2011 Palmer

The wine of the night at the Commanderie de Bontemps dinner during En Primeur, at a brilliant moment to drink as it clocks up 14 years since harvest, juicy, finessed blackberry fruits, laced with liqourice and black chocolate, rippling with muscular tannins. Not the most prestigious vintage on the table, but it was the most ready to drink, open, generous, luscious, delicious. One to look out for over the holidays.

The 2011 Palmer has a delineated, focused, razor-sharp bouquet with blackberry and bilberry scents, demonstrated more mineralité than its peers. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, moderate depth, straightlaced and uncomplicated with satisfying freshness and grip on the finish. Not memorable, but certainly well-crafted and might improve with continued bottle age. Tasted blind at the annual 10-Year-On tasting.

Touches of raspberry and tobacco leaf straight off the first nose. This could be opened now with a good few hours in a carafe, as the tannins are fine-boned and riven through with salinity and juice. An elegant, well-balanced Palmer with white truffle, loam, and soft white pepper spice, lingering through the finish. An early harvest following a dry summer that was not overly hot, running from September 7 to 29. A hail storm at the end of June damaged 90% of the vineyard so this is a small yield at 21hl/ha - the lowest since 1961 (until 2018) - and unusually has no Petit Verdot. 60% new oak.