A case in hand is worth two in the cellar - World Wine Consultants SA

A case in hand is worth two cases in the cellar´
(Alas, the birds have already flown, and the bushes have been well pruned!)

Having received a little flack recently over my En Primeur´22 comments, or about the En Primeur system in general over the last years, I am here to make amends. It will have to be small amends as 99% of what I wrote was quite correct and I cannot really, and will never knowingly offer my dear customers a rubbish wine or a rubbish (not my expression) wine investment idea or wine investment plan (ie: En Primeur). I´ll leave all that kind of thing up to the experts, there are enough of them around these days, just check your Googlie.

Our friends down in the village of Margaux-Cantenac, at Lieu-dit aka Chateau Palmer, have always had your favourate Wine Merchant, me!, down on the annual Palmer allocation list. And here we are, almost 50 years after my first sip of Palmer, and for the first time ever we are not being offered a single drop of their 2022 vintage. Mind you neither are some of my Bordelais negociant friends who have been wine trading since 19th century. I am only a 1985 spring-chicken wine merchant in comparison. There is just not enough juice to go around, apparently, from this 2022 vintage. So being a good merchant I put on the olde thinking cap and have managed to track down from one or two very good sources a little bit of Palmer & Alter Ego, for our cellars, arriving in the springtime of 2025.

As my first grandson, Frank Oliver, was born in March of 2022, he is of course down for a case of his vintage. Here are some tasting notes (and their points) from some of the usual suspects, make of it all what you will, and do keep an eye out for the ‘under the radar’ and always delcious Alter Ego de Palmer. As ever, one of the great second wines of the great Chateaux of Bordeaux.

2022 Alter Ego de Palmer, Margaux

The 2022 Alter Ego is a total pleasure bomb. Ripe and sensual, with caressing tannins, the 2022 is exceptionally beautiful. Floral and spice top notes lend tons of aromatic presence. More than anything, though, I am so impressed with the wine’s exceptional balance. Especially the tannins. Nothing in particular stands out, as the wine’s balance is nothing short of magnificent. The 2022 is pure and total sensuality. 98-100 points, AG

I always love the second wine from this estate, and their 2022 Alter Ego de Palmer should be terrific. Based on 61% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Petit Verdot, aged in 25% new oak, it’s a deeply hued Margaux with lots of ripe red and blue fruits, some classic chalky minerality, and floral notes. It shows the vintage’s powerful, concentrated style and is full-bodied, with terrific balance. 93-95 points, JD
The minerality and intensity of this Alter Ego 2022 is very impressive with blackberry and blue berry aromas and flavors. Salt and pepper. It’s full and linear with a brightness and freshness. Compacted center palate. 96-97 points, JS

6 cases (6x75cl) 2022 Alter Ego de Palmer @ GBP95 per bottle (ib) (36 bottles avail/EP/Spring 2025)

2022 Chateau Palmer, Margaux

The 2022 Palmer was cropped at just 22hL/ha due to the berries being 25-30% smaller than usual. It bursts forth on the nose with precocious black cherries, blueberry, violet and touches of marmalade and tobacco in the background. Complex and expressive. The palate is structured, with the tannic

backbone, that winemaker Thomas Duroux talked about, lending this Palmer a sense of verticality. Hints of black pepper emerge with time, multi-layered, a powerful Margaux and yet the IPT is actually lower than elsewhere (76). Quite linear on the tobacco-infused finish, which is just quintessential Palmer. Do reserve a bin in your cellar for this and let it gather dust for at least a decade. 2035-2080. 96-98 points, N.M.