We are delighted to showcase a remarkable array of wines from the high-achieving Chateau Palmer, which will be presented by Sebastien Menut, the Chateau's export director. Ranked as a 3eme grand cru classe in the 1855 classification and located in the Margaux commune the wines from this Chateau are now considered to be amongst the very finest in Bordeaux. This tasting has been made possible by the kindness and generosity of the Chateau, as was the case with our equally remarkable tasting held in 2011.
Legend has it that the Chateau was sold to General Charles Palmer on a stagecoach journey from Lyon to Paris by the recently widowed, and very persuasive, Madame Le Gasq who claimed it was a wine surpassed only by Lafite. Two centuries after Palmer's energetic, conscientious and costly improvements, and his “hustling” to promote the Chateau's wines in British high society, Neal Martin describes this jewel of Margaux as one of the very few properties capable of outflanking the first growths in its finest vintages.
Chateau Palmer's reputation was firmly established as one of the Medoc's most revered estates by the turn of the twentieth century but a severe decline followed before the estate was rescued in 1937 by a group of families, from whom the Sichels and the Mahler-Besses still retain joint ownership. The great improvements in the winemaking were established beyond doubt when Palmer surpassed Chateau Margaux with its legendary 1961 and then repeated the feat with the 1983.
Palmer was typically thought of historically as having a larger than usual proportion of Merlot in the blend, as compared with its peers, but the reality is that the wine is more evenly balanced, with the trend having been towards an increasing proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (53% in 2018 and in 1983 as compared with 30% in 1961).
The wines we will taste are:
Alter Ego 2019
Alter Ego 2017
Palmer 2012
Palmer 2010
Palmer 2009
Palmer 2008
Palmer 2005
Palmer 2000
Member tickets are £120 and guest tickets are £140. If you are using the Society's website to purchase tickets for the first time, you are encouraged to register so as to make future ticket purchases even easier.
If you have any questions, please contact the organiser, Nigel Farr, on nigel.farr@hsf.com.