Vin is a terroir selection mostly and in 2016 is one of the most captivating and joyous wines of the vintage. Very shy and very complex and it is impossibly long and it unravels brilliantly and incrementally on the palate. This is a masterpiece because it is the epitome of restraint and composure. With superb tannins and serious finesse this is a wine which has risen from great terroir in the most trying of conditions to confound and delight the drinker. 19+

Decanter.com

98 / 100

byJane Ansonthe4/24/2017

The grand vin represents 65% of production in 2016, the highest ever. It has many similarities in style with the 2001 and 1986, being a classically styled wine full of soft slate, fern, liquorice and cassis, but from the modern era where you can achieve so much more precision. This is a wine that makes you smile from the first sip, and keeps on getting better, caressing you gently across the palate. There is never any let up through the mid-palate, and the biodynamics that have been practised here for the past few years are clearly paying off. Elegant, utterly silky and precise, the structure is just effortless with reasonably fresh alcohols that are the result of late ripening. A perfect example of the appellation, it has the florality, density and slow tannic pace that means it takes you right along with it as the flavours build. The blend is 47% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot. Intellectual without being overbearing, and built to age. This is impressive stuff. Drinking Window 2027 - 2050

Jancis Robinson

17,5 / 20

byJancis Robinsonthe4/20/2017

47% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot. No sulphur dioxide until after MLF.Very dark, velvety look - really bright. Complex and energetic. Not simple and sweet but quite a step change. Feels a little transitional because it's so different and more energetic than the old style. 65% new oak, as always, but the wine can absorb it better. Some bitter chocolate. Lots of sweetness. Energy and freshness.17.5+

Wine Enthusiast

98-100 / 100

byRoger Vossthe4/19/2017

Barrel Sample. Potentially an 100-point wine, this is beautifully ripe and rich, with sweet tannins as well as opulent black fruit tones. A higher than usual proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend gives the wine its density, sophistication and great sense of presence.

Jamessuckling.com

99-100 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe4/5/2017

I wrote that the 2015 was incredible, and this 2016 is again. It's equally structured and powerful as the 2015, yet there's an underlying intellectual serenity to this wine. You taste it, and you want to know and experience it even more. Full and tannic yet ever so polished and beautiful. Mesmerizing. Made from biodynamically grown grapes.