Wine Advisor
Palmer, Alter Ego de Palmer 2015
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: James Suckling
Very solid and powerful with dried mushroom and wet earth aromas and flavors. Complex. Full and chewy yet so polished and long. Spicy, meat and gorgeous. Most serious Alter Ego ever. More inner Ego now!. 52% merlot, 41% cabernet sauvignon, and petit verdot 6%.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
This is sensational, characterized by such purity and beauty and with aromas of blackberries, dark chocolate, walnuts, cedar and lavender. Full-bodied, tight and focused — in part thanks to sensational tannin tension that is intense yet polished. Needs five to six years of bottle age to come together. Great second wine of Palmer.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2015 Alter Ego de Palmer is a blend of 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 52% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot. It has a very open, ravishing, quite precocious bouquet with ripe black cherries, fresh dates and crème de cassis that gain intensity in the glass. The palate is more refined, reins it all back in thanks to quite tensile tannin, a crisp line of acidity, moderate depth in the mouth and a gentle grip. There is a touch of tarriness and cracked black pepper towards the finish with very good length. Give this 5-7 years in bottle.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2015 Alter Ego de Palmer is a blend of 52% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot. Like the grand vin, this was bottled in late August/early September. The bouquet has certainly dispensed with the precocity that it demonstrated in barrel, now more refined with pure blackberry, blueberry and violet scents, precise and very focused, the new oak very well integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a crisp line of acidity, lightly spiced (clove and black pepper) with just the right amount of plushness toward the winsome finish.
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Composed of 52% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Franc and 6% Petit Verdot, the 2015 Alter Ego de Palmer has a medium to deep garnet-purple color and gorgeous nose of ripe plums, cassis and crushed cherries with touches of incense, lavender and chocolate box. Medium-bodied, very finely crafted and vivacious in the mouth, it finishes with great elegance and finesse.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2015 Alter Ego is just as alluring today as it was from barrel. Sweet floral notes, spice, dried cherry, mint, tobacco and crushed flowers are all laced together in this silky, mid-weight Margaux. Time in barrel has mellowed some of the exuberance the 2015 showed from barrel. Open-knit, supple and super-expressive, Alter Ego is a winner. Time in the glass brings out aromatic presence of Cabernet Sauvignon.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2015 Alter Ego is round, succulent and also a terrific introduction to the vintage. Raspberry jam, cinnamon, flowers and mint are all pushed forward. This is an especially succulent, juicy Margaux that is firing on all cylinders. Today, the 2015 gives the impression it will drink well with minimal cellaring, as its balance and overall harmony are first-rate. The blend is 52% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2015 Alter Ego de Palmer has an odd, slightly static bouquet of black cherry and mulberry fruit that is not as vigorous as some of its peers. The palate is medium-bodied with soft, furry tannin. There is good density here, but not the tension and precision that define the best wines of the appellation. Maybe it is enduring a dumb phase. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.
About the Producer
The fine seaside climate and soils of Long Island’s North Fork provide exceptional conditions for the making of world-class varietal wines. With 110 acres planted with Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc to supply the winery’s 20,000 annual case production, Palmer strives to preserve and enhance the purity of flavor and distinctive, fresh character which makes this region’s wines so unique. The state- of-the art winery contains the most modern winemaking equipment available today, and also includes substantial new French oak cooperage, purchased each year, for both barrel fermentation of our Chardonnay and the aging of our premium red varietals.
