


Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThis is a delicious and savory wine with beautiful, ripe and creamy tannins, as well as chocolate and plum character. Full body. The flavors turn to wet earth and mushrooms with some leather. A blend of 53% merlot, 41% cabernet sauvignon and 6% petit verdot. Lovely finish. Try after 2021.
I love the bright perky fruit that we have here.They had to be careful with extraction to retain this delicacy but have been successful with it. Not enormously concentrated, at least compared to the first wine, but it has lovely classicism, with fresh fruit and some gourmet swirls of cinnamon and chocolate, 3.75pH, 25% new oak. Had some bigger sized oak casks also, testing for the first time on just 60hl. A yield of 38hl/ha because the Alter Ego plots frosted more than Palmer (final count 55% Palmer, 45% Alter Ego).
Barrel Sample: 89-92
Attractive black-currant aromas of this wine are followed on the palate by fresh fruits, lit by acidity and bright black-currant and berry flavors. The tannins are soft and open, meaning this wine will develop relatively quickly. Drink from 2022.
The 2017 Alter Ego De Palmer is a terrific wine and checks in as 53% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 6% Petit Verdot. Its deep purple color is followed by a powerful second wine that has lots of blackberry and assorted dark fruit as well as notes of leafy herbs, earth, and spice. it's nicely concentrated, medium to full-bodied, and has considerable class.
Composed of 53% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot, the 2017 Alter Ego de Palmer is deep garnet-purple in color and springs from the glass with vivacious black raspberries, black cherries and crushed blackcurrants notes plus hints of Sichuan pepper, menthol, pencil lead and cardamom. Medium-bodied, the palate is charged with energy, featuring expressive, bright black fruits and firm, fine-grained tannins, finishing long and lively.





Charles Palmer devoted a great deal of time, energy, and money to developing his property. The Major General lived mainly in England, and so the estate was managed by his authorized representative, Mr Grey, who helped to increase the wine's reputation among wealthy connoisseurs.
In June 1853, the brothers Isaac and Emile Péreire, famous bankers and rivals of the Rothschilds, bought Palmer and began investing in the estate immediately. However, there was not enough time to bring Chateau Palmer up to first growth status in time for the famous 1855 classification. It was thus ranked a Third Growth, although it is widely recognized as among the greatest wines of Bordeaux.
Several families of Bordeaux, English, and Dutch extraction all involved in the wine trade, united to buy Palmer in 1938 and have worked hard to give the estate its present reputation. These families have always given priority to quality, despite the financial risk this entailed. They have unfailingly applied the principles that have made the great wines of Bordeaux so successful: authenticity, quality, and permanence.

Silky, seductive and polished are the words that characterize the best wines from Margaux, the most inland appellation of the Médoc on the Left Bank of Bordeaux.
Margaux’s gravel soils are the thinnest of the Médoc, making them most penetrable by vine roots—some reaching down over 23 feet for water. The best sites are said to be on gentle outcrops, or croupes, where more gravel facilitates good drainage.
The Left Bank of Bordeaux subscribes to an arguably outdated method of classification but it is nonetheless important in regards to history of the area. In 1855 the finest chateaux were deemed on the basis of reputation and trading price—at that time. In 1855, Chateau Margaux achieved first growth status, yet it has been Chateau Palmer (officially third growth from the 1855 classification) that has consistently outperformed others throughout the 20th century.
Chateau Margaux in top vintages is capable of producing red Cabernet Sauvignon based wines described as pure, intense, spell-binding, refined and profound with flavors and aromas of black currant, violets, roses, orange peel, black tea and incense.
Other top producers worthy of noting include Chateau Rauzan-Ségla, Lascombes, Brane-Cantenac, and d’Issan, among others.
The best wines of Margaux combine a deep ruby color with a polished structure, concentration and an unrivaled elegance.

One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.