Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar.Tasting in April 2008
Good full red. Subtly perfumed aromas of plum, milk chocolate, cedar,
menthol and smoke. Sweet, supple and deep, with a pungent minerality to
the flavors of mulberry, currant and chocolate. Very suave and harmonious
wine, offering a lovely combination of volume and energy. Duroux
ultimately included 47% merlot in the blend, and this must be some of the
best merlot of the Medoc in 2006. Finishes very long and perfumed, with
terrific vinosity. (At a much lower price point, the estate's second wine,
Alter Ego, is also unusually elegant and juicy in 2006.)
Alan Duran, Periodic Review of Bordeaux Wine.Tasting in January 2008
Château Palmer has produced a fabulous, complex wine that can possibly
rival the great 2005, 2004, and 2000. It offers lead pencil, raspberry,
and cassis intertwined with sweet vanilla bean aromas, followed by a huge,
backwardly broad, medium-bodied, vibrant offering of full-flavor and
gorgeous, mouth seraing appeal. This well endowed, youthful, opaque
ruby-purple colored 2006 possesses amazing potential. It will require
patience!
Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast.Tasting in April 2007
For Palmer, this is an atypical wine. With a much higher percentage than
usual of Cabernet Sauvignon, it loses the plump character normally
associated with this estate. Instead, there is a wine with noticeable
currant fruit flavors, very fresh, layered with wine and with prominent
acidity to finish. It is much more about elegance than richness.
James Suckling, Wine Spectator.Tasting in April 2007
Gorgeous nose, with violet, currant and berry, and a vanilla undertone.
Full-bodied, with a solid core of ripe fruit and supersilky tannins. Long
and rich. Wonderful wine. Love the balance. Almost 95-100.
Jancis Robinson, www.jancisrobinson.com.Tasting in April 2007
Very, very deep crimson. Very intense and nervy - impressive on the nose -
but more obviously big and fruity than the more delicate Ch Margaux.
Probably a wise decision to choose another track. Slightly charred and
smoky. Round and fresh and very beguiling. Real lift and only the
slightest hint of inkiness on the finish. Bravo! Very fine tannins - very
suave and polished with good density while still being Margaux. Very sweet
. Hints of modern idiom but very gentle. Super silky texture. Sinewy - but
polished sinews!
Steven Spurrier, Decanter.Tasting in April 2007
Intense velvety colour, dense and rich, quite fleshy due to the very ripe
Merlots, but Cabernets bring true Margaux breed and a wonderfully silky
expression of fruit with power behind it.
Gavin Quinney, Wine & Spirit.Tasting in April 2007
By no means a bloockbuster, the '06 Palmer is a modern, sleeker version of
the '99, itself a wine of the vintage. Stunning depth and intensity with
plump, juicy, black fruit. Great précision and utterly delicious.
Izak Litwar, www.greatbordeauxwines.com.Tasting in April 2007
Did really challenge Margaux with its powerful performance. It was packed
with ripe blaccurrants and raspberries, and had plenty of nuances and
refinement. Extremely stylish and gracious, and therefore so typical for
the commune.
Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar.Tasting in April 2007
Good deep ruby-red. Deep, ripe, minerally aromas of plum, mulberry,
chocolate and mocha. This boasts a lovely sappy sweetness leavened by
fresh acidity, with the chocolatey ripeness carrying through on the
palate. Offers terrific but subtle depth of flavor. Wonderfully chewy,
dense wine with very suave tannins, firm underlying structure and
excellent grip.
Neal Martin, erobertparker.com.Tasting in April 2007
Tasted at the chateau. So, Palmer made a better wine than the invincible
Chateau Margaux in 2006? Looks like it, for no other reason that Palmer is
blessed with superior terroir suited towards that grape varietal. Simple as
that. A deep purple/garnet hue. A deep, opulent, compelling nose of
blackberry, cedar, limestone with a certain “coolness” about it. The
palate is full-bodied with filigree tannins and wonderful delineation. It
has a tension that I did not find in Chateau Margaux, whilst there is an
added dimension of something from the sea, a slight briny element. Good
persistency, beautifully poised finish, this wine sets the benchmark for
the appellation in 2006.
Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate.Tasting in March 2007
From only 50% of the harvest, administrator Thomas Duroux has produced a
blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon and 34% Merlot from yields of 37
hectoliters per hectare. The 2006 reveals a touch of austerity along with
an impressive dense purple color, and sweet aromas of flowers, licorice,
black currants, oak, and underbrush. This structured, powerful, medium to
full-bodied, beautifully made, ageworthy 2006 should be ready to drink in
5-6 years, and keep for 25-30.
