An austere wine that still seems to be resolving itself. Drank over two days. Definitely, needed a decant and got better as the night went on. Don’t think it will reach the highs of 82 but a good wine nonetheless.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Stored in cold cellar since release. Fill just above neck. Bouquet cedar, black fruits, autumn woodland. Same on palate. Depth, balance and length - mouth filling. High toned ( a rather old fashioned description) but opposite of fresh black/red fruit. This bottle seems fully mature but should last for a decade?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
For myself, this is the greatest Palmer after the 1961 and 1966, and still with the potential to improve, and I am always puzzled why I seem to be one of the few champions of this wine. I feel it is still in development, and certainly benefits from a couple of hours in the decanter. The nose is exquisite, and unmistakably Palmer, with cherry and cedar, with violet wafts. The balance and depth are impeccable. However, I do find that the tannin needs to further resolve end palate and on the finish. Once tertiary notes fully develop, this will be challenging the 1961. A post script; I saved a small glass overnight and it had improved. For now 97+
20 Top Wines of the 1983 Vintage: Six Bordeaux titans. Each bottle exceeded our expectations, showcasing classic Bordeaux structures, bursting with freshness, tension, and an invigorating verve. The perfect harmony of tertiary aromas and a robust fruit core was mesmerizing. 1983 has produced some great wines drinking in their prime today. For me, the Latour, scoring a stellar 97 points, was the standout star. Yet, by a narrow margin, the group’s heart went to the Cheval Blanc.
TN: This was one of the best bottle of the 1983 Palmer I had to date. Intense, expressive from start to finish, superb fruit core forming a perfect balance with some burnt sugar, tobacco notes and all wrapped around an intensive and defining spine of minerality. While the Margaux 1983 in the next glass was subtle, elegant and almost Pinot-esque, this Palmer showed a more concentrated and and fuller-bodied side of the appelation, while still remaing highly elegant.
Decanting: Quick double decant to remove the sediment 5-6 hours prior to consumption, which seemed perfect for the wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
12x Bordeaux 1983 vs 1993: All wines tasted single blind. Not decanted. As anticipated, the 1983 vintage prevailed in our comparative tasting, scoring 8 to 2 wins against the 1993 vintage, with two ties. The structured, classic ’83s exhibited greater depth and harmony compared to the ‘93s, which tended to be simpler, sometimes slightly green and dry, or at their best, fresh and light. However, in both vintages, aside from a few notable labels, many wines were evidently beyond their peak. The standout was, unsurprisingly, the Margaux (94pts). Tasting the some of the same ’83s a second time a few days later with decanting showed a marked improvement, highlighting the need of aeration.
TN: Nose is a bit lacking in fruit and overall expressiveness. However, the palate is quite another story – round and seductive. It's filled with toasty notes, an abundance of dark red and even darker berries, complemented by herbal and mineral nuances. It becomes increasingly complete, evolving to showcase more red berries over time. Despite the nose's shortcomings, the palate truly excels. Score: 93pts (vs strong 92pts for the 1993). Revisiting with a properly decanted second bottle a few days later earned it 95pts, demonstrating that the 1983 Palmer greatly benefits from ample aeration to reach its full potential.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is a wine with a 98 point nose and a 90 point palate. This bottle I purchased 20+ years ago from Premier Cru. Glorious perfume of violets, dark red roses and black licorice. Magnificent. Some orange and tawny in the relatively pale color. Medium light and soft on the palate with a distinct note of fatigue although the flavors are correct and balanced. Minimal tannin. Apparently there are more vigorous bottles out there.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
1983 vintage horizontal with >20 wines, mostly from Bordeaux. Key observations: 1/ Acceptable vintage for Champagne with DP over-delivering, 2/ Laville Haut Brion is a masterpiece among the whites, 3/ Bordeaux is going strong at 40 years of age with stand-outs Latour and Margaux. 4/ No need to chase any Napa’s from the vintage, 5/ off-piste Italians kept up impressively with Soldera an undisputed medalist.
Tasting note: Double-decanted. Tobacco and beautiful red cherry and blueberry fruit, well-defined, precise and fresh. Almost ideal balance on the palate and a soft, satin texture. This was solid at least, but overshadowed by a strong Cheval Blanc and a stellar Margaux in the flight.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux 1983 vs 1993 face-off: A humble yet noble wine. Elements of butterscotch and caramel, fine dried wood, fir cone and fir needles. Only hints of aging notes. Well-defined cherry fruit. Structured palate with a soft texture but slightly drying tannin as the main drawback.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
One of the more mature bottles of wine I have had recently, the capsule and cork of this bottle were a moldy mess. The Durand got the cork out intact, but it was fully saturated through, barely held together and surely would've had significant seepage if kept for much longer. Thankfully, there was no sign of cork taint and this wine had a lovely bouquet of cedar, leather, sous bois, and blackberry liqueur. The palate was similarly primary and secondary with the fruit, while present, taking a back seat to the soy, dark chocolate, and green herbs. While I enjoyed this wine, I'm not sure I'd be a buyer at the current price point.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wine was in excellent condition. Opened with a makeshift Durand and decanted for sediment. Hardly any noticeable bricking. Drank over an hour. Shocked at how young this tasted. No tertiary notes. Even had some bright cherry on top of cedar and tobacco. Still some tannic grip. Almost a silky vanilla viscosity. Fun bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I opened a couple bottles of this. The first was absolutely singing. Very much like the Margaux–perhaps more exotic–if just a quarter click lower in the stratosphere. The second bottle I found a littler more shy and structured but still proper and delicious. Still on the upswing.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Fine Wines SG - Chateau Palmer Grand Cru Tasting (Fine Wines SG): Medium ruby core, with some garnet and fading edges. Very classic alluring aromas of black cherry, sundried tomato, black pepper, wood smoke, leather, and moss. Rounded tannins and bright acids, with a silky mouthfeel and flavours of ripe black cherry and cassis, then tomato, moss, violets, and cedar. Extremely long finish, with fruits, greens, spices, and smoke coming back in waves. Very complex! Truly as great as what Palmer can ever be!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Top shelf 1983 Bordeaux (Chicago, IL): I have to figure this wasn't a fully representative bottle -- it came off slightly advanced or with a bit of oxidation (but I doubt the one hour of decanting really pushed the bottle over the edge). There's a distinctly woodsy quality here, but there was a lovely perfume coming off the glass. The palate shows sweet fruit and a softer texture (especially compared to the Margaux alongside).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Eminently elegant and refined. Effortlessly beautiful. Bit of barnyard on the nose but that wasn’t distracting after a while. A very classic example of left bank Bordeaux. I liked this so much better than the 99 that I had previously.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dibbs's birthday celebration: My contribution, one of my bucket list wines and it didn't disappoint. A little old-school Bordeaux funk on the nose that didn’t ever quite go away, which was gradually overtaken by a floral, intoxicating nose. The palate was weightless with gorgeous, elegant red fruit. Unbelievably fresh for a 40 year old wine and even better than the 1999 which was one of my favourite ever wines. As the previous taster mentioned you can nitpick about the lack of structure, but this was one of the rare few wines that evoked the wish-you-were-here emotion for me. Loved this wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Fantastic showing tonight, the nose was so floral that I thought it was a Cheval Blanc. Sweet and fine tannins with impeccable balance. Would prefer a bit more structure and complexity but that’s just nit picking. This ought to be one of the best wines of the vintage. Reached maturity plateau, time to drink but no real hurry to consume either.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Regrettably my last of six bottles , this was absolutely gorgeous. Perfumed nose. On the palate, soft and velvety mouthfeel, with notes of plum and a hint of cedar and vanillin. As good a bottle of Palmer as I’ve had. This should last a while longer, but I can’t imagine it getting any better.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
My 40th birthday at 67 Pall Mall (67 Pall Mall): I have to admit that this was rather jostled on its journey to 67PM and was a lesson to bring these in advance or double decant - apologies to my guests.
Despite that this initially gave me rich dark but sweet cherry, plum, tobacco, old furniture - wonderful depth to the nose. Quite youthful on the palate - dark plum and cedar. Less floral than the Margaux but also a bit more structured and intense. As some of the sediment settles with time this becomes smoother and more elegant. Different but on par with Margaux this time.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Peter's 1983 extravaganza (67 Pall Mall): Slightly muddy in appearance, perhaps because of shaken-up sediment. A lovely nose, with truffle, red apple and soft cigar. Slightly sweet on the palate, with violets and strawberry cream chocolates, and plenty of dark fruit. A nice, juicy wine, elegant and pretty but also overly soft and pillowy, and it seemed to lack authority on the finish. Nice wine, but unfortunately I don't think this was the best bottle of Palmer '83.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Peter's 40th (67 Pall Mall, London): Crimson and showing some age as one would expect. Nose reveals old books, varnish and savoury raspberry. Medium bodied with silky powdery tannins leading the way to slightly decaying red fruits and tobacco notes on the midpalate. Quite savoury and masculine compared to the 83 Margaux. It's not trying to please, and all the better for it. My favourite red of an unreal line up, a real treat to try. From Zalto Bordeaux.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
(CDV) Un très beau fumé de prime abord, le nez est intrigant, divinement bordelais, presque Pessac-Leognan, puis les notes tertiaires, de sous-bois, de poivron rôti et de cendre, nuancées de bitume/reglisse, sont plus typées Médoc. Ce type de nez rigoureux et sombre m'evoque plus Pauillac ou St Estephe, mais la bouche rèvèle ensuite une fraicheur, une élegance à rapprocher de Margaux, il n'offre aucune lourdeur, et se montre svelte et long. Après, pour ma part, la présence du boisé en filigrane, toutefois appuyé et perceptible, c'est moins mon truc. Les plus grands bordeaux sont bien ceux à mes yeux qui l'ont totalement intégré.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Its been 6+ years since I last opened one of these. Similar to last time, this really took an hour of air to get going... was a bit funky and off immediately out of the bottle, but it really cleaned up nicely. Beautiful wine!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another great bottle of this, and probably the best 1983 Palmer I've consumed. Everything was in total harmony with this bottle. I wear my heart on my sleeve when it comes Palmer, and for myself it is the best pre millennial offering from the estate alongside the 1961 and 1966. At its best it is ethereal with secondary and tertiary notes, and with sweetened tannin and a lengthy finish. The nose is other worldly and worthy of a perfect rating, with deep aromas of cherry, strawberry, blackcurrant, and violet. On the palate there is an excellent balance with a good tannic backbone. For myself, the only barrier to a perfect score is the finish which, whilst magnificent, does not quite match the rest of the experience.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
An embarrassment of steak riches (Chez G): lovely nose, you need to breathe in deep but worthwhile - forest floor and cedar and just a hint of sourness. On the palate - someone said cigar ash and this stuck in my mind, this is a lovely old claret with just a hint of grumpiness.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wine Workshop: Chateau Palmer (Benoit): Not a ton of love for this wine across the group and I can agree that it's probably not the absolute best bottle of this but it was still drinking well. It's more dried fruit, potpourri. Secondary in style. Still tasty though.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
An epic dinner of classic wines: This pours medium ruby in the glass with light bricking. The nose is very lifted, floral, elegant and youthful. Aromas are of intense violets, plum, perfume, a touch of tobacco leaf, charcoal, dark chocolate, cassis and river stones. The palate is quite silky with medium minus tannin and medium acid. The finish lingers nicely with velvety violets and fresh plum fanning out nicely. This was from a pristine bottle in immaculate condition and was clearly slower in its evolution than past bottles I’ve had. In fact I think I might even like this better with another 20+ years on. Regardless it’s a great bottle. Just absolutely prototypical Margaux with the focus and intensity of violets and plums.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
One of my favourite wines from my favourite estate, it is without doubt the wine of the vintage, and for myself nudging the Margaux into second place. This still benefits from a couple of hours in an open decanter and time in the glass to fully come alive. As stated previously I love the Cabernet/Merlot composition of Palmer and it almost produces a left/right bank hybrid of the best qualities of both grape types. The nose is deeply aromatic with strawberry, plum and violet. On the palate the tannin has sweetened, but you know that this is a left bank wine with a firm tannic spine. The finish is first rate but it is not quite up there with the rest of the tasting experience. It is on the shorter side and a little clipped. It is a shame because everything else merits a perfect rating. 97+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep ruby-garnet with some bricking on the rim. Wonderfully elegant nose with tobacco, forest floor, and some dark red fruit. Medium body, medium-plus acid, fine-grained tannins. Palate features tart red fruit, soy sauce, and jasmine tea, all intermingling beautifully. So elegant. My wife said this was the best wine we had ever had, and I am not sure I disagree.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted blind, this wine had a deep red center and orange rims. The medium+ intensity nose generated cherry and clay soil notes at first. But after an hour or so the clay was hardly noticeable and the wine showed violets, plums, minerals, and cherries.
This wine had rounded tannin, firm acidity, and great balance. It was refined very good length. The flavors screamed merlot.
This wine is not extravagant and probably won't win many blind tastings. But it is gorgeous and great with food. Even though drinking, this will last at least 10-20 more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Excellent mature Bordeaux, living up to its iconic status. No visible sign of bricking, superb coloration, nice creme de cassis nose, fully integrated tannin, black fruit, medium plus acid, beautiful balance. Memorable and impressive for its age!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Annual BYO Pre-Dinner (mostly mature Bordeauxs): A trio of Palmer. Again, the 1989 (96 pts) delivered a convincing performance. This is a sensual, irresistible Palmer, probably drinking near or at its peak today. The 1983 (93 pts) didn’t show well compared to what you expect from this vintage. Missing a bit of substance (!) and charm, my guess is that like other bottles before, this needs a lot of air and more time in the cellar to get to the ideal drinking window the 1989 is already in. The 2000 (92 pts), like many 2000s, is not yet ready to drink. The fruit is not yet fully back and hence, the this wine lacks a bit of sweetness to be fully balanced. Give it a few more years.
TN: Intense, expressive nose with dark fruit, herbs and lots of minerality. Some sensual bright rhubarb notes. Medium precision only. On the palate better, round and harmonious, no hard edges but enough tension. Some dark red fruit, some brighter red fruit but all a bit in the background. The earthy/minerality/herbal notes dominate a bit and overall the wine is muted, the precision is not there. It felt like the wine misses a bit of substance, but especially sweetness. Rather in a dumb phase.
Decanting: I guess this was not decanted. This needs a lot of air but better a few more years in the cellar.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Fully-mature, the nose, with its floral center was just great. Once past the initial nuances of red and purple flowers, you found a wealth of cigar box, tobacco leaf, and forest floor nose. Rich, full, long, and fresh, the finish, with its silky, supple textured, sweet, ripe, red fruits hit all the right notes.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
First impression was rather herbal with restrained fruit, but very fresh and even slightly unripe in character. Palate super fresh with unfortunately rather searing acidity and still quite grippy tannin without the aroma intensity to match. After a while in the glass this also seemed to be falling apart a bit. Definitely had better ‘83s from Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cork semi-wet. Funky on opening, needs 2-3 hrs in decanter. Dense colour, ruby red w brownish tinge. Edge brown. Fantastic bq w dark red fruit, liquorice, sweet chocolate, leather, tobacco, dried flowers. Full body, integrated tannins, still fresh acidity. Elegant and fully balanced. The Margaux smoothness is omnipresent. It is of course fully mature, will last longer (but we doubt it will get better). Complex aftertaste, but here lies the missing 2 points. Best Palmer we've ever had!!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Superb. MacArthur Beverages. Mahler Besse bottle. I now believe last bottle I drank was flawed in 2019 bc I had a relatively negative review. This one still had some aging time, tertiary characteristics.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Last of the B-day reds. Classic 83 left bank with characteristic tannin still running thru the wine and the Palmer tobacco leading on the nose. Excellent cork with a 1/4 inch of staining; deep garnet with amber rim. Still some dark cassis fruit with some strawberry jam backing uo the tobacco and some leather. Not quite as complex as it was five years ago. Starting what promises to be a long decline. Full finish ending on a dry note. Always a favorite claret.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted with cheese last night at JD’s after the 1989 Ch. Montrose. Deep red color with a berry-like nose. This legendary wine is now on the downslope. It is still “good old claret” but it has lost the punch that it once had that led me to call it one of the greatest clarets I had ever tasted, along with the ‘70 Mouton and the ‘66 Latour. Lovely with cheese but really needs more fruit as it once displayed in its prime.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
80's Bordeaux (Friend's house): This was lovely - darker fruits and big and vibrant and just drinking well. Had side by side with the Margaux and this to me was the winner this day. Just excellent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
As stated many times I am a Palmer groupie and just love their cab/merlot combination, and the 1983 has always been one of my favourite wines. Five years since last tasting, the tannin has now fully integrated and the palate is silky smooth and it is so easy to drink. It is subtle but incredibly complex with multi layers of nuance. Blackcurrant, cherry, strawberry and flora dominate the nose with some additional stony notes on the palate and finish. I've always wanted to push this wine towards a potentially deserved perfect score but a persistant lightness end palate and on the finish have prevented this. I actually still think there is potential upside on the wine and I have to say for myself it is far superior to the 1989. Just to note this really benefits from a couple of hours in the decanter, but also comes alive in the glass.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
A charming Palmer, soft yet intense, holding nothing back with its nose full of strawberry, raspberry, wildflower, cocoa, mellow red spice (almost piment d’espelette), and cedar. There’s a beautiful fleshiness in the mouth and the tannins have almost melted away. 53% CS, 41%M, 4% CF, 2% PV.
96-97
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Upon opening this btl had a pungent smell, not corked, just smelled bad. First sip was awful. Decanted anyways and put aside for 45 min. Wow. What a beauty. The smell dissipated and the smell of Bordeaux blew up into my nose. Browning edges showed its age and even 2 hours later, this was special. BTW the bottle was mid shoulder and a saturated cork.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Best when first poured, this is a great wine that’s fully mature now. I simply love the finish which shows great complexity with notes of sweet gravel, dark chocolate and graphite minerals. Awesome but I bet the '89 passes it in a few more years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Medium garnet. Some tannic bite, and peat and smokes, as well as ripe strawberry and cassis flavours, dried grass and florals, and slight pepper and stewed meat. Long smoky finish, with the florals, grass, and savoury meats coming back in waves. Nice!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted alongside the 1989 Palmer. Both bottles were in perfect condition with top shoulder+ levels. In my book, the 1989 (96+ pts) was the clear winner as it was more open and ready, showed more mature and had that creaminess needed to make it sexy and harmonious. The 1983 (93 pts) showed young, fresh, more precise than the 1989 but still with some edges and missing a bit of sweetness. Both wines missed the enormous complexity the greatest wines of these vintages have. I had a bottle of the 83 a few months back (rated 96 pts) which needed hours of air to get there. To bad, this bottle wasn‘t given the air it would have deserved.
TN: Medium- expressive nose only with minerality, dark fruits, cedar and some old leather notes. Very fresh and structured on the palate, slightly muted and not with every component at the right place. Fresh, pure dark fruits in the background with more minerality, smoke, leather and tobacco notes dominating. Very classically shaped with a touch sexiness and creaminess missing.
Decanting: In my experience, this would have needed 4-6h in the decanter.
Glass: Gabriel
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank very nicely, fully mature. The high percentage of Merlot in the final blend really helps as that roundness provides an excellent counterpoint to the cooler vintage characteristics of the fruit. It’s not past peak but I would definitely drink now if you have it
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Magnum rarities tasting; 7/2/2021-7/3/2021 (Zunfthaus zur Waag, Zurich): Magnum rarities tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. The headline line-up of the main event featured 18 aged red wines from magnum which was preceded by warm-up tasting of a dozen aged reds. The highlights across both days were Chris Ringland 1998 (99), Montrose 1990 and Yquem 1948 (both 98). Also strong were Palmer 1989 (97), Cheval Blanc 1985 (97) and Léoville Poyferré 1990 (96). None of the wines were decanted prior to serving.
Tasting note: Intense and ripe fruit, aging notes only around the edges, truffles and leather. This complements a distinctly minty character. Powerful, youthful palate, vibrant acidity and well balanced. Lots of grip. Some aging notes accompany the finish. Comparing this glass to glass with the 1989, I felt the latter showed even more personality, but both were outstanding.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drinking at peak maturity, everything is just great. The perfume, with its tobacco, roses, cedar, wet earth and cherries grabs you. On the palate, the wine is pure silk with no hard edges. This is effortless to drink. Splash decanting is all you need, this is fully developed.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This 83 from perfect storage (moved in 2021 for the first time since 1985) and with high into neck fill performed very well. It started out a bit muted but gained power, intensity and complexity after three hours in the glass. At first a 93/94 experience, in the end easily 96 with that touch of sweetness, creaminess and extra expression showing up. Compared to the other star of the vintage, the Margaux 83, this is a touch more refined and feminine... and that says a lot!
TN: Very fragrant and ultra fine on the nose, gaining strength with more time in the glass. At first mainly tobacco with time lots of cherries and blueberries, a beautiful minerality and some coffee. Very precise aromatics, very inviting. Ultra-refined, weightless palate with intense aromatics, lots of tobacco, graphite and slate, blue fruit and red and dark cherries, herbs and hint of violets, from time to time streaks of coffee, roast aromas. Very fresh with a perfectly integrated acidity, a nice, firm but fine tannins structure and a slightly creamy but cool texture.
Decanting: From this perfect bottle with a high fill, the wine needed 45 mins in the glass to open up and improved by the minute for the remaining three hours. This bottle would have needed a 3-4 hour decant a few hours earlier.
Glass: Zalto Bdx vs Conterno Sensory. On the nose: At first the Zalto was a bit more expressive with tobacco and a fruit forward profile. The Conterno needed a bit of time but ultimately had the stronger nose. More expressive, more refined, cooler fresher stylistic and more precise. On the palate: same picture, with a much better precision in the Conterno, more harmonious and fresh and more complex. Clear win for the Conterno over the Zalto.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I bought this bottle in my early 30's, thinking that when I was 50 or so, wealthy and distinguished, I would open this to pat myself on the back. Well. 50 I'm almost, it's just months away now. But wealthy and distinguished? Hahaha my wife would be rolling on the floor at the thought. Still, I can't say no to a pat on the back. So pop goes the weasel.
Similar to the bottle I opened late last year, it's OK but not quite transcendental. I certainly don't see the stars shining any brighter in the night sky above HK. The nose is darkly fruity, with hints of iron, mint and dried flowers. There is a vibrant fruit core that lands with a rich pop on the palate, but there's not a whole lot of complexity here, and practically zero tannins. Waiting until 50 was foolish, I'm starting to think: should have opened it at 40, wealth and distinction be damned.
Dinner at home with TH, the girls & 3 Palmers (At home, Hong Kong): Dark ruby color, with amber on the edge. Pleasant if understated bouquet of summer flowers, so very Palmer, with notes of red fruit, old leather and ash. Medium bodied, with fine ripe fruit flavors and still finer tannins that give this wine a sheen of elegance as the finish dances on in the palate. A beautiful wine, but past its prime I think.
This was one of a few treasured bottles I had pushed far into the dark reaches of my wine fridges to lay undisturbed for over 15 years. Perhaps I waited too long? Will drink up the rest.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Party at Wimborne. Drank in Grassl Cru. Appearance is clear, medium intensity, garnet colour. Thin legs. Nose medium intensity, with aromas of tertiary earth, peppermint, bell peppers, tobacco, grilled herbs. Developed. On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium alcohol, resolved medium tannins, medium+ body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of leather, grilled herbs, earth, tobacco, blackberries, blackcurrant. Long finish. Very good quality. Great aged Claret. Same tasting notes as the previous bottle I had 2 years ago, but with more body and intensity. Probably a better provenance bottle. Few hours of air in bottle and still going strong.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
At Haig Road Bistro, Brisbane. This is a beautiful mature Palmer with a mid strength crimson colour with edge bricking. The nose is beautiful and classic with blackcurrants, garnet plums, violets and cedar characters unfolding in the glass. The palate is mature but still with lively fruit melding softly into the mature characters of cedar wood and cigar boxes leaving an impression of balance and elegance. Delicious !
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This wine is improving with air even on night two open. Very similar in structure and taste as my previous tasting. Tannins s are sweet and now fully resolved leaving dark somewhat plummy fruit. Better than my previous bottle. Wine still has life after 37 years!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Into neck. Floral notes with tobacco, mint and a touch of oak. Fine tannins, good length and stellar grip on the backend. Personal favourite against 82 and 85. Real subtlety, very Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
brick red with orange rim - mature cassis fruit nose with cedar and white flower aromas - smooth, silky mouth with full body, resolved tannins and well-balanced acidity - long 20-30 second finish - a fully mature Margaux that is drinking beautifully after 37 years - tasted alongside the 1979 Palmer, this was a bigger, richer Margaux, but the 79 was a bit more elegant - both are wonderful examples of how well made Bordeaux from good vintages can age
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bought on release, and well stored, with fill into the neck. Took a while to open, but became a 95 by the end of the meal. Fragrant Palmer perfume on the nose. Palate initially dominated by tannin, but the wine quickly opens to reveal a well balanced palate. Moderate sediment thrown. Long life ahead.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
nose - funky, bretty, smoky mouth - bretty sweet brett. sweet fruit with loads of brett. has a very mature almost digestif type quality. perhaps going downhill?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Yes! While this wine hits on all cylinders, the silky, plush texture is the standout feature. I mean, it's fresh, too, and it has pure, concentrated dark red fruit, but it's that refined, silky supple soft mouthfeel that gives this wine an elegant quality and makes it special. The '83 hits you with dark red fruit on the nose with moss, blood, and iron on top of a nondescript floral layer. It's medium-full bodied with a soft, voluptuous texture revealing its high merlot component. However, it still managed to leave a dry sensation on my cheeks. Thus, the tannins are soft and supple, but still not quite fully resolved. The fruit is forward, featuring cassis, plum, and blackberry, but it's very nicely balanced with wet earth, iron, light graphite, and a subtle animal note. This is in a beautiful spot now and there's almost no reason to hold back -- except it will be fine for years and years to come.
Sublime. Great perfume and length. Tannins gone. Fruit still alive. Subtle, beautiful secondary flavors. Profound. Elegant and not at all overbearing like some wines of this caliber. Gorgeous and at peak. Low neck fill decanted for 45 minutes before serving. A magnificent bottle!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was for most people the star of the night, unusual considering the line-up tonight (including '85 DRC, '04 Margaux, '10 Groffier Bonne, '83 Lafleur, and a host of other crazy wines). It just had everything, complexity, fine body, silky old fine tannins, warm sweet earth, herbs and foresty notes, and that warm, freshly baked-bread feeling at your grandma's house on a snowy afternoon. Heritage Wine Blind Tasting Finals after-party at Jean-George Las Vegas
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
F.X. Pichler Riesling Unendlich full vertical (1998-2017) (Restaurant Waldhorn, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Gabriel Standard Popped and poured. Clear, deep tawny color. Classic left bank BDX nose with some leather, tobacco, some green pepper and some brett. Fine, silky tannin, lots of ripe cherries, beautiful integrated acidity. Lacks a bit tension and complexity. Good length. Maybe a bit past peak. 92-93
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Refined, pure, elegant, fresh, concentrated, rich and vibrant, the aromatics, with their flowery leaning also provides a basket of earthy red fruits, spicy notes and tobacco. The silky finish wraps everything up nicely. It is impossible not to take sip after sip of this nectar. The only issue with this beauty is that the wine is finished long before you are ready!
4 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
medium red color with some bricking, lush nose, game meats, cassis, mulberry, on the palate opulent, rich broad band of effortlessly aged cassis and berry fruit, light forest notes, a bit of chalk toward the end, fine length, hearty in its way, very fine.
*****, now to 2030
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cork fully saturated with slightly mouldy top, bottle otherwise good appearance and low neck fill, cork removed in one piece only thanks to Durand. First glass pnp rest of bottle decanted and savoured over the following 3 hours. Visually developed but not overly so for its age, could pass for a 1990. It makes a soft and yet powerful entry. Meaty, thyme. With more time in the decanter at about an hour in it starts to reveal beautiful truffle, caramel, sous bois, a good acidic and mineral backbone. This is a beautiful 1983 for sure and the praise is correct. I personally peg it just behind 1983 Cheval and slightly ahead of LMHB 83 both had the prior week. But of course at that age there are only good bottles not good wines. However I remark a great consistency (for the 80s) of all 1983s I have tasted over the last ~1-2 years. Based on this bottle I do not think there is any point in holding bottles. It is probably slowly downhill from here and possibly this bottle had its peak a years back but who knows, perfectly enjoyable amazing aged claret here. Drink now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
not blind, DMG From the DMG perfectly fresh, Primary notes are in the foreground, balanced, black currant, no tertiary Aromas, from this size at least 30 more years. Regular bottles are great now if you like some aging notes. 96+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pnp. Opened up in the glass with that margaux perfume, herbs, truffle and a mix of blue and dark fruit. Seamless, soft and elegant. The last glass was the best.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2019 Palmerathon: The 83 Palmer is a consistently recognizable wine - it's got lots of raspberry, mineral, and thyme notes on the nose with a hugely rich, resonant palate full of dense cassis, violet, and mineral. Tremendous saturation and impact on the palate without any heaviness. Pretty glorious stuff, even if I might not be inclined to hold these forever.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is a pretty wine, but at this age I think there is some bottle variation showing up and they are not all holding up equally well. Recent CT ratings are all over the place. This one was still pretty but maybe just starting to slip. Probably not doing it any favor to pair with an 86 Margaux as well. I would tend to drink these up now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is a superb wine. Elegant, silky, refined and sensuous, the wine hits the trifecta, it smells, feels and tastes great. There is not a hair out of place. Although, this bottle seemed a little less generous than other recently tasted bottles. This is clearly in its prime time drinking window. Will it improve? Maybe. But the risks outweigh the rewards, so if you have a bottle, pop that cork!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I bought five of these in a south Texas wine store in about 1987 or maybe 1988. So they had been sitting in non-pristine condition for most likely a couple of years. They were then stored in a commercial wine box at 57F for 3 years . They have been stored in my passive cellar in Michigan which ranges from 51-60F over the course of the year. So the provenance has not been totally pristine but also not awful. Regardless, this was the 3rd and best of the 3 I have opened so far. Had to pull the cork with an ah-so and it came out in three pieces. Wet to the top. Level was right below neck line. Initial bretty nose dissipated with mostly cedar nose though my spouse detected some licorice. Still dark ruby with no orange on rim. Cedar, slight vanilla, dark fruit and cassis palate. Finish continues to lengthen as it breathes indicating mature but not over the hill. I have two more which both appear to have higher fills level. Finish is now 30 seconds long with sweet tannin under body. I am glad to have waited this long but it is just very pleasant not the ecstasy some on this site have described.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Surprisingly youthful at thirty-six. It's certainly pale garnet, but there is still a bright ruby core. Classic Palmer nose, in that you could smell it across the table, with a pronounced note of dried roses, mixed with tertiary aromas; leather, tobacco, clove, light nutmeg, slight mushroom and red berries. The palate reflects the nose very well, but the red berries come to the fore, with the tertiary notes rising up through the mid-palate and lingering on the finish. Sweet spices and a slight blood orange-like citrus add complexity on both the nose and the palate, while giving this a very graceful lift. This had a very feminine profile and drank more Burgundian, stressing finesse over power. Very fine and perfectly integrated tannins, coupled with a nice acidic lift allowed this to drink well with both heavier fish dishes and gamy venison. This just kept unfolding over 2+ hours, with the last sip probably being the best, so I think there's still a lot of upside to this... 97++. Probably the best bottle of this that I've had.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Was not mind blowing. Tannic which resolved with decant. Next bottle I will double decant with a 1-2 hour decant. This was in a restaurant. The master somm had a glass as well. Bottle was not corked. Black fruit on the nose. Developed over time. Balance. Tobacco, Cedar and other tertiary notes. Losing its fruit but black fruit notes with time. Some glycerine. I would like to add a few more to my collection. I'll open the next one in 3-5 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still quite primary with lots of fruits and persistent acid. Floral notes are not as obvious as most other Palmers. It has a very good structure for further ageing. It's more about structure than flavours at the moment. Put this away for 10+ years and one's patience will be rewarded.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Super funky reductivness on the nose that stayed with the wine with airing. I love a barnyardy nose on my old Burgundies, so I enjoyed it on this Bordeaux. Nice old Bordeaux flavor profile and resolved fruit with still a touch of tannin on the finish to keep it all together. Impressive wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Chateau Palmer Dinner (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): Nose of mint, black berry, cassis, and tobacco, same on the palate, big body, delicious, very tasty, rich fruit, mouth filling fruit, opened nicely, at its best 75 minutes into dinner, to me better than the 1989, although two other members liked the 1989 better, time to drink up although will easily last another 10 years, and a long, long, long, flavorful finish and flavorful aftertaste. Uploaded photo.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Jordan's Fine Wine Dinner (Boka - Chicago IL): In 70/83/89 vertical. Black fruit, meaty with cedar hints and mushroom. There was a lot here, but more seemed to be in reserve than in the forefront, so maybe (?) not the most perfect bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was off a bit but I was still able to get a good look at this wine. The TCA would make itself known then cloak itself in the wine's amazing fruit profile. The wine seemed to take a step forward then two steps back and this dance happened all night. What I could make out was that this wine is off the charts and in under the proper circumstances probably even outshine its more illustrious rival, 1983 Chateau Margaux. Probably a 98 point wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Mag purchased from estate: very similar in style when drank next to 83 Margaux. You can really get a sense of the terroir. With that I felt the Palmer came up short on the back end structure of the wine. While still yummy, it was slightly behind the Margaux. Either way it is a great success for the 83 vintage. In my opinion I don’t see why you would hold onto this wine any longer as it probably is either at peak or on a slight decline.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Classic mature Bordeaux nose, leather, chamomile, forest floor. But what a beauty in the palate, full of umami, rich, thick mouthfeel and very long. This was singing tonight!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Arrived late for dinner at Jade Palace. Tasted from carafe after 2 hours of air already. Appearance is clear, medium intensity, garnet colour. Thin legs. Nose medium intensity, with aromas of funky earth, graphite, bell peppers, blackcurrant leaf, blackberries. Develope. On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium alcohol, melt in your mouth soft tannins, thin medium body. Medium flavour intensity, with flavours of blackberry, blackcurrant, bell peppers, earth, graphite, old leather. Medium finish. Very good quality. Aged claret. Fruit is still there, though overall feel is tired and weathered. Time to drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Abundant truffle, mint, and leather on the nose. Eventually some plum sauce and minerality. Palate is luxurious with concentrated plum, blueberry, and currant fruit, along with some smoke. Tannins are still palpable though almost fully integrated, and acidity remains medium. Drink now, though it's not dying, but give it an hour and a half to open up.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still a lovely wine but showing some signs of decline. This bottle, which is second to last in a case I had, had a fill to low neck, cork was damp and fully saturated with a crusty top. No sign of TCA contamination, nose was quintessential Margaux and the body was still supple. Color was garnet almost brick like, good glycerine on side of glass. Flavor had hints of soy sauce, candied fruits, figs with a hint of truffle. Palate was a bit short compared to previous tastes but still brought lots of pleasure. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The best part is the smooth texture and well integrated acidity and tannins. The fruit though is fading and autumnal. The brown color at the rim was consistent with the rather tired impression. Still, there’s some interesting nuances of dried plum and cranberry. It’s the complexity that keeps you coming back for more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cellar Work? (Alpharetta, GA): Intense aromatics filled the air while pouring into the decanter, musk- eaux de Bordeaux, cedar, cigar tobacco, wilted flowers, juicy currants, celery seed, sweet tanned leather; initially a touch lean but after more aeration this filled out beautifully; a wonderful wine that is ready to go.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
For me the best Palmer after the 1961. Classical left bank Bordeaux with nice black berry fruit, plums, cigarbox and a nice etherical touch. Refreshing vivid acidity but a little short in the late palate. Starting to reach his peak. 95
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A very dusty nose that moderated, but did not disappear; intense fragrances of sweet red cherry compote, leather, beeswax shoe polish, and menthol; very savory; a very good wine kept from being great by that persistent dustiness.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
White House Dinner (Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong): (From magnum, decanted for 2.5 hours). Still almost totally opaque, a lovely semi-evolved black/red colour.Nose is, wow....a really seductive melange of lead pencil, graphite and lots of deep black fruit lurking in the backgrouns - smells too young...but gorgeous. Palate is deep, very fruiy-driven black/red fruits. Deep red plum with more time in the glass. Immediately almost overwhelmingly heady...rich and bellyfilling, like a Lynch Bages 1990. Way more weight and youth than, say, a 1985 - almost unevolved. Belly-filling. Not life-changing but very good indeed. In magnum at least, this has years ahead of it to evolve and improve.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Boston Palmer Tasting (South End - Boston, MA): Nose: Gorgeous red cherry / floral perfume with aromas of logan berry, baking spice and a sage leaf / thyme note as well. Palate: Took a few hours to open from magnum, and definitely showing much younger than a 750ml consumed a few years ago. Layers of black and red fruit, elegantly layered spices and floral notes and hints of caramel coming out over time. Finish: Beautiful and lifted finish with red cherries and cedary oak.
Much more red fruited and lifted than the 89, but not lacking in any single area. Magnums have time in the cellar, but I would start drinking standard bottles if you have few. This bottle had an herbaceous note that some found distracting.
The Boston Palmerathon: Big nose right out of the decanter (60-90 minutes); raspberry, plum, violets with a surprisingly herbal edge which grew with time, eventually becoming a bit overpowering. Seamlessly knit together, glossy palate, long finish. Delightful. The last time I had this (from 750) in 2014, it gave a more floral showing/cedar showing with less herbaceousness. From magnum with a base neck fill.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cork broke on opening. No corked nose. Very rich on the nose. Spice. Black fruits.
First taste was flat. Needed air. Opened up after one hour and was delicious. Such a balance and a long finish. An absolute powerhouse. But then after a 2 hours and a half something interesting happened: the wine clearly started to oxidize. Metally tast came through and less depth. So had to be finished. But soo beautiful. 96 pts.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Chevalier Dec Bordeaux Round Table. Served against 1983 Ch Margaux, both beautiful, yet this offered up much more nuance and better integration. Perfectly balanced and matured, offering up layers of spices and flavors. Amazing showing today. While mature, hard to see this fading anytime soon. A legendary wine.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another Saturday at Chevalier...Mostly Blind: Served double blind alongside Margaux 1983. Dense black fruit so spice hints, faint mushroom and regal elegance. So vibrant and texturally charming through to superbly long, balanced finish. My favorite wine of the day.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Saturday Blind Tasting - Bordeaux '03 and Older (Chevalier Fine Wines): Blind in what turned out to be 83 Palmer / 83 Margaux flight. Full nose that is clearly of high pedigree with elegant plum fruit and so much depth. The palate is ethereal, complex and long as can be. Excellent and my wine of the tasting.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pnp , the nose just jump out of the gate violets tobacco leather red cherries. Polished chalky tannins saturated sweetness and silky soft ripe fruits, completely coat the palate and nourish through. Don’t decant once open it is at gear 7! Love this!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Picture your glass packed with incense, flowers, tobacco and sweet cherries about to be swirled and you get the idea on the aromatics. Silky soft, polished tannins and earthy sweet, ripe, dark red fruits round out the experience. A splash decanting was all this beauty needed to get going.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
1983 was a tough year after the legendary 1982 but the applation of Margaux hit it out of park. 83 Palmer is truly monumental. I loved it from start to finish. The fruit is so rich here. 2hrs decanted has you rocking with this wine. It’s truly sublime!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
La bouteille a été ouverte sur place environ deux heures avant de la servir (pas décantée). Le nez envoutant se montre d'une superbe richesse en arômes fruités (cassis, violette, fraises, etc..), écorce d'orange, herbes fraîches, graphite, et autres qui le rend très accrocheur. Certains l'ont décris comme étant "sanguin". Le grain en bouche est très séducteur, onctueux, du très grand merlot. Par contre il n'a pas tenu la route très longtemps après 30-40 minute en verre il a commencé sa descente gracieuse. Du Palmer j'en prends anytime...95pts
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
11th of 12, decanted 80 minutes, perfect level and partly stained cork, previous notes mixed from merely very good to very fine (post '07) with this the best bottle yet - deepish garnet, hint of amber in rim; complex bouquet, cassis, mulberry, violet, some graphite, tobacco, chunkier than the Margaux; medium full, lovely richness and drive to the fruit, very long and persistent, if without the complexity of the Margaux or the presence of the Haut Brion which I marked on a par, should hold at this level for many years. VF (18.5).
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Château Palmer vertical tasting dinner (3030 Ocean, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Initially, the 1983 Palmer was somewhat closed down. After airing out in the glass, it offered up a deep and complex nose of black currant, blackberry, fresh violets, licorice, leather, and cigar tobacco. On the palate, the wine was full-bodied, generous, and with great structure. The tannins weren’t overpowering, but still need a bit of softening. The finish was long and fresh, with really nice acidity. This wine clearly has not yet reached its peak.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Château Palmer Vertical: A rather disappointing showing for what should be one of the best vintages for Palmer. On the positive side there's excellent complexity to its fully mature flavors. Acidity is a bit high, though, which makes the texture thin. Still, it's fine but more intellectually pleasing than pleasurable.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
4 Mini Vertical Tastings (Sammarco, Togni, Conseillante, Palmer) (MG): Fresh and elegant black currant fruit. Wonderfully developed and in great shape with a very solid balance. It was served blind so after seeing the bottle, I must admit that I had expected more from this vintage. At least I would have hoped for even more intensity. Still, it was nonetheless a great wine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep purple. Very perfumed nose of plum, tobacco, anise and cedar. Still a nice balance of fruit and secondary flavors, with a soft tannic backbone. This was great for an hour but the fruit faded over several hours in the decanter. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very deep dark colour. Rich ripe fragrance, dark fruits, dark spice, mulberry leaf herbaceousness. Medium weight, smooth, finishes with soft fine tannin, modest acidity, feels like fully mature. Flavours however are strong and rich, dark fruits with tar liquorice and minerals, delicious blend of fruit spice and classic Margaux cedar and tobacco leaf. Flavoursome but perhaps not as refined. Drinking nicely.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Previous bottle opened 6 years ago. This one was just as good. I feel like this wine will last for eternity. Amazing stuff. Gave it 99 points before and will give it 99 points again.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is truly an utterly amazing wine. Decanted for 1hr. Another 30 was decanted in the glass. The nose is wonderful flower of lavender, warm strawberry compote, caramel with tabbaco. The taste is so intense of lovely fruit. Plum and blueberries prevail. The wine is very balanced and tannins have shed. At age 34 it's strutting on all cylinders. It can age for another 5-7 years but if you have some enjoy it all right now.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
this bottle had a soft long cork, this bottle drank at peak. I can't imagine an upside to holding longer but it is not in danger of falling off anytime soon.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Achim's Magnum Tasting 2016 (Berens am Kai 1 star Restaurant): From Magnum, much tooy oung even after three hours of double decantation, closed, primary notes, cassis, cedar, present and firm tannins, needs many years to show his grace, I cant rate, let's say 95++
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Certainly not the best bottle with an uncharacteristically dull profile, slight turbidity and woody/vanilla muddled notes on the palate. A great wine in its natural state, this fell short of that
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Château Palmer Vertical: Intriguing nose here too, interesting contrast against the '82 which is quite different. More red fruit here with a bit of zip and spice. Palate is in excellent shape, great balance, solid dose of developed fruit but a short finish. Clipped ending.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
medium color and a nose that smelled more of secondarys than sweet fruit this wine often gives off. the bottle wasnt bad it just didnt live up the expectations of the table
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tuesday Night Double Blind Tasting, $60+ (Bin 75): Nose definitely had the tobacco and earth of aged Bordeaux. Lots of color change too. A little richness still, but definitely seemed Left Bank. I didn't quite go this old, but it's fully mature. First time I've had an '83 from Margaux, and it was pretty brilliant. Thanks JD!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A perfect bottle from my cellar, but drank with minimal time in a decanter (from experience, this would have showed better with a few hours more air). Much fresher and more aromatic than the 1983 Margaux served alongside. Initially seemed to have less density of cassis and earth but that came with air - as did a persistent mid-palate and finish. It also added a floral aroma (initially cedar and white flower, but which would have become violet and blueberry with more air - see my previous note for optimal bottle preparation). 95-97pts and no hurry to drink, good bottles are still improving and will keep for at least 30yrs!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
The 1983 lives up to its billing as one of the top post-war Palmers, with a perfumed and projected bouquet of ripe cassis, black cherry, floral top-notes and deeper-pitched layers of cedar and earth. On the palate the wine is dense, concentrated and still quite impressively structured, with good balance and completeness. This should have no problems cruising along in the cellar for a long time to come.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
1983 Bordeaux horizontal tasting and Allison's birthday dinner (Vienna Cafe & Wine Bar): From a magnum. Gorgeous ruby color. A nose of black currant, violets, sous bois, juniper berries, cedar, and cigar tobacco. The nose just kept getting better as the night went on. Really impressive on the palate. Pure silk, with everything in its right place. A long finish with lots of lingering fruit and fresh acidity. Beautifully structured, this wine has years to go. But yet it's drinking so well now. My #2, group's #2 (of 5 wines).
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
A Soft bouquet of cherry and blackberry carries on in the mouth but with sufficiently tart tannins to achieve a perfect balance completed with a 30 seconds + finish. Fantastic. On a cautionary note I do detect a very slight deterioration from a year ago and perhaps the wine will not stay at this plateau for a lot longer. Unfortunately my last bottle.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Delicious wine, that completely deserves its reputation. This bottle was not decanted, but opened about 1 hour before being poured. Ruby color, with signs of evolution on the edge (light Brown) The nose exudes subtles fragrances of cherries and cassis, smokey notes, cedar and hints of earthiness. It is a complex, deep and elegant wine, full of finesse with a great and balanced structure. I think it is at its peak of maturity, but even if I doubt it can get any better from now it should hold well for 10/15 years easily.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is a stunning tasting experience that brings together concentration, complexity, sensuous, silky textures, complex aromatics and the ability to continue to age and improve for at least 2 more decades, if well stored. It's the wine of the vintage. An hour in the decanter really helps the experience.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Magnificent. Mature deep ruby hue with minimal sediment. Amazingly complex nose of plum, boysenberry and red raspberry leading to seamless palate coating tasting.
If a date, this was a 35 year old intellectual sexpot who tantalizes you all evening with a combination of flickering sexy eyes and interest in most topics males find interesting; cars, travel, sports & women
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Medium to dark garnet. Very effusive nose with some pleasant brett, layers of fruit, menthol, chocolate, pencil lead and a clean long finish. Palate reflects the flavors in the nose. The nose is slightly better than the flavor profile in its level of intensity. While not tired in any way this was probably just slightly past its peak. will stay at about this level for a good while but probably ready to drink up. Of note, the fill on the bottle before decanting was top shoulder and I wonder if this might account for the advanced development???
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Vertikal provning Palmer. Extremt komplex, rabarber, tog tid att blomma ut i glaset. På pappret kvällens favorit men något av en besvikelse, behöver några år till i källaren?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Well kept bottle, base of neck level, Fully mature now, singing to the max, tasted alongside the Chateau Margaux 1983 (94pt). Classic, smooth, velvety, well integrated tannins. Tobacco, cedar wood, Asian spices, overripe dark fruit. Delicate on the palate. Thoroughly enjoyable, complex and very well delineated. Enjoy in the next 5-10 years.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Quite evolved in terms of colour around the rim, not overly dark centre. Very delicate and subtle on the nose, still immensely captivating and intriguing: notes of sweet tobacco, cocoa, cedar, red and dark fruit, smoke, spices. Just fantastic. On the palate equally subtle with ripe fruit, powdery tannins and impeccable balance. Not a "loud" wine at all but really vibrant and intense. Very persistent finish. Outstanding and no rush drinking up. 95-97
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
At its peak. Beautiful and concentrated wine. Complex and fine with intense aromas of dark berries, smoked meat, cedar and cigar box. Long finish and soft delicate tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
La Trompette, Chateau Palmer dinner. '83 is a slow starter, which gave us time to enjoy the more flattering '82 seated to its left. The '83 is a stunning wine. More cocoa, more smokey, more layers on the nose and a palate of cassis, mocha and cedar that all sit comfortably in the background and surface with every effortless sup. By contrast, the '82 playfully allures and titillates, the 1983 mesmerises with its intensity and longer drawing power. An elegant, silky wine that only truly opened up after 1-2 hours.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank this wine at a friend's 60th birthday celebration last night. This wine has a magnificent nose with great complexity on the palate. Time to drink it if you have it. I doubt it can get any better. Would have been the WOTN had it not been for a well preserved 1955 Haut Brion.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Unfortunately this wine, tasted blind, was corked. Despite substantial "corkiness", it was clear that this was an impressive wine that showed great richness and balance. It was also clear that, while this wine was starting to drink, it will improve for 10-20 years.
I look forward to trying another bottle in the future.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Detta vin har jag tidigare druckit med väldigt stor behållning men denna gång vara det lite av en besvikelse. Det är fortfarande ett bra vin men det har inte alls denna otroliga balans och elegans som jag tidigare upplevt. Lite väl sötfruktig och lite spretig i smaken. Inga defekter men troligtvis en flaska som kanske inte förvarats korrekt.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
No formal notes. Had this blind, and my blind guess was right bank Bdx., Cheval Blanc. Funny thing was that another, very experienced taster, that came along later, guessed exactly the same. Had some Cabernet Franc-ish on both the nose and palate that made me go wrong. Nose showed maturity, with green herbs and grass, some vegetables, touch of library and furniture wax, leather, mushrooms, forest floor, and wet earth. Fully mature, silky palate, with typical Merlot and Cab Franc silkiness (like an old Cheval Blanc), sweet red fruit, leather and earth. Not all that sensational, not bad, just not great. Perhaps this was a badly stored bottle, since I can see that other tasters have had a completely different experience? No signs of any flaw thought, just not anyway near what is described by others here that have had recent experiences with this wine. And I really enjoy old Bordeaux wines… Points based on this bottle, that felt over the top. Would be fun to try another one, and see if it shows the same?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
What a beauty. Grab a handful of silk, a portion of velvet, mix it with perfectly ripe plums, cherries, cassis and blackberry, toss in some truffle, tobacco and smoky cocoa, blend it all together and viola, you have an idea about 1983 Palmer. The wine was made from a blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The harvest took place from September 28 to October 13.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
(LCBO Tasting Bar Sample) Pours light in colour with heavy bricking. This is showing even more advanced than the already advanced bottle I had last year. It was from an enomatic machine so who knows if a little oxygen slipped in. Nose has virtually no fruit. Decaying leaves and twigs, leather, pot pourri, old furniture, roasted nuts and farm yard dominate the aromatic display. The palate is also drying out with some still drying tannin remaining. Finish is medium plus in length built on nuts and decaying wood.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is just great. Soft black fruits, dried herbs, and a melted carob/truffle note in the back. The sides here are worn, while the center is still rather deep and dark. This is classy. Can't help but note that the '95 Ridge Monte Bello and '98 Ogier Cote Rotie also on the table are showing advanced and past peak, while this is showing plenty of underlying strength and breed. Fairway Cafe with the guys.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
MONFORTINO VERTICALE (ENOTECA ROSSORUBINO TORINO): Bello bere un Bordeaux maturo e in piena forma in mezzo a Monfortini austeri, con nasi gentili e poco frutto, perchè si apprezza ancora di più la bordata di sensualità, profumi, frutto che invadono i sensi e costituiscono ciò che a mio avviso è il fulcro dell' esperienza degustativa.
Chinato, erbe aromatiche, fiori secchi, profondissimo e cangiante. Il cilindro di un prestigiatore, da cui esce di tutto... a profusione, senza soluzione di continuità. In bocca tanta glicerina, seta, acidità e freschezza risciacquante, persistenza da maratoneta. Un vino completamente diverso dagli altri, forse più facile, suadente, forse troppo perfetto e "scontato", ma che non può non lasciare a bocca aperta. Sempre un' esperienza ammaliante
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pure silk and velvet in texture, there are no hard edges, rough patches or missing links, this is intense pleasure from start to finish. Drinking great today, it's only going to get better and better!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
UAE Wine Dinner: Much lighter than the Margaux, more merlot? This was in some ways a slighter version of the same, not worse for it but less impressive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
If modern day, 99 point oak, I mean wine, from Napa is your thing, you'll hate this. Earthy, to the point of near off-putting, this needed every bit of the two hours it was given in the decanter before it bloomed, finally transcending its blanket of poopy soil and decaying mushrooms. Perhaps it was some bottle variation, but this became thin, almost shrill by the last glass, 90 minutes after its full aeration in decanter. The second bottle from a case purchased on release. Whereas the first bottle kept gaining intensity right through the final glass, this slipped, again, hopefully due to bottle variation. Drink or hold for 15-20 more years if cellared properly. recommended
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still fresh and young. Deep colour. Even after a few hours in the decanter this wasn't fully open yet. Magnificent fresh nose and balanced full palate. Stunning.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank in Hong Kong My brother pulled out a bottle of the '83, always a nice supprise (thanks). Still incredibly young tasting with lots of fruit and tannins (fully integrated) that will last it many years to some.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nose: Perhaps the most perfumed Bordeaux I have ever had. Elegant layers of Cherry, Raspberry Jam, Cherry Cordial, Aged Tobacco, Flowers, Baking Spice and Hot Stone. Palate: Crystaline and gorgeous bright red fruit with powdery tannins. There is a slight blackberry streak in the palate, but it is mostly red fruit. Some nice baking spice and almost a mushroom like note. Finish: Cherry, Leather, Tobacco and nice acidity.
Decanted 1 hour, but could have decanted 3 hours or more. This is ready now, but will hold and improve. If the palate ever catches up to the nose watch out.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dinner with Phil at Troquet (Troquet): Beautiful, beautiful nose. Perfume really - there's no other way to describe it; full of flowers and pure fruit. So Margaux. Perfect balance on the palate but it's elegance and not power that characterizes the wine. A hint of green on the finish. Years left - the dregs were the most dense and concentrated. Really opened out at an hour and a half in the decanter; best after two hours.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted at the LCBO tasting bar. Notable bricking on this, with some transparency out to tinges of orange and brick on the rim. Legendary nose. Massively complex: espresso, earth, brown spice, farmyard, celery seed, red currants, cassis, mocha, caramel, dark chocolate, and charcoal. In the mouth this feels fully mature with almost non-existent tannin. Finish is wildy long carried on spice, espresso, and celery seed. This really feels fully mature to me out of 750. While it may hold on it likely will not improve further.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I drank this wine before (in 2009) and it was not at the right time.
Last night, it only just begun. The wine was really good and still have long way to go.
Now I know that : There's nothing wrong about wine. If there is, it all our mistake. A bottle in 2009 was not ready to drink at that time.
From this moment, 1983 Palmer will be better and better. This is a very good Palmer and the best part is at 3rd hours when it showa the strong cassis smell like Haut-Brion and Latour combination.
The structure was superb, great balance with an austere finished. Barnyard like a first nose of Cheval Blanc. Long and linger finished.
Super fine wine indeed !!!
Drink now - 2045
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
MNF Dinner at Tommy's (Vancouver, BC): Wow...what a beautiful nose. Classic Bordeaux fruit with a nice perfume and cedar. Soft and smooth on the palate with a rich and lengthy finish. Solid acidity balanced out the soft and smooth texture and gives a nice lifting sensation. This is drinking really well right now. Outstanding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened with a compromised cork. Slight flaws creeping in which I have to attribute to the cork. Elegant dark fruits for days with great structure and balance. Needs time or a healthy decant, neither of which we gave it. Will try another early next year and give it 3+ hours to fully open up. All the signs point to something special though.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened, decanted and poured. Dark red with very slight bricking. Almost no sediment and very fine. Started out with a core of red fruit, cherries jubilee with hints of vanilla, cocoa and smoky dusty earthy minerals some lavender on the nose. Not a hard edge to be found. A lingering lively finish. Perfectly integrated. Over the course of two hours, the wine evolved through a middle stage where pepper emerged - almost a cayenne spice - and more stony notes. A little later, it was Kirsch and black licorice, and some complex herbal notes hinting of Chartreuse liqueur, which I thoroughly enjoyed. A very elegant wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Zachys in Chicago (EL Ideas - Chicago IL): Another phenomenal opportunity to taste Palmer 1983 and 1989 side by side, with 1983 coming out on top tonight. Incredibly elegant with charming and fresh red and black cherry in front of emerging mushroom. Some licorice, cedar and woodsy spice. Very long and persistent. My Wine of the Night in a very good night of wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Palmer Vertical Tasting (1982 - 2004) (Switzerland): Tasted blind: Leather, black licorice and tobacco in the nose. The tannins are nicely integrated into the sweetness. This wine is very elegant and shows good length. If this wine would have just a tiny bit more of "juice" it would be a "WOW" wine...still complaining on a high level as this is a wonderful Palmer. Surprisingly the 1983 is still quite youthful so no hurry to pop the cork.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank in London Nose of blackberries, tobacco, leather, forest floor and spice. Rich smooth complex palate that just keeps going. This is amazing and is a benchmark for mature claret.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
No need to describe this wine precisely. The 1983 is absolutely the second best vintage after the historical 1961 when we talk about Palmer. Amazing wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Talk about all the right stuff, the wine is pure silk and velvet with an intoxicating perfume of caramel, spearmint, ripe blackberries, flowers, truffle and cigar box. The opulent textures make up reach for the bottle to refill your glass. But don't rush it, as it gets better in the glass. While this is pricey, for a mature Bordeaux, it's one of the top choices for quality and price. If you want to know why people go crazy for older Bordeaux, or you already know and just want a special bottle, this is one of the top wines in the market today.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dinner at Rob's. Decanted and drank over 3 hours. Had along side the 1983 Margaux. Similar to my last note, but this showed so much more bright red fruit than the Chateau Margaux, but this was not as elegant or broad on the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Served without decanting. Fabulously rich nose of dark fruit and raspberries with figs. Ripe but not overly so. Palate was a little tight still though.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
At home. Nose of earth, herbs, mint, chocolate, leather and dark fruit. More dark fruit and a streak of bright red fruit on the palate that become more pronounced with time in the glass. Great texture. At first it was slightly bitter on the finish, but this rounded out with time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dream tasting (@ Merlet): Beautiful and expressive bouquet with luxurious oak, red fruits and a pleasant touch of barnyard. On the palate a slightly sweet start followed by dark and red berries. The tannin is completely melted and the old age acidity is starting to show a bit. The bouquet is a true feast and on the palate still very luxurious. Completely ready now. If this bottle was exemplary: Don’t wait too long.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dreamtasting #5 (Restaurant Merlet, Schoorl): (*) Now this is old-school Margaux! Dried flowers, soft touch of mocha, some leather, small currants, violets and warm compost. Allthough, at the age of 30, this wine is losing weight and urge, it's still extremely charming and rewarding to sit and sip and let it take over your thoughts and memories. Very soft, charming and elegant, some might call it feminine. A very pretty wine, in the best sense of those words. Unhurried and relaxing, which I think are true virtues in this day and age... 18.5/20
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Left Bank Bordeaux from the 1980-s (semi blind) (Amsterdam Wijn Antiquariaat): Dark purple colour with orange brim. Thick dark fruits, vanilla, tobacco, cedar and herbs in the nose. Super smooth (velvet) and sweet, dense and elegant. Definitely shares characteristics with Chateau Margaux. Drinks excellent now but should keep well for at least a dozen more years to go.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
1983 Margaux Mini-Horizontal (Tocqueville, NYC): Much darker-profiled and slightly fuller-bodied than the '83 Margaux tasted alongside. So much cocoa on the nose complementing rich dark fruit. Suddenly becomes tremendously minty after 90 minutes of air, like Andes candies or mint chocolate chip ice cream. Tangy in the mouth. A slightly sour, clipped finish is the only blemish in an otherwise outstanding wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ch. Palmer vertikal (Oslo): Lett, grumset rød med innslag av oransje. Mild, innsmigrende og floral nese med mørk bærfrukt. Bløt i munnen med frisk, tiltalende syre. Milde tanniner. Flott lengde. Bra vin, men ikke 100% flaske.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Palmer vertical: Some complexity, structured and long, tart, lacking in depth of fruit for a truly glorious bottle. I have never found this to live up the hype.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Slightly corked. Seemed very muted on nose and approach, then some corked character starting coming through on finish once open a couple of hours. Drinkable, just nowhere the level of most prior bottles.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pronounced and complex nose. Nicely floral,sweet tobacco combined with sweet spices, cocoa, coffee, leather, gamey and a vivid dark fruit. On the palate shows a creamy texture, round and luscious, subtle with persistent finish. Quite savoury and easy on the tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The wine needed some time to open, then showed Margaux/cedar perfume with medium-full body and some firmness on the palate to go with strawberry fruit. This wine is still 5-10 years from full maturity.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank over 3 hours. This got better and better with more time in the glass. Great full on nose of dried herbs,leather,tobacco and sweet dark fruit. More sweet red fruit on the palate. Great texture. Smooth and well integrated. Long finish with interesting spice. This is fully mature and I'm sure will hold
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
1983 Red Bordeaux Horizontal with Richard Brazier (Handford Wines, London): The nose is a touch on the muted side, especially following the etheral Pichon Lalande 83. Quite powerfull still, fresh and fleshy wine. It feels like it could well last another 10 years and granted it has a few 83 issues such as sone dryness on the edges still it has a nice balance and presence. Very good wine and a good 94 from us.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Great Wine Dinner with Friends and Wagyu (Western Chicago IL Suburbs): Sensational spice aromas with fresh plum and cassis, then similar on palate. Nuanced, charming and incredibly textured on palate, this was an incredibly exciting bottle of this great wine. Probably my Wine of the Night (in a night of great wines).
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Purchased from Crown decades ago, the label, color and bottom neck level were promising. The cork was extremely dry, though. The wine had a typical violet floral fragrance but it was somewhat muted. Smooth, full, harmonious but just very good rather than fabulous as the best bottles of '83 Palmer can be.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The Eleventh Annual Stonefields Dinner (Guelph, ON, Canada): From magnum, decanted for sediment and served approximately 30-40 minutes later. Deep garnet colour. This nose was utterly intoxicating. I have never smelled a wine that had such pure floral notes. Lillac, lavendar, violets in addition to notes of cherry, cassis, blackcurrants, earth, spice, and minerals all danced on this nose. Utterly profound! The palate showed such pure fruit augmented with similar floral notes, earth, mushroom, wet leaf, black currants, spice, cassis herbs, cedar, leather and tobacco. The finish is never ending with layers of flavours. This is such an amazing showing.
Once in Lifetime...: From magnum, decanted approximately 30 minutes prior to service, deep garnet in the glass. Wow…what a stunner this was. An absolutely explosive nose of black cherry, red currants, blackberries, earth, dried tobacco, undergrowth, intense florals, leather, crushed rocks and dried herbs. This is one of those wines where you can keep going back and picking out more every time you stick your nose in the glass. Not surprisingly the palate is aligned with the beauty of the nose, showing an immense richness, while still maintaining a certain level of elegance and finesse; exceptionally balanced, with lifted acidity. The finish is incredibly lengthy, lingering in the mouth with tastes of blackberry, licorice, mineral, earth and dried flowers. Still a touch of grip on the finish of some unresolved tannin. Up against some very stiff competition tonight, this wine takes the cake. Well done, Palmer. While this was very strong out of the gate, with some time in the glass, this faded substantially after the second hour.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Alvin’s 60th Birthday Dinner (Le Gavroche): Medium red with some bricking at the rim. Wow this had a really nice perfumey nose of blackcurrants, plums, cedar, tobacco with hints of floral and funk. In the mouth this was warmer, rounder and easier drinking than the ’83 Margaux with a rich and soft texture but there’s also great acidity balancing it out. This is softer, more approachable and less structured than the ’83 Margaux, but I think this Palmer showed more communal typicity. This is drinking extremely well right now but should cruise, and maybe even improve a bit, over the next 10+ years. Outstanding. 93+?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pre WWS 2012 GJE dinner at Devero Ristorante - 85 La Las, 09 DRC VR and etc (Devero hotel - outskirts of Milan): Laurent decide to serve the wine blind. As Bill K likes to say, it is better to be lucky than good. Initially thinking the 83 Chave, cedar, cherry and mineral I am thinking. With time, it tastes more and more like a left bank Bordeaux. Laurent informs us that it is from 1983. Fresh, red fruits, merlot like jammy expression, floral and perfume. Soft, round and silky palate. It somehow reminds me either Chateau Margaux or Palmer but seems softer and feminine so I call Chateau Palmer. Lovely wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
It's always disappointing when a wine you know normally offers thrills and chills takes a turn in the wrong direction. Keep in mind, every bottle is different, especially when a wine is in its 3rd decade of life. This particular bottle smelt and tasted unclean. There were marked dirty scents along with the tobacco, earth and blackberry notes. The wine did not show its normally, opulent nature and instead tasted far too earthy. My guess is, this bottle was not stored correctly at some point in its life, and while a nice Bordeaux, it was not a great tasting experience. However, do not let this note dissuade you from this wine, which is normally a stellar vintage of Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This bottle was disappointing... from sound provenance (my cellar) but showed how the serving method impacts enjoyment. First - the wine: decanted 4 hours by a top-restaurant, initially had the Palmer nose of violets and blueberries, with medium finish. However, aromatics faded after an hour in the glass and the wine lacked depth and richness of previous bottles.
The service: I highly recommend decanting this wine for at least 5 hours in advance (slow-ox for longer even better, if practical), before returning to bottle and cooling down (fridge or cold-sleeve) before serving. Really increases density and aromatics.
I normally rate this wine 97pts now, with potential to improve more over the next 10-20 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Acker Merrall BYO (Sepia - Chicago IL): A wine I've always liked, and I was excited to taste this alongside Margaux 1983. However this bottle seemed more tired than any I've had before. Person who brought the bottle had just purchased it last year, so provenance is unknown.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux Søskenparsmaking (Moss, Norway): Rødbrun med rødlig kjerne, oransje kant. Nydelig, floral og syrefrisk, rødbærsdrevet nese. Ren og frisk frukt med preg av kirsebær og noe kokte jordbær. Flott syre som løfter vinen. God lengde.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very seducing nose with red berries and a floral note. Sadly the mouthfeeling falls short, not living up to the great nose. Maybe this whould have been decanted longer than what it did. A little disappointing from the expectations.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Right at its peak. Not yet bricking. Red. Nose was cedar, moss, earth and plum. On the palate I got earth, forest floor, cedar, tobacco, plum and blackberry. Tannins were fully integrated. While definately mellow, not totally soft. There's still a bright spot in the fruit. Brought with me Joel Robuchon. Decanted before my arrival for a half-hour, plus another 45 minutes while we had the first couple of courses.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Popped, breathed in bottle 60 minutes, poured, consumed over next two hours. This was singing right from the start and still gradually improved until the final sips. Everything you want in a mature Palmer, a seamless tapestry of aromas and flavors, so balanced and complex you cannot isolate all of the various components. I can still taste it hours later. A real beauty.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
What a fantastic complex nose with multiple layers of meat, leather, earth with such a constant intensity. Very dense and concentrated on the palate. Very powerful and muscular, full-bodied. The tannins are 100% solved, very pleasant and almost seamless. Incredible balance and long finish. It kept showing its strength and elegance restlessly. This is close to being a perfect Bordeaux I imagine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Part of a dinner at Bouley pairing 79, La Mission and HB, 82 Barton and Las Cases, 93, Palmer and Margaux and 89 Pichons
The Palmer was winning at the first taste as the 50% merlot gave immediate gratification. The Margaux has depth, complexity and perfect balance that made it the ultimate winner
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wine dinner at L'Etranger: Wine of the evening with the Chave Hermitage 2004. We had it with the cheeses. Opened the bottle 1 hour before and should have been more like 2 or 3 hours as the wine got more body while in the glass. Old bordeaux nose.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Perfect fill, capsule, cork. Decanted 3 hours. Took it to dinner with Nick Marriner at Bruce Arms. My last remaining Palmer (of any vintage -- not my favourite chateau). Not as robust as I expected, lightening in colour, mature Margaux of only medium intensity. Some pixellation, and a hint of age. Only just stood up to the beef. I quaffed the last large glass, as Marriner had moved on to the Yquem! Not a wine to be sipped & savoured, but a very pleasant drink. No real length. I would be drinking up if I had any more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Perfectly beautiful, classical and elegant bouquet. Completely mature on the palate with soft tannin and a beautiful balance between sweetness and acidity. Completely ready but not a bit too old yet and it can probably stay on this level for several years, although it will not improve anymore. Had this wine a few times before (TN's not in CT (yet)), but this is without any doubt the best bottle I tasted.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another Dinner with Greg & Sayo (Their House, Hong Kong): Beautiful bright translucent crimson red color. Nose is OFMG....everything you want in a mature Bordeaux...perfect expression of new saddle leather, pencil lead, compote red berries, damp fern and dry bracken undergrowth, fresh rain on warm asphalt.....stunning! Palate is pure caressing sensuous velvet, totally harmonious and resolved tannins, beautiful linear precision but with a softened edge compared to a first growth Pauillac. It is incredibly fresh and vibrant....literally bursting with perfect small redcurrant fruit. Medium bodied and not silence-creatingly long but just so elegant and charming. Very complete...although it reached a level within 30 minutes that it never progressed from, possibly because we had double-decanted it for a bit too long (10 hours). From magnum.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ch Palmer @ Medlar (The Medlar, London): Wonderful nose. Alongside the 89 this has an extra layer of ripeness and density compared to the previous flights. Very meaty, rich and slightly blood tinged. Complex, long and moreish. Complete, the right balance of sweet fruit and savouryness. ***** Does start to dry after a couple of hours.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Amuse Bouche HK with L and N: Think my fourth or fifth bottle and again so clearly in its Zen - seductive, sweetish nose - almost mature Burg - opulent in the mouth and amazing length. What a wine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Palmer Vertical (Boka): Great forefront tobacco notes framing black cherry fruits. Early in maturity. Great balance and mouthfeel, and tamed a bit by age. Feminine. Wonderful texture. Really good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Chateau Palmer Dinner (Boka - Chicago IL): This wine evolved tremendously in the glass, so I'm not sure it was decanted and given as much air as many of the other bottles tonight. Started with good black cherry and black currant and very good spice on the nose. Leather, cigar box and anise all came through nicely. Over 30 minutes, the spice evolves into something truly remarkable and almost exotic. Fruit was not ripe but incredibly pure, clean and precise. Great acid, textures with charming earthy flavors taking over near the finish. At a great place now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This condition of this bottle is not as good as the last one. Medium body and lighter on the palate than the previous bottles. Still very elegant and complex but the tannin has mostly resolved.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted one hour: deep colour with hint of age on rim. Plums, blackcurrants, cedar wood and spices and pepper. Very long on the palate, fruit still ripe, leather, chocolate, herbaceous notes, exquisite.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
One of the best bottles of wine I have ever tasted. Sublimely complex nose that stretches out to infinity. Rich volputuous palate. Can still taste its memory the next day.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dinner at Canlis with Wilfred (Seattle, WA, USA): Booyah! I am a a Bordeaux guy after all. It seems like we were getting twitchier with each bottle, and there was a slightly edgy note on this that hinted at TCA but then quickly became a slightly minty edge. This is just such a bottle of Bordeaux. Perhaps one could call it clumsy after all of the more precise Burg, but it has such glorious secondaries starting to emerge, meaty, smoky, sultry, tobacco, red fruit moving to soy and shiitake. I could have pondered this one for hours. So deeply satisfying.
My favorite palmer. The wine has been drinking very well for years and still has no sign of decline. Rich, soft and complex with the right amount of soft tannins. It has everthing I want for a matured claret. The 83 Margaux was drier, less complex and more tannic by comparison.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pop and pour and from the moment the bottle was uncorked the scents of this wine filled the room. Initially a tiny bit of a bretty note that quickly dissipated and revealed floral elements mixed with truffle, earth and worn leather. Amazing nose that you just want to inhale all day long. Very little bricking in the color and surprisingly little sediment throughout the bottle. On the palate this was still fresh and pure good acidty, rich cassis fruit and nicely resolved tannins giving it an incredible mouthfeel. I feel like this wine is in a near perfect place right now. One of the best Bordeaux, if not best overall bottle of wine, I've ever had.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Violets, cassis, truffle, earth, spice and Cuban cigar aromas fill your glass. Pure silk and velvet in the mouth, this sensuous, seductive wine is what great Bordeaux is all about. The wine fills your mouth and coats your palate with layers of deep, suave, elegant, pure sensations of plums, cassis and blackberry. This is drinking great today and time will continue being good to this special Margaux as well. It should continue getting better for decades.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Flat out great Palmer just about at its glorious peak. Deep, deep ruby, much darker than the '83 Margaux we had with it. Very plummy in the best sense, packed with beautifully ripe fruit. Lingering finish. Totally integrated oak, acid and tannin. A "wow" wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Clear red color with a slight truffle nose. Flavors of harmonious red fruits. I just keep thinking "amazingly great" and can't get past that description. We popped this and let it sit for about 2 hours before pouring. Wish we had more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I finally had a chance to taste the famous '83. The color was still a dark ruby with little evidence of bricking. Nose of cassis, blackberry, pencil lead, minerals and tobacco. Small amount of leather. Similar on the palate. Excellent balance. Still plenty of tannins. Can any wine live up to its hype and legendary status? Probably not, but this was an excellent, excellent wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Open 3 bottles this night, the other 2 were 70 Lynch Bages and 90 Pichon Longueville Comtesse. All voted for the Palmer. It was vibrant and full of life, nose was very delicate with layers and layers of fragrance which charmed me most. palate was soft but with character, tannins are there but you could barely taste them, overall an excellent bottle and if the price is more affordable, would love a few more bottles!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I can't put a score for this bottle. It looked fine, and I'm sure it was well stored, but it was very sullen, both aromatically and on the palate. I don't think it was corked, but I couldn't get much out of it. When it's on form, it can easily do battle with the '83 Chateau Margaux, but unfortunately not on this night.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This wine was served next to the 1983 Chateau Margaux. I was dying of curiosity as to which of the two wines would show better, and on this night, this 1983 Palmer was a fantastic bottle. It had very attractive bouquet of raspberry, smoke, leather, and the wine was perfectly harmonious, elegant, and had such freshness and vitality that was amazing. In my opinion this bottle flirted with perfection and had an ethereal quality about it. This bottle somehow was sexier than the 1983 Chateau Margaux.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
MB bottle. Decanted and poured right from the cellar. Cristal clear color. Started off a little tight because of the tempature. With time the nose opened and well as the flavors. Dark fruits, leather and tar, with well intergrated tannins, silky smooth.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dinner Vivan and Tara. Pristine bottle with a high fill, spent a couple of hours in the decanter. It tastes and feels very young, fantastic aromas of liqourice and dark fruit also found some nice chocolate notes coming through. Delicious sliky mouth feel and an after taste that lingers on for a while. Stunning!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Smokey, multi-layered with dark berries, leather and perfectly blended tannins make for an elegant, delicious wine. This is the little brother of the 83 Margaux. Extremely good wine. I would guess it is fully evolved but shows no sign on wear or tear.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This still looks young! Cassis, dark berries, flowers, coffee and five spice aromas put the spring in the aromatics step. Full bodied and packed with layers of silky, elegant, ripe fruit. The tannins are ripe and round. The long finish fills your mouth with purity, intensity of flavor, velvet laced textures, freshness and balance. This stunning Bordeaux wine ends with a long, ripe, plush, fresh blackberry filled finish. This special wine keeps getting better every time I taste it. Still young, this will age and improve for decades.
Similar to 1989 – rather evolved. Underbrush and cedar; Rather subdued, the middle phase was best, dies out slowly. Tight and good, wonderful acidity, spice and leather/mocha, but a tad too light.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ledbury-great looking bottle, top fill.decanted for 4hrs+, clear clean color, still quite lively. youthful vibrant, nie mix of tobacco and red fruit, a bit of leather firmness. in general a real pleasure to drink . when these bottles are good they are really good!!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pre-Auction Tasting - Chateau Palmer 1970-1983; 5/7/2010-5/12/2010 (Edmonton, AB): Wine still up in the neck. Clearly the class of these wines ! Deep ruby colour with some purple still showing – extremely dark and dense looking; blackberry and black currant fruit ushers forth in abundance in the aromas; firm structure, with excellent acidity and the tannins, while in evidence, ride beneath the fruit; full bodied and rich on the palate – hugely concentrated - with the dark fruits filling the mouth; the fruit extends out to an enormously long finish. Much more promise to come in this wine, which might last another decade or two. Wow ! This is classic !
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Mixed Bordeaux at PRIMA: nose - sweet cherry, cranberry, damp earth, and flowers. A very fragrant nose. Mouth - still potent. shows a good combo of red fruit, tobacco, and coffee. Still with considerable structure. Some interesting herbal essence on the finish. An elegant wine. Drink up - i cant see this getting much better. Not necessarily for fans of big bold fruit bomb-y wines, however... (you know who you are)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ledbury dinner, fuller and richer than the 89, sweeter fruit and silky tannins that laces the tongue, probably on decent from its peak, so time to drink..
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Palmer Vertical with Thomas Duroux (La Plume, Jefferson Hotel, Washington DC): The star of the show, a blockbuster wine with elegance and touch, hardly showing its age. The wine explodes out of the glass with layers of kirsch, berry and cassis. It has the brightest pitch of any of the wines we have had yet! Simply incredible. This wine should hold up wonderfully for another 10+ years. Wonderful.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Similar to the last bottle I drank. Showed nothing upon opening so I roughed it up a bit before pouring it back into the bottle and taking it to dinner. Once there, we decanted it once again and it finally started to give something but it was more "come and find me" than "here I am." Very enjoyable but nothing at all like the explosive and wonderful bottle I tasted 4 years ago.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I have had this bottle a few times before a few years ago, and enjoyed it each time. This bottle was better than the previous ones. Good whiff of barnyard on the nose along with ivory soap, oak, tomato vine and charcoal. The palate was big and got bigger as the night wore on. Sour cherry, green peppercorns, tomatoes, oak and a long plum finish. Had great acidity, like the '83 Margaux it was paired with.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Aromatics filled with deep black cherry and black raspberry fruits, orange rind, flowers, spice and cassis introduced you to the wine. The wine flows like pure velvet. This is deep and concentrated, as well as elegant , round and refined. Few wines express elegance married to power as well as the 83 Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Light brown color. Oak, iodine and celery in the bouquet. There is some juiciness, but mainly thanks to the high acidity. Medium long somewhat drying finish. This wine should have been drunk at least 10 years ago. After the bottle was unmasked I was really disappointed. I hope we just had a bad bottle. Because it had something special I still scored it 83, but I will not put it in CT, because it must have been much better in the past. (and now if the bottle was flawless)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Paris Tasting in Zwolle (De Librije - Zwolle): 1983 Château Palmer (Frankrijk, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux) Kleur: Diep donkerrood, neigt naar oranjebruin. Aroma / bouquet: Duidelijk subtielere neus, wat mij beteft toch wat minder complexiteit. Donker jammig fruit, hout, jodiumtonen / medicijnkastjes. Smaak / Afdronk: In de mond is het eerste wat opvalt een oxidatietoon, biedt echter wel voldoende kracht en structuur, maar met een wat zurige en metalige laatste indruk. Algemeen / potentieel: Wijn is niet in balans. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 8 + Smaak / Afdronk: 8 + Algemeen / potentieel: 4 = 75/100
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
We attended a commanderie de bordeaux meeting in Seattle and this was poured with the main course. Really showed well with damp earth, lots of rich loamy flavor and a 30 second finish. All the components of a great wine were there. While I did not take formal notes, this was by far the best wine on offer. Perse's second wine from 2005 was also tasted and seemed either too young or too california for my palate at present.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Clarity 5/5, colour 5/5, Aroma Intensity 8/10, aroma Nose 17/20, aroma complexity 13/15, Taste balance 15/15, taste complexity 18/20, finish 10/10. The wine was opened by the sommelier 2 hours before I arrived the restaurant, may be the nose will be much better when it was opened for 1/2 hour. I need to stay with this wine all the time once it has been opened and the get the nose from the beginning next time. It will be more fair to judge it's nose. A very good and elegant wine. decant for 3 hour up to the peak and last for another 1/2 hour, then down slope. It is very funny, with wine in the glass, the nose is light, but after finish the wine, the glass's nose come very good and nice. last for half hour still having the nose in the glass. light vanilla and cedar, blackberry, cherry, plum. Complex and attractive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This bottle was a gift from a birthday 7 years ago; unknown provenance before that. The cork was absolutely perfect and the wine decanted for an hour prior to dinner. Upon pouring a taste - I just started laughing as the nose was just spectacularly wonderful - very bright fruit - just joyous. On the palate probably a little past its peak with perhaps a small amount of VA and medium bodied, but nice texture. The nose on this is 100 points, the palate and taste closer to 90. Very different from the 83 Margaux which has much more depth and richness. This was slightly overshadowed as the evening progressed by an 82 Conseillante which I had cellared since 84.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Truffle's, smoke, olives, pipe tobacco, earth and flowers are what the taster first notices. Very long and intense. This full bodied, concentrated, elegant, polished wine finishes with soft, chocolate covered, blackberries.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasting Group Dinner - Bordeaux (Dave's House): Second time I've tasted this. From the same source as the bottle tasted in January 2009. Another terrific bottle. Intense, complex layers of flavor, including perfumed cherries, earth, leather and tobacco. Gloriously ripe and balanced. Silky, supple, and long. Intellectual as well as sensual. Elegance personified. My WOTN.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This time (after several more dead bottles) we found a keeper. Took a good 2 hr to give us some dark yet broad flavors with lots of dark fruit and solid grip some nice mint notes as well as a nice elegant finish. Liked this a bunch the last glass was the finest can easily age another 3-5 if not more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Faded and prematurely advanced bottle -there are some sweet mature notes which give an indication of the wine's potential but overall a disappointment. Some suspected TCA. A crushing disappointment from the pre festivities top candidate. Oh well....
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The last of 3 from my cellar purchased on release at $ 30.00 per. Part of a flight of 3 that included an 83 Lafite (89) and an 83 Haut Brion (94). Decanted an hour prior. Crumbly cork and no sediment. Not showing any maturity. Still black cherry in color. A decent nose, but not the floral elements and perfume you expect from a Margaux. Mostly cassis and earth with some cedar. A subdued palate at first of lead pencil and earth, but after a half hour in the glass, nice sweet fruit emerged of cherry and cassis. Nice finish. My limited experience with this wine suggests that while excellent, it is both overhyped and overrated.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
LdC Palmer vs. Margaux Dinner (Primehouse): Medium red crimson color. Nice nose of red fruit spice and lovely floral violets. big black dustry pencil black fruit on the long chewy finish. Best of the 82/83 pairings.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Unfortunately, this bottle may have been slightly corked because it was rather dull by comparison with other '83 Palmers I have had in the past. Just a hint of non-descript black fruit on the nose. Better on the palate and very drinkeable but the usual mass of ultra-ripe showy fruit is just not there and the finish was limp.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pratt's Bordeaux table and then some: Aromatically, it’s rather nice. There’s perfumed cherry, dank earth with a touch of eucalyptus and brown spices. However, on the palate it’s a bit withdrawn and not really showing as it usually does. Up front there’s some nice warmth by way of earthy and spicy notes, but there’s no fruit in the middle or end. Normally this wine has plenty of fruit. The finish shows some toughness and too much eucalyptus for my taste. B+/B.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasting Group Dinner - '75, '83 and '85 Bordeaux (Brad's House, Minneapolis): Tasted alongside the '83 Margaux (see TN), the Palmer was smooth, expressive, and deep. Concentrated red cherries surrounded by truffles, spices, and tobacco. Does not quite have the silk or perfume of the Margaux, but a beautiful bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
If I could use only one descriptor, "stunning" expresses how great this wine is. The perfume shoots from the glass like a bullet from a gun. Flowers, cassis, earth, truffles fresh black fruit with spices are only the introduction to this wines ample charms. In the mouth, pure silk, satin, velvet and enough verve to give it lift. The long, fruit filled seamless finish is pure pleasure for the senses. Still young at close at over 25 years of age, this sublime wine will improve and offer amazing pleasure for decades. Keep in mind, this bottle was popped and poured from the cellar. With some air, this
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The color is starting to lighten so it must be mature. Perhaps I over-decanted it (3 hours) but there was density and delicious blackberry flavor, but I was hoping for more energy and length. I gave the edge to the '83 Margaux this night but I was in the minority.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux 1983 horizontal (Morton's NYC): Awesome. Complex, deep with full fruit and packed into a tight, strong body. Some nice dark notes, very well integrated. All working together smoothly. Has a long life ahead. I'd been under-whelmed by this wine in the past, but this was an entirely new experience for me. Wonderful. A/A+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This cassis, earth and floral scented wine is a wonderful example of Margaux and mature Bordeaux. Very elegant in the mouth. This is at a great place, and it's only going to improve from here. It's odd that a wine this good with 25 years of age sells for about the same price as the 05! Markets move in mysterious ways
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nose: Sweet fruit. Minor heat. Red currants well integrated with woodsynotes. Some herbal aspects as well. Riding along was some saddle notes as well (but not much). Floral roses were wonderful and some stewed fruits stood off to the side in the background.
Taste: Soft, smoothm and integrated. Minor heat. Slightly soft on the mid-palate. However it's well integrated and a very sensual wine experience.
Overall: A fine+ wine. 92 Points.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Kdawg's Birthday 80's Bordeaux dinner (Cotes Du Rhone, Chicago, IL): Lighter in color than recent bottles. The palmer exhibited an intoxicating nose of grilled steak, lilac perfume, a slight mocha, and a very attractive underbrush character. In the mouth the wine was much less powerful than previous bottles. It was somewhat disjointed in the mouth with a short finish. When this wine is on it is one of the best of the vintage, sadly this bottle was not and I am finding more and more lack-luster bottles of the 83 palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
80s Bordeaux Birthday dinner (Cotes Du Rhone Bistro(Chicago, IL)): nose: wonderfully pretty and effusive nose that shows the class of palmer with loads of floral tones, red currants, herbal spices, grilled steak meats, and later on barnyard tones(I said that it smelled like a giraffe's ass, it's my birthday celebration, don't ask) started to take hold along with more hi floral tones
taste: wonderful soft cherry and cranberry tones that move into a beautiful floral treatment of lilacs, lavender, and geraniums accompanied with exotice spices on the mid palate and a bit of soy sauce on the back end of the palate
overall: this wine was showing great by the end of the night. This was the first of teh offical wines, but in retrospect, showed even greater at the end. A beautiful and sexy bottle with silky length and feel that just exudes that palmer class. This wine is just genuine class
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The cork was torn but we've managed to get them out. The color still in deep ruby. Super nose of cassis, blueberries. very smooth in the mouth, at it's peak and will still go for years
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Aroma of horse saddle; iodine; barn; green pepper rolled in horse barn dirt; classic Bordeaux nose. Serious wine, tasting of barn dust, tart red fruits, some blackcurrant flavours. Vegetative nose lingers, as if the horse turned his nose away...I enjoy this wine for it's complexity, roundness and mouth feel.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Château Palmer Vertical (Morton's): I’ve had this wine several times now and never understood the fuss over it. This bottle was about as resolved as the ’78 and ’75 were—richer, to be sure, but just as straightforward.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Palmer vertical at Morton's, NYC: Smooth, suave, sweet, classy. Full fruit, brawny, menthol. Lots going on. Just coming of age. A beautiful wine with good strength and fabulous subtlety. A
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Five of six crowned it WOTN. Great bottle, and a wine which is really beginning to radiate a "mature bdx" profile, and is clearly now in middle age (a great place to be).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Margaux vs. Palmer Dinner, served in single blind flights (Primehouse - Chicago IL): Single blind flight 82/83 Margaux/Palmer. Great color, looks so young. Blackberry, spice, tobacco aromatics with hits of leather. Black sexy fruit with great texture. Flavors kept evolving in the glass through the flight. Great balance. Lots of great life ahead of it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A perfectly conditioned bottle at Veritas, NYC. Absolutely stunning Bordeaux that's in middle-age with a gorgeous Margaux-perfumed nose. Silky elegant but with rich fruit and a strong backbone, this wine is drinking beautifully but still has not wandered off into its secondary level of flavor development. The flavors are spectacular; deep dark red fruits with silky slate, rich dark earth and a hint of violets. This is drinking like a first growth! 96+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Beautifully complex nose of tobacco, red berries, chocolate, briar, gunflint and truffles. Some at the table suspected some brett influence, but I didn't see it. The palate is structurally excellent with long, complex and superbly balanced flavour. It lived up to both reputation and expectations for me, this was my wine of the night among some excellent company.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
"Bring your Best" Reno tasting (Mark and Megan's): Decanted 90+ minutes. Deep red/violet with some browning. Evocative, almost pretty, somewhat perfumey, nose of earthy flowers, light spice and dark fruits. Super-refined palate of very soft (but present) tannins, flowing fruit and dancing acidity. Greatly balanced round finish with great length.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tanzer has commented on bottle-to-bottle variability in this wine, and the varying reviews here support that observation. My bottle clearly wasn't one of the good ones. It was a wimpy wine coming out of the bottle, small, gentle, and generally unimpressive. After a while a Rhone-like mossy funk started to emerge, and seemed like it might get interesting. But it never really did. In the price-per-value sense, this wine was a serious clunker.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dinner at Eleven Madison Park (New York, NY): Initial notes of diaper are quickly overwhelmed with a soaring nose of truffles and flowers. Mmm, this is drinking gorgeously with singing acidity, rich and luscious with cherries bathed in minerals. Fantastic!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Claret Coup d'Etat (Eleven Madison Park): Better than the last time I had this but still not the knockout of popular or critical consensus. There's a pretty aroma here of tobacco and smoky ash, then a mellow, red-fruited palate with a thin cloth of tannin hanging on that adds a bit of gauzy fibrosity to the otherwise smooth fruit. In the mouth it's lightweight and buoyant, not especially effusive but probably the most compelling and seductive claret on the table, versus the '89 Palmer and the '86 and '89 Comtesse. I especially like the finishing minerality of iron and rusty rock; none of the other wines had reached that level of transparency.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A fabulous wine, drunk side by side with 83 Pichon Lalande. Out of the gates, it took a quick lead, but the 83 PLL won out in the end. A great bottle of a great wine, but seemed better in the first couple of hours, and seemed to fade a bit during our four hour dinner.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A flashy array of black fruit, wet earth, coffee and a variety of spices explodes from the glass. Elegant, very sophisticated and sexy style of wine. Extremely concentrated with ripe fruit and a boatload of glycerin. As good as it was, it will still improve!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Now we step it up a notch. A darker younger rugy color. the nose was huge yet well controlled. Dark plums, cassis, black licorice, baking chocolate, vanilla and rose petals. This wine had great texture. Dense yet not heavy, more baking chocolate, and cassis. Still just early peak. What an upside this has! Wish I owned some. 97 pts.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
"Very Special" Dinner at Picholine OL (Picholine Wine Room, NYC): WOW. Lovely nose of leather, earth and moss. Expressive and elegant. Gorgeous palate with lovely fruit. Perfect acids. Floral notes - violets, lavender. Pomegranate. A concentrated attack. Outstanding, lengthy finish. Just a beauty. And another one right in it's sweet spot. My unquestionable WOTN. Group's WOTN.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
EXCEPTIONAL COLOR, RED BROWN ON THE EDGE. BLACKBERRIES, CURRANTS, AND BLACK CHERRIES IN THE NOSE WITH A BIT OF EARTHINESS. STILL WONDERFUL FRUIT IN THE FLAVOR. GREAT COMPLEXITY AND A LONG FINISH
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened after the 1990 Ch. Mgx. was dwindling during a five (eight) course at Fleur de Lys. This wine tasted so similar to the '90 Margaux that the table thought I was switching glasses. Had less body than its sister, though. I had expected more red fruit/ strawberries from reputation? Very, Very Good. Typifies margaux.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Absolutely beautiful, vibrant nose of perfumed fruit. I sat drinking in the bouquet for what seemed like hours before venturing to taste. Classic margaux taste of lavendar and fruit, in a fabulously elegant package.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The Petrus Excuse (Eleven Madison Park): Served with Summerfield Farm Ribeye, Herb Roasted with Bone-Marrow Crust and English Peas à la Française. Glossy wine with the tannin fully resolved to a buttery but vibrant mouthfeel of old claret and orchard fruit, and a finish of tobacco. I expected more from this aromatically, and the remains in the decanter started to oxidize by the end of the meal.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Southern Nights #1 (@ PVa): Impressive; hardly any ageing in the color and the bouquet. Beautiful and feminine wine with good juice, sweet spices, good acidity, tannin and bitterness. Great length, Beautiful wine with still a great future.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
An unreal tasting of Château Palmer and Château Margaux with Thomas Duroux of Palmer (Los Angeles, CA): This was my wine of the flight. A sexy, kinky and spicy nose. Wowza, there is a little bretty funk here as well, but it is quickly overtaken by some sharper notes of flint/gunpowder. Wow, the balance on this wine is impeccable, and the 1983 Margaux looks dry and tannic in comparison. This is drinking very young and very beautifully.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Lovely ruby color with just some small lightening at the edge. Nose reserved at first, red fruits and cedar with a sweet lift of raspberry. Round and concentrated, tannins are still present but not at all overbearing. Horizontal rather than vertical, sweet with good length and body. Still with life left, and a very nice wine, just lacking a bit more body and aromatic complexity/ bloom to push it into the next tier. This bottle purchased about three years ago, so provenance unknown.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This wine gets my vote for wine of the vintage. Had this along side the 83 margaux and this was heads and shoulders above it. Thick dense and fuller bodied then the margaux. The wine has a wonderful all spice in the nose and midpalate that is just pure silk and layer upon layer. Great complexity and balance. This wine is a wine to judge all others by. I think it is now at its peak where it should stay of years to come.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep black/purple with hints of lightening. Huge forward cinnamon, smokey, allspice black fruit aroma. Big rich spicy black fruit. Very nice and interesting. To me the Margaux was round and lilting, while this Palmer is all spice and complexity. Take your pick! Mid 90s. 2/06
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The wine's aromatics explode from the glass. Black fruits, cassis, spices, cedar wood, floral and earth were in full force. Over the last few years, this has put on weight and rounded out. The multiple layers of perfectly silky fruit that cascade over your palate in wave after wave of plush textures is what great Bordeaux is all about.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is clearly a great success for Palmer and is arguably their greatest vintage after 1970 and before 2000. Not far off the fabulous '82 Margaux with which it was drunk at Marks Las Olas with Greg and Hugh. A big wine by Palmer standards. So far it has intensity to burn but hasn't yet developed the aromatic beauty and complexity it may well do in anoher 5 - 10 years. Long potent finish portends the great wine this surely will become.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Perhaps one of the great restaurant wine list finds of all time, this was purchased and consumed tonight for $138.
This was bought on release and stored in a very cold Massachuseets cellar and it showed. The wine is an adolescent really. That said, out of the bottle and into the decanter it showed a remarkably bright, clear, ruby color with absolutely no bricking on the rim. Into the glass immediately after decanting it immediately showed it's youth. Almost nothing in the first 15 minutes. From there, it was like a small 4th of July fireworks show. With time, air, and much vigorous swirling, single rockets started to burst. An hour in small combinations of explosions came in waves and finally after 3 hours the grand finale in all it's glory. This was an incredibly youthful and vibrant wine with a rich smooth unctuous mouthfeel, layers and layers of fruit and a very long finish- I absolutely could not believe it was an 83. Secondary characteristics were only just begininng to develop. It showed hints of cigar box and leather and perhaps a tough of earthiness, but always the fruit remained at the front. This wine made the 82 Leoville Barton tasted last week look like an old geezer and that is saying something as the Barton clearly still needs 10 years. Really everything I could want in a wine except that it probably still needs 15-20 years to really, really sing- I venture to say it may approach perfection then. I plan to find out as the owner/Maitre D' really hit it off so to speak and I think he will sell me a couple bottles for the cellar. As a side note it went extremely well with a perfectly prepared Beef Wellington. I was in Hog Heaven. What a great way to wind down 2005.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still very dark, medium bodied, big bretty nose, on the palate coal and blackberries, really vibrant, huge long finish - perfect claret that lived up to its reputation
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Rich, full and satisfying to be sure, but lacks the flair and excitement of the best examples of this usually terrific wine, yet still just about outstanding. Not much to smell, the pleasure is mostly in the texture and mouthfilling quality. It's just a little too young; I'm still confident this will be the successor to the great '61/'66/'70 trio in time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark ruby color to the rim without bricking. Dark fruits with a hint of violet and licorice. Adequate acid for the mid palate and could certainly go for another 5 to yen years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Château Palmer: A purple/ruby colour - very dark, probably the darkest colour of any of these wines; full blown aromas featuring dark berry fruit, some spice, sweet oak and an edge of chocolate; big and full on the palate, with enormous blackberry and black currant fruit; well knit structure, with fine acidity and still some considerable tannins in evidence; long, long finish where the fruit shows up front and the tannins follow through to the end. No idea when this wine will reach maturity, but there is still a massive concentration of fruit, and the tannins are not aggressive. Might be worth trying again in 4 or 5 years - still a baby after 20+ years, with plenty of promise here for the long pull.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was Greg's contribution to the Bordeaux dinner we had at Trina and to me the star of the show. (He had recently purchased it from Wine Watch.) While some might prefer the more autumnal style of the '70, I enjoyed this youthful, powerful, stylish Palmer in its early plateau of maturity. The depth of color accurately predicts the concentration of really ripe plummy, but not jammy, merlot fruit. Excellent structure and fine-grained tannins with just enough supporting acidity make for a wonderfully balanced wine than is big in Palmer terms. At its current price ($250), hardly a bargain, but actually worth it for an outstanding Bordeaux to drink now and over the next dozen or more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ruby with some bricking. Notes of cedar, black cherry, cassis, earth, spice, cinnamon and cloves. Full bodied with some tannin to resolve. On the palate a rich display of plums and black fruit. The texture is pure silk. The 83 Palmer is one of the most elegant wines I've tasted in ages.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bon Voyage Jeff Cassetta (Some Palmers & Etc.) (Fringale Restaurant, San Francisco): Color is still a deep and dark red looking very youthful. Nose is flowerly with sweet lavender, violets, saddle leather, cedar and plums. Tannins are fully resolved, with the palate showing nice richness and a bit of oak. The finish shows a lingering taste of anise with slightly dry tannins. A really lovely and enjoyable bottle of wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasting four 1983 Bordeaux, first place. Lovely rich dark fruit and cedar and tobacco on the nose, more of the same on the palate, great rich fruity taste in the mouth, concentrated, structured, very long finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux Legends with Leve at Sona (Los Angeles, CA): This was clearly the strongest of the 83's on this night, the darkest in color and with the deepest texture and persistence. Initially it was also the most tannic, but it unfurled to reveal a pure, powerful wine, an absolute hammer actually. Cranberry, truffles, minerals all come out to play on this outstanding wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
STG - woopin it up at Roys (Roys Crib): Lots of cedar/cigarbox, annis, licorace, spices and leather. The palate was thick with dark fruits. The finish was long and still somewhat tannic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Year end SG Dinner #2 (House of Hersh): The nose was intense with beef blood and iron. The palate was thick and lush with tastes of beef blood, sweet fruit, and spice. This really needs more age though it showed signs of opening. Well balanced. I would have liked to have spent an evening with this.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Seattle Tasting Group 'End of Year Dinner' #2 (Sammamish, WA, USA): This first wine just screamed of minerals on the nose and palate. Earthy with some truffle notes of its own, the aforementioned minerality, and some iodine, a great nose. The palate was bright with good acidity. The finish was perhaps my favorite part with a hint of barnyard and turns to a leather for about 30 seconds.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Premier Cru bottle. Exceptionally dark, no amber. Dense, youthful nose of black cherry and graphite. Hint of cranberry. Still a fair amount of tannin. Needs 3-5 years. Clearly outstanding potential.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Crown Liquor bottle. Outstanding Merlot dominated Bordeaux. Full color, amber edge. Completely mature. Velvety texture of the best Palmers. Nice aroma of mixed berries. Medium weight. Became more and more spicy in the glass, to the point of overpowering. Wonderful integration of tannin, oak, acid.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Sweet black fruit, tobacco & cedar notes filled the air. Full bodied, elegant and graceful. Cherries and assorted red and black fruits caressed your palate. Rich, soft, silky and sexy is a great description for this stunning wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wine tasting. Similar to when tasted six months ago but perhaps a bit more fresh and primary. Same black cherry and black currant with lots of perfectly integrated tannins and great acidity. Great texture and mouth feel. Fruit is also elegant, not ripe or overpowering. Some cedar and leather on the nose, continues on to the finish. Long balanced finish. This will last for at least 20 more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Premier Cru bottle. Very disappointing despite excellent condition. Deep ruby, pretty color. Closed, firm and bitter. There is some fruit but it’s too hard and unyielding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Easily the best of the. Palmer mini-vertical - ‘89/‘’85/‘83/‘70. Good color. Perfectly mature now. Very vigorous and lively. Dark red fruits and cedar. Nice blend of Merlot elegance and Cabernet backbone. Intense mid palate and lingering finish. Now finally an indisputably great wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wine tasting. Great flavor of black cherries, black currants and some really good tobacco character. Great spice throughout, really long finish. Elegant, not overpowering. My first time with this wine in this vintage.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
An historic note. Only tried once but for me this has to be one of the most over-rated wines I've ever drunk. It is ranked by many commentators alongside the Chateau Margaux in this vintage as the best of the year in Bordeaux (I've had that wine too and it was great). However, for me this just demonstrated all that I don't like about the 1983 Bordeaux vintage: lean and dry wines with little charm and too much unripe tannin. I had cellared this myself since buying it in 1987 so I know that the wine was stored correctly. It wasn't that the wine was past it, just that this bottle lacked any depth of fruit on either the nose or the flavour. Drinkable but ordinary. The tannins were quite harsh at the finish. I have had great bottles of Palmer from other years (the 1962, especially, was wonderful and the 1989 very fine if still youthful) but I wouldn't include this one in that list. Perhaps I was just unlucky as many people rate this wine highly?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
($100) The First Big DFW Tasting, Casa Vineyard: Very nice. One of the best older Bordeaux I've tasted even. Ripe, supple, nuanced, a little delicate, but still very much alive. DFW Tasting.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Difficult to judge. Closed and acidic at first. Much better after 2 hours, though, although the structure is more prominent than the fruit. Needs time. With luck, could become outstanding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Premier Cru bottle. Medium color. Surprisingly forward. Modest pleasant elegant Palmer nose which faded after 20 minutes. Medium light body. Essentially no tannin. Mouth cleansing tartaric acidity. Ready.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
With K and Miranda at home at dinner--my belated birthday dinner, because I had the flu on the 13th (filet mignon). Rich ruby color; great depth and richness. Rich, elegant nose. Mulberries. On the palate, lots of butternut, oak. Silky smooth. But where is all the fruit I expected??Long, long finish. But not fruity. Is this wine corked? Not fit to accompany dinner. What a disappointment. 5-11-7-3: 76/100.
4/7/2024 - VINNICK Likes this wine: 94 Points
An austere wine that still seems to be resolving itself. Drank over two days. Definitely, needed a decant and got better as the night went on. Don’t think it will reach the highs of 82 but a good wine nonetheless.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/4/2024 - Thoughtful Likes this wine: 96 Points
Stored in cold cellar since release. Fill just above neck. Bouquet cedar, black fruits, autumn woodland. Same on palate. Depth, balance and length - mouth filling. High toned ( a rather old fashioned description) but opposite of fresh black/red fruit. This bottle seems fully mature but should last for a decade?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/14/2024 - djhammond Likes this wine: 97 Points
For myself, this is the greatest Palmer after the 1961 and 1966, and still with the potential to improve, and I am always puzzled why I seem to be one of the few champions of this wine. I feel it is still in development, and certainly benefits from a couple of hours in the decanter. The nose is exquisite, and unmistakably Palmer, with cherry and cedar, with violet wafts. The balance and depth are impeccable. However, I do find that the tannin needs to further resolve end palate and on the finish. Once tertiary notes fully develop, this will be challenging the 1961. A post script; I saved a small glass overnight and it had improved. For now 97+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (10)
1/3/2024 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 92 Points
Double decant back in bottle, placed in decanter only for dinner. Excellent bottle, Mahler Besse.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/31/2023 - Cailles wrote: 95 Points
20 Top Wines of the 1983 Vintage: Six Bordeaux titans. Each bottle exceeded our expectations, showcasing classic Bordeaux structures, bursting with freshness, tension, and an invigorating verve. The perfect harmony of tertiary aromas and a robust fruit core was mesmerizing. 1983 has produced some great wines drinking in their prime today. For me, the Latour, scoring a stellar 97 points, was the standout star. Yet, by a narrow margin, the group’s heart went to the Cheval Blanc.
TN: This was one of the best bottle of the 1983 Palmer I had to date. Intense, expressive from start to finish, superb fruit core forming a perfect balance with some burnt sugar, tobacco notes and all wrapped around an intensive and defining spine of minerality. While the Margaux 1983 in the next glass was subtle, elegant and almost Pinot-esque, this Palmer showed a more concentrated and and fuller-bodied side of the appelation, while still remaing highly elegant.
Decanting: Quick double decant to remove the sediment 5-6 hours prior to consumption, which seemed perfect for the wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/28/2023 - Cailles wrote: 93 Points
12x Bordeaux 1983 vs 1993: All wines tasted single blind. Not decanted. As anticipated, the 1983 vintage prevailed in our comparative tasting, scoring 8 to 2 wins against the 1993 vintage, with two ties. The structured, classic ’83s exhibited greater depth and harmony compared to the ‘93s, which tended to be simpler, sometimes slightly green and dry, or at their best, fresh and light. However, in both vintages, aside from a few notable labels, many wines were evidently beyond their peak. The standout was, unsurprisingly, the Margaux (94pts). Tasting the some of the same ’83s a second time a few days later with decanting showed a marked improvement, highlighting the need of aeration.
TN: Nose is a bit lacking in fruit and overall expressiveness. However, the palate is quite another story – round and seductive. It's filled with toasty notes, an abundance of dark red and even darker berries, complemented by herbal and mineral nuances. It becomes increasingly complete, evolving to showcase more red berries over time. Despite the nose's shortcomings, the palate truly excels. Score: 93pts (vs strong 92pts for the 1993). Revisiting with a properly decanted second bottle a few days later earned it 95pts, demonstrating that the 1983 Palmer greatly benefits from ample aeration to reach its full potential.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/25/2023 - djhammond wrote: flawed
This was carrying a faint tint, but still palatable. However, for such a legendary wine it is unfair to rate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2023 - sdr Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is a wine with a 98 point nose and a 90 point palate. This bottle I purchased 20+ years ago from Premier Cru. Glorious perfume of violets, dark red roses and black licorice. Magnificent. Some orange and tawny in the relatively pale color. Medium light and soft on the palate with a distinct note of fatigue although the flavors are correct and balanced. Minimal tannin. Apparently there are more vigorous bottles out there.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/25/2023 - G_H wrote: 97 Points
40 years on: A global 1983 retrospective: My first really good experience with this legend. Red berries, charming and youthful. Intense yet elegant. Great!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/25/2023 - sirpat00 wrote: 94 Points
1983 vintage horizontal with >20 wines, mostly from Bordeaux. Key observations: 1/ Acceptable vintage for Champagne with DP over-delivering, 2/ Laville Haut Brion is a masterpiece among the whites, 3/ Bordeaux is going strong at 40 years of age with stand-outs Latour and Margaux. 4/ No need to chase any Napa’s from the vintage, 5/ off-piste Italians kept up impressively with Soldera an undisputed medalist.
Tasting note:
Double-decanted. Tobacco and beautiful red cherry and blueberry fruit, well-defined, precise and fresh. Almost ideal balance on the palate and a soft, satin texture. This was solid at least, but overshadowed by a strong Cheval Blanc and a stellar Margaux in the flight.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/20/2023 - sirpat00 wrote: 93 Points
Bordeaux 1983 vs 1993 face-off: A humble yet noble wine. Elements of butterscotch and caramel, fine dried wood, fir cone and fir needles. Only hints of aging notes. Well-defined cherry fruit. Structured palate with a soft texture but slightly drying tannin as the main drawback.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/20/2023 - bookert wrote: 96 Points
Benchmark left bank, still young.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/11/2023 - Bob H wrote:
Fully mature, although it may have a lot of time in front of it, but I don’t see it improving from here. I liked this a lot tonight.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/11/2023 - D'Yquembe Mutumbo wrote: 94 Points
One of the more mature bottles of wine I have had recently, the capsule and cork of this bottle were a moldy mess. The Durand got the cork out intact, but it was fully saturated through, barely held together and surely would've had significant seepage if kept for much longer. Thankfully, there was no sign of cork taint and this wine had a lovely bouquet of cedar, leather, sous bois, and blackberry liqueur. The palate was similarly primary and secondary with the fruit, while present, taking a back seat to the soy, dark chocolate, and green herbs. While I enjoyed this wine, I'm not sure I'd be a buyer at the current price point.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/5/2023 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 96 Points
blind
we had it 2 bottles after the Margaux 1983, so you could find similarities. At his peak. This time I would go with the Margaux. 96
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/23/2023 - stanqwash Likes this wine: 93 Points
Wine was in excellent condition. Opened with a makeshift Durand and decanted for sediment. Hardly any noticeable bricking. Drank over an hour. Shocked at how young this tasted. No tertiary notes. Even had some bright cherry on top of cedar and tobacco. Still some tannic grip. Almost a silky vanilla viscosity. Fun bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/13/2023 - rc@ughey wrote: 95 Points
I opened a couple bottles of this. The first was absolutely singing. Very much like the Margaux–perhaps more exotic–if just a quarter click lower in the stratosphere. The second bottle I found a littler more shy and structured but still proper and delicious. Still on the upswing.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/24/2023 - vinhonotte Likes this wine: 98 Points
Fine Wines SG - Chateau Palmer Grand Cru Tasting (Fine Wines SG): Medium ruby core, with some garnet and fading edges. Very classic alluring aromas of black cherry, sundried tomato, black pepper, wood smoke, leather, and moss. Rounded tannins and bright acids, with a silky mouthfeel and flavours of ripe black cherry and cassis, then tomato, moss, violets, and cedar. Extremely long finish, with fruits, greens, spices, and smoke coming back in waves. Very complex! Truly as great as what Palmer can ever be!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/12/2023 - acyso wrote:
Top shelf 1983 Bordeaux (Chicago, IL): I have to figure this wasn't a fully representative bottle -- it came off slightly advanced or with a bit of oxidation (but I doubt the one hour of decanting really pushed the bottle over the edge). There's a distinctly woodsy quality here, but there was a lovely perfume coming off the glass. The palate shows sweet fruit and a softer texture (especially compared to the Margaux alongside).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/10/2023 - Dibbs Likes this wine: 95 Points
Eminently elegant and refined. Effortlessly beautiful. Bit of barnyard on the nose but that wasn’t distracting after a while. A very classic example of left bank Bordeaux. I liked this so much better than the 99 that I had previously.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/9/2023 - melvinyeowq wrote: 96 Points
Dibbs's birthday celebration: My contribution, one of my bucket list wines and it didn't disappoint. A little old-school Bordeaux funk on the nose that didn’t ever quite go away, which was gradually overtaken by a floral, intoxicating nose. The palate was weightless with gorgeous, elegant red fruit. Unbelievably fresh for a 40 year old wine and even better than the 1999 which was one of my favourite ever wines. As the previous taster mentioned you can nitpick about the lack of structure, but this was one of the rare few wines that evoked the wish-you-were-here emotion for me. Loved this wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/9/2023 - pclin wrote: 96 Points
Fantastic showing tonight, the nose was so floral that I thought it was a Cheval Blanc. Sweet and fine tannins with impeccable balance. Would prefer a bit more structure and complexity but that’s just nit picking. This ought to be one of the best wines of the vintage. Reached maturity plateau, time to drink but no real hurry to consume either.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/6/2023 - Titusandronicus Likes this wine: 96 Points
Regrettably my last of six bottles , this was absolutely gorgeous. Perfumed nose. On the palate, soft and velvety mouthfeel, with notes of plum and a hint of cedar and vanillin. As good a bottle of Palmer as I’ve had. This should last a while longer, but I can’t imagine it getting any better.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/21/2023 - Radders12345 Likes this wine: 94 Points
My 40th birthday at 67 Pall Mall (67 Pall Mall): I have to admit that this was rather jostled on its journey to 67PM and was a lesson to bring these in advance or double decant - apologies to my guests.
Despite that this initially gave me rich dark but sweet cherry, plum, tobacco, old furniture - wonderful depth to the nose.
Quite youthful on the palate - dark plum and cedar. Less floral than the Margaux but also a bit more structured and intense. As some of the sediment settles with time this becomes smoother and more elegant. Different but on par with Margaux this time.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/21/2023 - NickA Likes this wine: 92 Points
Peter's 1983 extravaganza (67 Pall Mall): Slightly muddy in appearance, perhaps because of shaken-up sediment. A lovely nose, with truffle, red apple and soft cigar. Slightly sweet on the palate, with violets and strawberry cream chocolates, and plenty of dark fruit. A nice, juicy wine, elegant and pretty but also overly soft and pillowy, and it seemed to lack authority on the finish. Nice wine, but unfortunately I don't think this was the best bottle of Palmer '83.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/21/2023 - fussyeater Likes this wine: 95 Points
Peter's 40th (67 Pall Mall, London): Crimson and showing some age as one would expect. Nose reveals old books, varnish and savoury raspberry. Medium bodied with silky powdery tannins leading the way to slightly decaying red fruits and tobacco notes on the midpalate. Quite savoury and masculine compared to the 83 Margaux. It's not trying to please, and all the better for it. My favourite red of an unreal line up, a real treat to try. From Zalto Bordeaux.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/16/2023 - Raage Likes this wine: 93 Points
(CDV)
Un très beau fumé de prime abord, le nez est intrigant, divinement bordelais, presque Pessac-Leognan, puis les notes tertiaires, de sous-bois, de poivron rôti et de cendre, nuancées de bitume/reglisse, sont plus typées Médoc. Ce type de nez rigoureux et sombre m'evoque plus Pauillac ou St Estephe, mais la bouche rèvèle ensuite une fraicheur, une élegance à rapprocher de Margaux, il n'offre aucune lourdeur, et se montre svelte et long.
Après, pour ma part, la présence du boisé en filigrane, toutefois appuyé et perceptible, c'est moins mon truc. Les plus grands bordeaux sont bien ceux à mes yeux qui l'ont totalement intégré.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/8/2023 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 96 Points
Its been 6+ years since I last opened one of these. Similar to last time, this really took an hour of air to get going... was a bit funky and off immediately out of the bottle, but it really cleaned up nicely. Beautiful wine!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/26/2022 - djhammond Likes this wine: 98 Points
Another great bottle of this, and probably the best 1983 Palmer I've consumed. Everything was in total harmony with this bottle. I wear my heart on my sleeve when it comes Palmer, and for myself it is the best pre millennial offering from the estate alongside the 1961 and 1966. At its best it is ethereal with secondary and tertiary notes, and with sweetened tannin and a lengthy finish. The nose is other worldly and worthy of a perfect rating, with deep aromas of cherry, strawberry, blackcurrant, and violet. On the palate there is an excellent balance with a good tannic backbone. For myself, the only barrier to a perfect score is the finish which, whilst magnificent, does not quite match the rest of the experience.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/12/2022 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 94 Points
Sweet, penetrating and silky palate with resolved tannins. It has alluring red and dark fruit sweetness. Drinking wonderfully.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/8/2022 - lozatron Likes this wine:
An embarrassment of steak riches (Chez G): lovely nose, you need to breathe in deep but worthwhile - forest floor and cedar and just a hint of sourness. On the palate - someone said cigar ash and this stuck in my mind, this is a lovely old claret with just a hint of grumpiness.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/21/2022 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Wine Workshop: Chateau Palmer (Benoit): Not a ton of love for this wine across the group and I can agree that it's probably not the absolute best bottle of this but it was still drinking well. It's more dried fruit, potpourri. Secondary in style. Still tasty though.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/12/2022 - Wine Canuck wrote: 95 Points
An epic dinner of classic wines: This pours medium ruby in the glass with light bricking. The nose is very lifted, floral, elegant and youthful. Aromas are of intense violets, plum, perfume, a touch of tobacco leaf, charcoal, dark chocolate, cassis and river stones. The palate is quite silky with medium minus tannin and medium acid. The finish lingers nicely with velvety violets and fresh plum fanning out nicely. This was from a pristine bottle in immaculate condition and was clearly slower in its evolution than past bottles I’ve had. In fact I think I might even like this better with another 20+ years on. Regardless it’s a great bottle. Just absolutely prototypical Margaux with the focus and intensity of violets and plums.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/21/2022 - djhammond Likes this wine: 97 Points
One of my favourite wines from my favourite estate, it is without doubt the wine of the vintage, and for myself nudging the Margaux into second place. This still benefits from a couple of hours in an open decanter and time in the glass to fully come alive. As stated previously I love the Cabernet/Merlot composition of Palmer and it almost produces a left/right bank hybrid of the best qualities of both grape types. The nose is deeply aromatic with strawberry, plum and violet. On the palate the tannin has sweetened, but you know that this is a left bank wine with a firm tannic spine. The finish is first rate but it is not quite up there with the rest of the tasting experience. It is on the shorter side and a little clipped. It is a shame because everything else merits a perfect rating. 97+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/13/2022 - timothynbond Likes this wine: 97 Points
Deep ruby-garnet with some bricking on the rim. Wonderfully elegant nose with tobacco, forest floor, and some dark red fruit. Medium body, medium-plus acid, fine-grained tannins. Palate features tart red fruit, soy sauce, and jasmine tea, all intermingling beautifully. So elegant. My wife said this was the best wine we had ever had, and I am not sure I disagree.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/23/2022 - fclarity wrote: 95 Points
Tasted blind, this wine had a deep red center and orange rims. The medium+ intensity nose generated cherry and clay soil notes at first. But after an hour or so the clay was hardly noticeable and the wine showed violets, plums, minerals, and cherries.
This wine had rounded tannin, firm acidity, and great balance. It was refined very good length. The flavors screamed merlot.
This wine is not extravagant and probably won't win many blind tastings. But it is gorgeous and great with food. Even though drinking, this will last at least 10-20 more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/12/2022 - Dvogt wrote: 96 Points
Excellent mature Bordeaux, living up to its iconic status. No visible sign of bricking, superb coloration, nice creme de cassis nose, fully integrated tannin, black fruit, medium plus acid, beautiful balance. Memorable and impressive for its age!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/17/2022 - Cailles wrote: 93 Points
Annual BYO Pre-Dinner (mostly mature Bordeauxs): A trio of Palmer. Again, the 1989 (96 pts) delivered a convincing performance. This is a sensual, irresistible Palmer, probably drinking near or at its peak today. The 1983 (93 pts) didn’t show well compared to what you expect from this vintage. Missing a bit of substance (!) and charm, my guess is that like other bottles before, this needs a lot of air and more time in the cellar to get to the ideal drinking window the 1989 is already in. The 2000 (92 pts), like many 2000s, is not yet ready to drink. The fruit is not yet fully back and hence, the this wine lacks a bit of sweetness to be fully balanced. Give it a few more years.
TN: Intense, expressive nose with dark fruit, herbs and lots of minerality. Some sensual bright rhubarb notes. Medium precision only. On the palate better, round and harmonious, no hard edges but enough tension. Some dark red fruit, some brighter red fruit but all a bit in the background. The earthy/minerality/herbal notes dominate a bit and overall the wine is muted, the precision is not there. It felt like the wine misses a bit of substance, but especially sweetness. Rather in a dumb phase.
Decanting: I guess this was not decanted. This needs a lot of air but better a few more years in the cellar.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/3/2022 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Fully-mature, the nose, with its floral center was just great. Once past the initial nuances of red and purple flowers, you found a wealth of cigar box, tobacco leaf, and forest floor nose. Rich, full, long, and fresh, the finish, with its silky, supple textured, sweet, ripe, red fruits hit all the right notes.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/1/2022 - sirpat00 wrote: 89 Points
First impression was rather herbal with restrained fruit, but very fresh and even slightly unripe in character. Palate super fresh with unfortunately rather searing acidity and still quite grippy tannin without the aroma intensity to match. After a while in the glass this also seemed to be falling apart a bit. Definitely had better ‘83s from Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/26/2022 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 93 Points
Excellent, double decant, doesn't need to open up much in a carafe.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/13/2022 - Leto South wrote: 98 Points
Cork semi-wet. Funky on opening, needs 2-3 hrs in decanter. Dense colour, ruby red w brownish tinge. Edge brown. Fantastic bq w dark red fruit, liquorice, sweet chocolate, leather, tobacco, dried flowers. Full body, integrated tannins, still fresh acidity. Elegant and fully balanced. The Margaux smoothness is omnipresent. It is of course fully mature, will last longer (but we doubt it will get better). Complex aftertaste, but here lies the missing 2 points. Best Palmer we've ever had!!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/11/2022 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 92 Points
Superb. MacArthur Beverages. Mahler Besse bottle. I now believe last bottle I drank was flawed in 2019 bc I had a relatively negative review. This one still had some aging time, tertiary characteristics.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/18/2022 - grub94 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Last of the B-day reds. Classic 83 left bank with characteristic tannin still running thru the wine and the Palmer tobacco leading on the nose. Excellent cork with a 1/4 inch of staining; deep garnet with amber rim. Still some dark cassis fruit with some strawberry jam backing uo the tobacco and some leather. Not quite as complex as it was five years ago. Starting what promises to be a long decline. Full finish ending on a dry note. Always a favorite claret.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/12/2022 - asiabear wrote: 93 Points
Tasted with cheese last night at JD’s after the 1989 Ch. Montrose. Deep red color with a berry-like nose. This legendary wine is now on the downslope. It is still “good old claret” but it has lost the punch that it once had that led me to call it one of the greatest clarets I had ever tasted, along with the ‘70 Mouton and the ‘66 Latour. Lovely with cheese but really needs more fruit as it once displayed in its prime.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/22/2022 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
80's Bordeaux (Friend's house): This was lovely - darker fruits and big and vibrant and just drinking well. Had side by side with the Margaux and this to me was the winner this day. Just excellent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/25/2021 - djhammond Likes this wine: 97 Points
As stated many times I am a Palmer groupie and just love their cab/merlot combination, and the 1983 has always been one of my favourite wines. Five years since last tasting, the tannin has now fully integrated and the palate is silky smooth and it is so easy to drink. It is subtle but incredibly complex with multi layers of nuance. Blackcurrant, cherry, strawberry and flora dominate the nose with some additional stony notes on the palate and finish. I've always wanted to push this wine towards a potentially deserved perfect score but a persistant lightness end palate and on the finish have prevented this. I actually still think there is potential upside on the wine and I have to say for myself it is far superior to the 1989. Just to note this really benefits from a couple of hours in the decanter, but also comes alive in the glass.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/7/2021 - DAN BAILEY Likes this wine:
Pure sex! Perfectly resolved. Velvety mouthfeel. Red and black fruit and slightly truffly.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/7/2021 - englishman's claret wrote: 96 Points
A charming Palmer, soft yet intense, holding nothing back with its nose full of strawberry, raspberry, wildflower, cocoa, mellow red spice (almost piment d’espelette), and cedar. There’s a beautiful fleshiness in the mouth and the tannins have almost melted away. 53% CS, 41%M, 4% CF, 2% PV.
96-97
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/27/2021 - jlgnml Likes this wine: 95 Points
Upon opening this btl had a pungent smell, not corked, just smelled bad. First sip was awful. Decanted anyways and put aside for 45 min. Wow. What a beauty. The smell dissipated and the smell of Bordeaux blew up into my nose. Browning edges showed its age and even 2 hours later, this was special. BTW the bottle was mid shoulder and a saturated cork.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/9/2021 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
Best when first poured, this is a great wine that’s fully mature now. I simply love the finish which shows great complexity with notes of sweet gravel, dark chocolate and graphite minerals. Awesome but I bet the '89 passes it in a few more years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/1/2021 - BradE wrote:
Similar to a bottle drunk earlier this year, this is picture perfect Palmer. Drinking superbly.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/13/2021 - vinhonotte Likes this wine: 92 Points
Medium garnet. Some tannic bite, and peat and smokes, as well as ripe strawberry and cassis flavours, dried grass and florals, and slight pepper and stewed meat. Long smoky finish, with the florals, grass, and savoury meats coming back in waves. Nice!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/18/2021 - BradE wrote:
Fantastic. Picture perfect.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/15/2021 - Cailles wrote: 93 Points
Tasted alongside the 1989 Palmer. Both bottles were in perfect condition with top shoulder+ levels. In my book, the 1989 (96+ pts) was the clear winner as it was more open and ready, showed more mature and had that creaminess needed to make it sexy and harmonious. The 1983 (93 pts) showed young, fresh, more precise than the 1989 but still with some edges and missing a bit of sweetness. Both wines missed the enormous complexity the greatest wines of these vintages have. I had a bottle of the 83 a few months back (rated 96 pts) which needed hours of air to get there. To bad, this bottle wasn‘t given the air it would have deserved.
TN: Medium- expressive nose only with minerality, dark fruits, cedar and some old leather notes. Very fresh and structured on the palate, slightly muted and not with every component at the right place. Fresh, pure dark fruits in the background with more minerality, smoke, leather and tobacco notes dominating. Very classically shaped with a touch sexiness and creaminess missing.
Decanting: In my experience, this would have needed 4-6h in the decanter.
Glass: Gabriel
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/9/2021 - kr522 wrote: 94 Points
Drank very nicely, fully mature. The high percentage of Merlot in the final blend really helps as that roundness provides an excellent counterpoint to the cooler vintage characteristics of the fruit. It’s not past peak but I would definitely drink now if you have it
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/2/2021 - sirpat00 wrote: 96 Points
Magnum rarities tasting; 7/2/2021-7/3/2021 (Zunfthaus zur Waag, Zurich): Magnum rarities tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. The headline line-up of the main event featured 18 aged red wines from magnum which was preceded by warm-up tasting of a dozen aged reds. The highlights across both days were Chris Ringland 1998 (99), Montrose 1990 and Yquem 1948 (both 98). Also strong were Palmer 1989 (97), Cheval Blanc 1985 (97) and Léoville Poyferré 1990 (96). None of the wines were decanted prior to serving.
Tasting note:
Intense and ripe fruit, aging notes only around the edges, truffles and leather. This complements a distinctly minty character. Powerful, youthful palate, vibrant acidity and well balanced. Lots of grip. Some aging notes accompany the finish. Comparing this glass to glass with the 1989, I felt the latter showed even more personality, but both were outstanding.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/2/2021 - G_H wrote: 94 Points
Still quite a lot of fruit with a lot of raspberry notes and a nice sweetness and a good depth
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/16/2021 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Drinking at peak maturity, everything is just great. The perfume, with its tobacco, roses, cedar, wet earth and cherries grabs you. On the palate, the wine is pure silk with no hard edges. This is effortless to drink. Splash decanting is all you need, this is fully developed.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/30/2021 - Cailles wrote: 96 Points
This 83 from perfect storage (moved in 2021 for the first time since 1985) and with high into neck fill performed very well. It started out a bit muted but gained power, intensity and complexity after three hours in the glass. At first a 93/94 experience, in the end easily 96 with that touch of sweetness, creaminess and extra expression showing up. Compared to the other star of the vintage, the Margaux 83, this is a touch more refined and feminine... and that says a lot!
TN: Very fragrant and ultra fine on the nose, gaining strength with more time in the glass. At first mainly tobacco with time lots of cherries and blueberries, a beautiful minerality and some coffee. Very precise aromatics, very inviting. Ultra-refined, weightless palate with intense aromatics, lots of tobacco, graphite and slate, blue fruit and red and dark cherries, herbs and hint of violets, from time to time streaks of coffee, roast aromas. Very fresh with a perfectly integrated acidity, a nice, firm but fine tannins structure and a slightly creamy but cool texture.
Decanting: From this perfect bottle with a high fill, the wine needed 45 mins in the glass to open up and improved by the minute for the remaining three hours. This bottle would have needed a 3-4 hour decant a few hours earlier.
Glass: Zalto Bdx vs Conterno Sensory. On the nose: At first the Zalto was a bit more expressive with tobacco and a fruit forward profile. The Conterno needed a bit of time but ultimately had the stronger nose. More expressive, more refined, cooler fresher stylistic and more precise. On the palate: same picture, with a much better precision in the Conterno, more harmonious and fresh and more complex. Clear win for the Conterno over the Zalto.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/27/2021 - ilee Likes this wine: 92 Points
I bought this bottle in my early 30's, thinking that when I was 50 or so, wealthy and distinguished, I would open this to pat myself on the back. Well. 50 I'm almost, it's just months away now. But wealthy and distinguished? Hahaha my wife would be rolling on the floor at the thought. Still, I can't say no to a pat on the back. So pop goes the weasel.
Similar to the bottle I opened late last year, it's OK but not quite transcendental. I certainly don't see the stars shining any brighter in the night sky above HK. The nose is darkly fruity, with hints of iron, mint and dried flowers. There is a vibrant fruit core that lands with a rich pop on the palate, but there's not a whole lot of complexity here, and practically zero tannins. Waiting until 50 was foolish, I'm starting to think: should have opened it at 40, wealth and distinction be damned.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (2)
12/11/2020 - ilee Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dinner at home with TH, the girls & 3 Palmers (At home, Hong Kong): Dark ruby color, with amber on the edge. Pleasant if understated bouquet of summer flowers, so very Palmer, with notes of red fruit, old leather and ash. Medium bodied, with fine ripe fruit flavors and still finer tannins that give this wine a sheen of elegance as the finish dances on in the palate. A beautiful wine, but past its prime I think.
This was one of a few treasured bottles I had pushed far into the dark reaches of my wine fridges to lay undisturbed for over 15 years. Perhaps I waited too long? Will drink up the rest.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/3/2020 - Derek Darth Taster wrote: 93 Points
Party at Wimborne. Drank in Grassl Cru.
Appearance is clear, medium intensity, garnet colour. Thin legs.
Nose medium intensity, with aromas of tertiary earth, peppermint, bell peppers, tobacco, grilled herbs. Developed.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium alcohol, resolved medium tannins, medium+ body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of leather, grilled herbs, earth, tobacco, blackberries, blackcurrant. Long finish.
Very good quality. Great aged Claret. Same tasting notes as the previous bottle I had 2 years ago, but with more body and intensity. Probably a better provenance bottle. Few hours of air in bottle and still going strong.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2020 - drjb wrote: 96 Points
At Haig Road Bistro, Brisbane. This is a beautiful mature Palmer with a mid strength crimson colour with edge bricking. The nose is beautiful and classic with blackcurrants, garnet plums, violets and cedar characters unfolding in the glass. The palate is mature but still with lively fruit melding softly into the mature characters of cedar wood and cigar boxes leaving an impression of balance and elegance. Delicious !
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/10/2020 - ElAzul Likes this wine: 92 Points
This wine is improving with air even on night two open. Very similar in structure and taste as my previous tasting. Tannins s are sweet and now fully resolved leaving dark somewhat plummy fruit. Better than my previous bottle. Wine still has life after 37 years!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/27/2020 - jchan1 wrote: 96 Points
Into neck. Floral notes with tobacco, mint and a touch of oak. Fine tannins, good length and stellar grip on the backend. Personal favourite against 82 and 85. Real subtlety, very Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/11/2020 - Verb Likes this wine: 95 Points
brick red with orange rim - mature cassis fruit nose with cedar and white flower aromas - smooth, silky mouth with full body, resolved tannins and well-balanced acidity - long 20-30 second finish - a fully mature Margaux that is drinking beautifully after 37 years - tasted alongside the 1979 Palmer, this was a bigger, richer Margaux, but the 79 was a bit more elegant - both are wonderful examples of how well made Bordeaux from good vintages can age
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/4/2020 - melzar wrote: 95 Points
Bought on release, and well stored, with fill into the neck. Took a while to open, but became a 95 by the end of the meal. Fragrant Palmer perfume on the nose. Palate initially dominated by tannin, but the wine quickly opens to reveal a well balanced palate. Moderate sediment thrown. Long life ahead.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/12/2020 - soyhead wrote:
nose - funky, bretty, smoky
mouth - bretty sweet brett. sweet fruit with loads of brett. has a very mature almost digestif type quality. perhaps going downhill?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/20/2020 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
Still quite young, but tangy fruit. Should be long-lived.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/16/2020 - misterstarre Likes this wine: 96 Points
Yes! While this wine hits on all cylinders, the silky, plush texture is the standout feature. I mean, it's fresh, too, and it has pure, concentrated dark red fruit, but it's that refined, silky supple soft mouthfeel that gives this wine an elegant quality and makes it special. The '83 hits you with dark red fruit on the nose with moss, blood, and iron on top of a nondescript floral layer. It's medium-full bodied with a soft, voluptuous texture revealing its high merlot component. However, it still managed to leave a dry sensation on my cheeks. Thus, the tannins are soft and supple, but still not quite fully resolved. The fruit is forward, featuring cassis, plum, and blackberry, but it's very nicely balanced with wet earth, iron, light graphite, and a subtle animal note. This is in a beautiful spot now and there's almost no reason to hold back -- except it will be fine for years and years to come.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (3)
5/13/2020 - Zitan Likes this wine: 98 Points
Sublime. Great perfume and length. Tannins gone. Fruit still alive. Subtle, beautiful secondary flavors. Profound. Elegant and not at all overbearing like some wines of this caliber. Gorgeous and at peak. Low neck fill decanted for 45 minutes before serving. A magnificent bottle!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/8/2020 - DCHawkeye Likes this wine: 97 Points
A wow wine. Tannins fully resolved, with an amazing nose and beautiful fruit remaining.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/31/2020 - peternelson wrote: 94 Points
This was for most people the star of the night, unusual considering the line-up tonight (including '85 DRC, '04 Margaux, '10 Groffier Bonne, '83 Lafleur, and a host of other crazy wines). It just had everything, complexity, fine body, silky old fine tannins, warm sweet earth, herbs and foresty notes, and that warm, freshly baked-bread feeling at your grandma's house on a snowy afternoon. Heritage Wine Blind Tasting Finals after-party at Jean-George Las Vegas
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/25/2020 - NoTrollingerPlease Likes this wine: 93 Points
F.X. Pichler Riesling Unendlich full vertical (1998-2017) (Restaurant Waldhorn, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Gabriel Standard
Popped and poured. Clear, deep tawny color. Classic left bank BDX nose with some leather, tobacco, some green pepper and some brett. Fine, silky tannin, lots of ripe cherries, beautiful integrated acidity. Lacks a bit tension and complexity. Good length. Maybe a bit past peak. 92-93
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/12/2020 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Refined, pure, elegant, fresh, concentrated, rich and vibrant, the aromatics, with their flowery leaning also provides a basket of earthy red fruits, spicy notes and tobacco. The silky finish wraps everything up nicely. It is impossible not to take sip after sip of this nectar. The only issue with this beauty is that the wine is finished long before you are ready!
4 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/20/2019 - RayOB wrote: 96 Points
Drank in London
What a vintage for Palmer
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/12/2019 - Elpaninaro Likes this wine:
medium red color with some bricking, lush nose, game meats, cassis, mulberry, on the palate opulent, rich broad band of effortlessly aged cassis and berry fruit, light forest notes, a bit of chalk toward the end, fine length, hearty in its way, very fine.
*****, now to 2030
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/16/2019 - BenBlu Likes this wine: 96 Points
Cork fully saturated with slightly mouldy top, bottle otherwise good appearance and low neck fill, cork removed in one piece only thanks to Durand. First glass pnp rest of bottle decanted and savoured over the following 3 hours. Visually developed but not overly so for its age, could pass for a 1990. It makes a soft and yet powerful entry. Meaty, thyme. With more time in the decanter at about an hour in it starts to reveal beautiful truffle, caramel, sous bois, a good acidic and mineral backbone. This is a beautiful 1983 for sure and the praise is correct. I personally peg it just behind 1983 Cheval and slightly ahead of LMHB 83 both had the prior week. But of course at that age there are only good bottles not good wines. However I remark a great consistency (for the 80s) of all 1983s I have tasted over the last ~1-2 years. Based on this bottle I do not think there is any point in holding bottles. It is probably slowly downhill from here and possibly this bottle had its peak a years back but who knows, perfectly enjoyable amazing aged claret here. Drink now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/8/2019 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 96 Points
not blind, DMG
From the DMG perfectly fresh, Primary notes are in the foreground, balanced, black currant, no tertiary Aromas, from this size at least 30 more years. Regular bottles are great now if you like some aging notes. 96+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/14/2019 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 93 Points
Pnp. Opened up in the glass with that margaux perfume, herbs, truffle and a mix of blue and dark fruit. Seamless, soft and elegant. The last glass was the best.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/12/2019 - englishman's claret wrote: 95 Points
2019 Palmerathon: The 83 Palmer is a consistently recognizable wine - it's got lots of raspberry, mineral, and thyme notes on the nose with a hugely rich, resonant palate full of dense cassis, violet, and mineral. Tremendous saturation and impact on the palate without any heaviness. Pretty glorious stuff, even if I might not be inclined to hold these forever.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/18/2019 - Topper wrote: 93 Points
This is a pretty wine, but at this age I think there is some bottle variation showing up and they are not all holding up equally well. Recent CT ratings are all over the place. This one was still pretty but maybe just starting to slip. Probably not doing it any favor to pair with an 86 Margaux as well. I would tend to drink these up now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/9/2019 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
This is a superb wine. Elegant, silky, refined and sensuous, the wine hits the trifecta, it smells, feels and tastes great. There is not a hair out of place. Although, this bottle seemed a little less generous than other recently tasted bottles. This is clearly in its prime time drinking window. Will it improve? Maybe. But the risks outweigh the rewards, so if you have a bottle, pop that cork!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/8/2019 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 93 Points
Many layers and long finish. Gained softness but appeared to lose a little focus from double decant and then a couple hours before consumption. 93-94
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/29/2019 - ElAzul Likes this wine: 90 Points
I bought five of these in a south Texas wine store in about 1987 or maybe 1988. So they had been sitting in non-pristine condition for most likely a couple of years. They were then stored in a commercial wine box at 57F for 3 years . They have been stored in my passive cellar in Michigan which ranges from 51-60F over the course of the year. So the provenance has not been totally pristine but also not awful. Regardless, this was the 3rd and best of the 3 I have opened so far. Had to pull the cork with an ah-so and it came out in three pieces. Wet to the top. Level was right below neck line. Initial bretty nose dissipated with mostly cedar nose though my spouse detected some licorice. Still dark ruby with no orange on rim. Cedar, slight vanilla, dark fruit and cassis palate. Finish continues to lengthen as it breathes indicating mature but not over the hill. I have two more which both appear to have higher fills level. Finish is now 30 seconds long with sweet tannin under body. I am glad to have waited this long but it is just very pleasant not the ecstasy some on this site have described.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/18/2019 - Seafoam Manor wrote: 97 Points
Surprisingly youthful at thirty-six. It's certainly pale garnet, but there is still a bright ruby core. Classic Palmer nose, in that you could smell it across the table, with a pronounced note of dried roses, mixed with tertiary aromas; leather, tobacco, clove, light nutmeg, slight mushroom and red berries. The palate reflects the nose very well, but the red berries come to the fore, with the tertiary notes rising up through the mid-palate and lingering on the finish. Sweet spices and a slight blood orange-like citrus add complexity on both the nose and the palate, while giving this a very graceful lift. This had a very feminine profile and drank more Burgundian, stressing finesse over power. Very fine and perfectly integrated tannins, coupled with a nice acidic lift allowed this to drink well with both heavier fish dishes and gamy venison. This just kept unfolding over 2+ hours, with the last sip probably being the best, so I think there's still a lot of upside to this... 97++. Probably the best bottle of this that I've had.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/13/2019 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 90 Points
Was not mind blowing. Tannic which resolved with decant. Next bottle I will double decant with a 1-2 hour decant. This was in a restaurant. The master somm had a glass as well. Bottle was not corked. Black fruit on the nose. Developed over time. Balance. Tobacco, Cedar and other tertiary notes. Losing its fruit but black fruit notes with time. Some glycerine. I would like to add a few more to my collection. I'll open the next one in 3-5 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/1/2019 - LB88 wrote: 91 Points
Spicy with strong tannins and to be fair needed several more hours to breathe. But preferred the 86
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/28/2018 - canan wrote: 97 Points
Champagne Brunch (@Terkel): Juicy and "pure" flavors of black currants and blackberries. Absolutely stunning wine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/28/2018 - vinhslee wrote: 95 Points
Mahler-Besse Bottled.
Still quite primary with lots of fruits and persistent acid. Floral notes are not as obvious as most other Palmers. It has a very good structure for further ageing. It's more about structure than flavours at the moment. Put this away for 10+ years and one's patience will be rewarded.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2018 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 98 Points
Achim's Magnum Tasting 2018; 12/24/2018-12/26/2018 (Berens am Kai 1 star Restaurant): From Magnum, not blind
A giant flight together with Margaux 1983, great tannin and acidity , structure, balanced, maybe a hint more accessible than the Margaux. 98+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/23/2018 - dlduchon Likes this wine: 93 Points
Super funky reductivness on the nose that stayed with the wine with airing. I love a barnyardy nose on my old Burgundies, so I enjoyed it on this Bordeaux. Nice old Bordeaux flavor profile and resolved fruit with still a touch of tannin on the finish to keep it all together. Impressive wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/19/2018 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 98 Points
Chateau Palmer Dinner (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): Nose of mint, black berry, cassis, and tobacco, same on the palate, big body, delicious, very tasty, rich fruit, mouth filling fruit, opened nicely, at its best 75 minutes into dinner, to me better than the 1989, although two other members liked the 1989 better, time to drink up although will easily last another 10 years, and a long, long, long, flavorful finish and flavorful aftertaste. Uploaded photo.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/28/2018 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Jordan's Fine Wine Dinner (Boka - Chicago IL): In 70/83/89 vertical. Black fruit, meaty with cedar hints and mushroom. There was a lot here, but more seemed to be in reserve than in the forefront, so maybe (?) not the most perfect bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/24/2018 - Rabaja wrote: flawed
This was off a bit but I was still able to get a good look at this wine. The TCA would make itself known then cloak itself in the wine's amazing fruit profile. The wine seemed to take a step forward then two steps back and this dance happened all night. What I could make out was that this wine is off the charts and in under the proper circumstances probably even outshine its more illustrious rival, 1983 Chateau Margaux. Probably a 98 point wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/22/2018 - SommStags wrote:
Mag purchased from estate: very similar in style when drank next to 83 Margaux. You can really get a sense of the terroir. With that I felt the Palmer came up short on the back end structure of the wine. While still yummy, it was slightly behind the Margaux. Either way it is a great success for the 83 vintage. In my opinion I don’t see why you would hold onto this wine any longer as it probably is either at peak or on a slight decline.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/4/2018 - G_H wrote: 97 Points
Classic mature Bordeaux nose, leather, chamomile, forest floor. But what a beauty in the palate, full of umami, rich, thick mouthfeel and very long. This was singing tonight!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/25/2018 - Derek Darth Taster wrote: 91 Points
Arrived late for dinner at Jade Palace. Tasted from carafe after 2 hours of air already.
Appearance is clear, medium intensity, garnet colour. Thin legs.
Nose medium intensity, with aromas of funky earth, graphite, bell peppers, blackcurrant leaf, blackberries. Develope.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium alcohol, melt in your mouth soft tannins, thin medium body. Medium flavour intensity, with flavours of blackberry, blackcurrant, bell peppers, earth, graphite, old leather. Medium finish.
Very good quality. Aged claret. Fruit is still there, though overall feel is tired and weathered. Time to drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/25/2018 - asparagus wrote: 91 Points
Underwhelming given the vintage for margaux. Not tired, not faded, just a normal bottle of aged claret
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/21/2018 - RayOB Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank at 67
A light nose of truffle and leather. beautiful palate
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/15/2018 - MaxSiegel Likes this wine: 95 Points
Abundant truffle, mint, and leather on the nose. Eventually some plum sauce and minerality. Palate is luxurious with concentrated plum, blueberry, and currant fruit, along with some smoke. Tannins are still palpable though almost fully integrated, and acidity remains medium. Drink now, though it's not dying, but give it an hour and a half to open up.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/13/2018 - smackinnonmd@gmail.com Likes this wine: 90 Points
Still a lovely wine but showing some signs of decline. This bottle, which is second to last in a case I had, had a fill to low neck, cork was damp and fully saturated with a crusty top. No sign of TCA contamination, nose was quintessential Margaux and the body was still supple. Color was garnet almost brick like, good glycerine on side of glass. Flavor had hints of soy sauce, candied fruits, figs with a hint of truffle. Palate was a bit short compared to previous tastes but still brought lots of pleasure. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/12/2018 - sdr Likes this wine: 91 Points
The best part is the smooth texture and well integrated acidity and tannins. The fruit though is fading and autumnal. The brown color at the rim was consistent with the rather tired impression. Still, there’s some interesting nuances of dried plum and cranberry. It’s the complexity that keeps you coming back for more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/6/2018 - Rezy13 Likes this wine:
Cellar Work? (Alpharetta, GA): Intense aromatics filled the air while pouring into the decanter, musk- eaux de Bordeaux, cedar, cigar tobacco, wilted flowers, juicy currants, celery seed, sweet tanned leather; initially a touch lean but after more aeration this filled out beautifully; a wonderful wine that is ready to go.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/3/2018 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 95 Points
For me the best Palmer after the 1961. Classical left bank Bordeaux with nice black berry fruit, plums, cigarbox and a nice etherical touch. Refreshing vivid acidity but a little short in the late palate. Starting to reach his peak. 95
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/12/2018 - PaulusLoZebra Likes this wine: 93 Points
A very dusty nose that moderated, but did not disappear; intense fragrances of sweet red cherry compote, leather, beeswax shoe polish, and menthol; very savory; a very good wine kept from being great by that persistent dustiness.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/3/2018 - Goldstone Likes this wine: 93 Points
White House Dinner (Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong): (From magnum, decanted for 2.5 hours). Still almost totally opaque, a lovely semi-evolved black/red colour.Nose is, wow....a really seductive melange of lead pencil, graphite and lots of deep black fruit lurking in the backgrouns - smells too young...but gorgeous. Palate is deep, very fruiy-driven black/red fruits. Deep red plum with more time in the glass. Immediately almost overwhelmingly heady...rich and bellyfilling, like a Lynch Bages 1990. Way more weight and youth than, say, a 1985 - almost unevolved. Belly-filling. Not life-changing but very good indeed. In magnum at least, this has years ahead of it to evolve and improve.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/15/2018 - RockinCabs wrote: 96 Points
Boston Palmer Tasting (South End - Boston, MA): Nose: Gorgeous red cherry / floral perfume with aromas of logan berry, baking spice and a sage leaf / thyme note as well. Palate: Took a few hours to open from magnum, and definitely showing much younger than a 750ml consumed a few years ago. Layers of black and red fruit, elegantly layered spices and floral notes and hints of caramel coming out over time. Finish: Beautiful and lifted finish with red cherries and cedary oak.
Much more red fruited and lifted than the 89, but not lacking in any single area. Magnums have time in the cellar, but I would start drinking standard bottles if you have few. This bottle had an herbaceous note that some found distracting.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (1)
1/14/2018 - englishman's claret wrote: 96 Points
The Boston Palmerathon: Big nose right out of the decanter (60-90 minutes); raspberry, plum, violets with a surprisingly herbal edge which grew with time, eventually becoming a bit overpowering. Seamlessly knit together, glossy palate, long finish. Delightful. The last time I had this (from 750) in 2014, it gave a more floral showing/cedar showing with less herbaceousness. From magnum with a base neck fill.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/12/2018 - pbd1978 wrote: 96 Points
Cork broke on opening. No corked nose. Very rich on the nose. Spice. Black fruits.
First taste was flat. Needed air. Opened up after one hour and was delicious. Such a balance and a long finish. An absolute powerhouse. But then after a 2 hours and a half something interesting happened: the wine clearly started to oxidize. Metally tast came through and less depth. So had to be finished. But soo beautiful. 96 pts.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2017 - KenK Likes this wine: 98 Points
Chevalier Dec Bordeaux Round Table. Served against 1983 Ch Margaux, both beautiful, yet this offered up much more nuance and better integration. Perfectly balanced and matured, offering up layers of spices and flavors. Amazing showing today. While mature, hard to see this fading anytime soon. A legendary wine.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2017 - Burgundy Al wrote: 96 Points
Another Saturday at Chevalier...Mostly Blind: Served double blind alongside Margaux 1983. Dense black fruit so spice hints, faint mushroom and regal elegance. So vibrant and texturally charming through to superbly long, balanced finish. My favorite wine of the day.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2017 - Nanda wrote: 98 Points
Saturday Blind Tasting - Bordeaux '03 and Older (Chevalier Fine Wines): Blind in what turned out to be 83 Palmer / 83 Margaux flight. Full nose that is clearly of high pedigree with elegant plum fruit and so much depth. The palate is ethereal, complex and long as can be. Excellent and my wine of the tasting.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/15/2017 - Aromatic wrote: 95 Points
Pnp , the nose just jump out of the gate violets tobacco leather red cherries. Polished chalky tannins saturated sweetness and silky soft ripe fruits, completely coat the palate and nourish through. Don’t decant once open it is at gear 7! Love this!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/8/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Picture your glass packed with incense, flowers, tobacco and sweet cherries about to be swirled and you get the idea on the aromatics. Silky soft, polished tannins and earthy sweet, ripe, dark red fruits round out the experience. A splash decanting was all this beauty needed to get going.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/7/2017 - Jeffrey Silver Likes this wine: 98 Points
1983 was a tough year after the legendary 1982 but the applation of Margaux hit it out of park. 83 Palmer is truly monumental. I loved it from start to finish. The fruit is so rich here. 2hrs decanted has you rocking with this wine. It’s truly sublime!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/4/2017 - jee27 wrote: 95 Points
La bouteille a été ouverte sur place environ deux heures avant de la servir (pas décantée). Le nez envoutant se montre d'une superbe richesse en arômes fruités (cassis, violette, fraises, etc..), écorce d'orange, herbes fraîches, graphite, et autres qui le rend très accrocheur. Certains l'ont décris comme étant "sanguin". Le grain en bouche est très séducteur, onctueux, du très grand merlot. Par contre il n'a pas tenu la route très longtemps après 30-40 minute en verre il a commencé sa descente gracieuse. Du Palmer j'en prends anytime...95pts
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/8/2017 - liber Likes this wine: 95 Points
11th of 12, decanted 80 minutes, perfect level and partly stained cork, previous notes mixed from merely very good to very fine (post '07) with this the best bottle yet - deepish garnet, hint of amber in rim; complex bouquet, cassis, mulberry, violet, some graphite, tobacco, chunkier than the Margaux; medium full, lovely richness and drive to the fruit, very long and persistent, if without the complexity of the Margaux or the presence of the Haut Brion which I marked on a par, should hold at this level for many years. VF (18.5).
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/12/2017 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 94 Points
Château Palmer vertical tasting dinner (3030 Ocean, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Initially, the 1983 Palmer was somewhat closed down. After airing out in the glass, it offered up a deep and complex nose of black currant, blackberry, fresh violets, licorice, leather, and cigar tobacco. On the palate, the wine was full-bodied, generous, and with great structure. The tannins weren’t overpowering, but still need a bit of softening. The finish was long and fresh, with really nice acidity. This wine clearly has not yet reached its peak.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/12/2017 - sdr Likes this wine: 91 Points
Château Palmer Vertical: A rather disappointing showing for what should be one of the best vintages for Palmer. On the positive side there's excellent complexity to its fully mature flavors. Acidity is a bit high, though, which makes the texture thin. Still, it's fine but more intellectually pleasing than pleasurable.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/7/2017 - canan wrote: 95 Points
4 Mini Vertical Tastings (Sammarco, Togni, Conseillante, Palmer) (MG): Fresh and elegant black currant fruit. Wonderfully developed and in great shape with a very solid balance.
It was served blind so after seeing the bottle, I must admit that I had expected more from this vintage.
At least I would have hoped for even more intensity. Still, it was nonetheless a great wine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/26/2017 - DrZett wrote: 94 Points
Chateau Palmer vs Chateau Margaux (Rare-Bordeaux-Weine, Wachtberg (Germany)): One of my favorites from this night! Beautiful round body full of dark red fruits and good tannins. Love it!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/21/2017 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
Particularly deep nose on this bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/6/2017 - Mistress of Wine Likes this wine:
Deep purple. Very perfumed nose of plum, tobacco, anise and cedar. Still a nice balance of fruit and secondary flavors, with a soft tannic backbone. This was great for an hour but the fruit faded over several hours in the decanter. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/26/2017 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
Deep, rich, dark and energetic with notes of tobacco, dark earth and tar. Fresh bottle. 94+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/22/2017 - Vini Ciclismo Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very deep dark colour.
Rich ripe fragrance, dark fruits, dark spice, mulberry leaf herbaceousness.
Medium weight, smooth, finishes with soft fine tannin, modest acidity, feels like fully mature. Flavours however are strong and rich, dark fruits with tar liquorice and minerals, delicious blend of fruit spice and classic Margaux cedar and tobacco leaf. Flavoursome but perhaps not as refined. Drinking nicely.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/8/2017 - Rob MacKay wrote: 99 Points
Previous bottle opened 6 years ago. This one was just as good. I feel like this wine will last for eternity. Amazing stuff. Gave it 99 points before and will give it 99 points again.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/24/2017 - Jeffrey Silver Likes this wine: 98 Points
This is truly an utterly amazing wine. Decanted for 1hr. Another 30 was decanted in the glass. The nose is wonderful flower of lavender, warm strawberry compote, caramel with tabbaco. The taste is so intense of lovely fruit. Plum and blueberries prevail. The wine is very balanced and tannins have shed. At age 34 it's strutting on all cylinders. It can age for another 5-7 years but if you have some enjoy it all right now.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/11/2017 - scamhi wrote:
this bottle had a soft long cork, this bottle drank at peak. I can't imagine an upside to holding longer but it is not in danger of falling off anytime soon.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/16/2017 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great depth of flavors and energetic acid. A pleasure to drink now but multiple levels of evolution left here. 94+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/15/2016 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 95 Points
Achim's Magnum Tasting 2016 (Berens am Kai 1 star Restaurant): From Magnum,
much tooy oung even after three hours of double decantation, closed, primary notes, cassis, cedar, present and firm tannins, needs many years to show his grace, I cant rate, let's say 95++
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/12/2016 - ricknat1 wrote: 91 Points
Rich and delicious but was blown away by the 1970 which was much more nuanced and complex and I hope that the the 83 follows the sme direction
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/6/2016 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 91 Points
Certainly not the best bottle with an uncharacteristically dull profile, slight turbidity and woody/vanilla muddled notes on the palate. A great wine in its natural state, this fell short of that
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/15/2016 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 97 Points
Took an hour to open up, after that it was incredible. Very youthful, rich and opulent. Great fruit concentration. Beautiful wine!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/1/2016 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 91 Points
Château Palmer Vertical: Intriguing nose here too, interesting contrast against the '82 which is quite different. More red fruit here with a bit of zip and spice. Palate is in excellent shape, great balance, solid dose of developed fruit but a short finish. Clipped ending.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/19/2016 - reichken wrote: 90 Points
medium color and a nose that smelled more of secondarys than sweet fruit this wine often gives off. the bottle wasnt bad it just didnt live up the expectations of the table
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/9/2016 - lgeeker Likes this wine:
Tuesday Night Double Blind Tasting, $60+ (Bin 75): Nose definitely had the tobacco and earth of aged Bordeaux. Lots of color change too. A little richness still, but definitely seemed Left Bank. I didn't quite go this old, but it's fully mature. First time I've had an '83 from Margaux, and it was pretty brilliant. Thanks JD!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/25/2016 - JulianSkeels Likes this wine: 95 Points
A perfect bottle from my cellar, but drank with minimal time in a decanter (from experience, this would have showed better with a few hours more air). Much fresher and more aromatic than the 1983 Margaux served alongside. Initially seemed to have less density of cassis and earth but that came with air - as did a persistent mid-palate and finish. It also added a floral aroma (initially cedar and white flower, but which would have become violet and blueberry with more air - see my previous note for optimal bottle preparation). 95-97pts and no hurry to drink, good bottles are still improving and will keep for at least 30yrs!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/18/2016 - William Kelley Likes this wine: 95 Points
The 1983 lives up to its billing as one of the top post-war Palmers, with a perfumed and projected bouquet of ripe cassis, black cherry, floral top-notes and deeper-pitched layers of cedar and earth. On the palate the wine is dense, concentrated and still quite impressively structured, with good balance and completeness. This should have no problems cruising along in the cellar for a long time to come.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/17/2016 - fcxj wrote: 92 Points
Continues to show well. Remains very fresh.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/10/2016 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 96 Points
1983 Bordeaux horizontal tasting and Allison's birthday dinner (Vienna Cafe & Wine Bar): From a magnum. Gorgeous ruby color. A nose of black currant, violets, sous bois, juniper berries, cedar, and cigar tobacco. The nose just kept getting better as the night went on. Really impressive on the palate. Pure silk, with everything in its right place. A long finish with lots of lingering fruit and fresh acidity. Beautifully structured, this wine has years to go. But yet it's drinking so well now. My #2, group's #2 (of 5 wines).
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/28/2016 - djhammond Likes this wine: 97 Points
A Soft bouquet of cherry and blackberry carries on in the mouth but with sufficiently tart tannins to achieve a perfect balance completed with a 30 seconds + finish. Fantastic. On a cautionary note I do detect a very slight deterioration from a year ago and perhaps the wine will not stay at this plateau for a lot longer. Unfortunately my last bottle.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/14/2016 - Vinum Deorum wrote: 96 Points
Delicious wine, that completely deserves its reputation. This bottle was not decanted, but opened about 1 hour before being poured. Ruby color, with signs of evolution on the edge (light Brown) The nose exudes subtles fragrances of cherries and cassis, smokey notes, cedar and hints of earthiness. It is a complex, deep and elegant wine, full of finesse with a great and balanced structure. I think it is at its peak of maturity, but even if I doubt it can get any better from now it should hold well for 10/15 years easily.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/2/2016 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
This is a stunning tasting experience that brings together concentration, complexity, sensuous, silky textures, complex aromatics and the ability to continue to age and improve for at least 2 more decades, if well stored. It's the wine of the vintage. An hour in the decanter really helps the experience.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2016 - dharrison93 Likes this wine: 97 Points
Magnificent. Mature deep ruby hue with minimal sediment. Amazingly complex nose of plum, boysenberry and red raspberry leading to seamless palate coating tasting.
If a date, this was a 35 year old intellectual sexpot who tantalizes you all evening with a combination of flickering sexy eyes and interest in most topics males find interesting; cars, travel, sports & women
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/14/2016 - oldwines Likes this wine: 94 Points
Medium to dark garnet. Very effusive nose with some pleasant brett, layers of fruit, menthol, chocolate, pencil lead and a clean long finish. Palate reflects the flavors in the nose. The nose is slightly better than the flavor profile in its level of intensity. While not tired in any way this was probably just slightly past its peak. will stay at about this level for a good while but probably ready to drink up. Of note, the fill on the bottle before decanting was top shoulder and I wonder if this might account for the advanced development???
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/7/2016 - Markus IWC wrote: 91 Points
Vertikal provning Palmer. Extremt komplex, rabarber, tog tid att blomma ut i glaset. På pappret kvällens favorit men något av en besvikelse, behöver några år till i källaren?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/10/2016 - hultman wrote: 98 Points
Aningen tunnare i färg än Margaux. Stort vin med viol och cassis, föredrog 83 framför 82. Nästan lika bra som Margaux 82.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/29/2015 - svdheijden wrote: 97 Points
Well kept bottle, base of neck level, Fully mature now, singing to the max, tasted alongside the Chateau Margaux 1983 (94pt). Classic, smooth, velvety, well integrated tannins. Tobacco, cedar wood, Asian spices, overripe dark fruit. Delicate on the palate. Thoroughly enjoyable, complex and very well delineated. Enjoy in the next 5-10 years.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/27/2015 - rossi.wine wrote: 96 Points
Quite evolved in terms of colour around the rim, not overly dark centre. Very delicate and subtle on the nose, still immensely captivating and intriguing: notes of sweet tobacco, cocoa, cedar, red and dark fruit, smoke, spices. Just fantastic. On the palate equally subtle with ripe fruit, powdery tannins and impeccable balance. Not a "loud" wine at all but really vibrant and intense. Very persistent finish. Outstanding and no rush drinking up. 95-97
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/12/2015 - mr_swirl Likes this wine: 95 Points
At its peak. Beautiful and concentrated wine. Complex and fine with intense aromas of dark berries, smoked meat, cedar and cigar box. Long finish and soft delicate tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/9/2015 - KenPlace wrote: 92 Points
Great aged bordeaux nose, but somewhat thin on the palate. Drink now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/12/2015 - MEKWINE Likes this wine: 96 Points
La Trompette, Chateau Palmer dinner. '83 is a slow starter, which gave us time to enjoy the more flattering '82 seated to its left. The '83 is a stunning wine. More cocoa, more smokey, more layers on the nose and a palate of cassis, mocha and cedar that all sit comfortably in the background and surface with every effortless sup. By contrast, the '82 playfully allures and titillates, the 1983 mesmerises with its intensity and longer drawing power. An elegant, silky wine that only truly opened up after 1-2 hours.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/8/2015 - Peter Adesman wrote: 95 Points
Drank this wine at a friend's 60th birthday celebration last night. This wine has a magnificent nose with great complexity on the palate. Time to drink it if you have it. I doubt it can get any better. Would have been the WOTN had it not been for a well preserved 1955 Haut Brion.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/23/2015 - fclarity wrote: flawed
Unfortunately this wine, tasted blind, was corked. Despite substantial "corkiness", it was clear that this was an impressive wine that showed great richness and balance. It was also clear that, while this wine was starting to drink, it will improve for 10-20 years.
I look forward to trying another bottle in the future.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/30/2015 - MGrange Likes this wine: 96 Points
Great bottle. Old Bordeaux nose with an explosion of complex flavours on the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/11/2015 - joshbryer wrote: flawed
DOA in every way.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/10/2015 - FamilyLarsson wrote: 91 Points
Detta vin har jag tidigare druckit med väldigt stor behållning men denna gång vara det lite av en besvikelse. Det är fortfarande ett bra vin men det har inte alls denna otroliga balans och elegans som jag tidigare upplevt. Lite väl sötfruktig och lite spretig i smaken.
Inga defekter men troligtvis en flaska som kanske inte förvarats korrekt.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/10/2015 - Ramberg wrote: 91 Points
No formal notes.
Had this blind, and my blind guess was right bank Bdx., Cheval Blanc.
Funny thing was that another, very experienced taster, that came along later, guessed exactly the same.
Had some Cabernet Franc-ish on both the nose and palate that made me go wrong.
Nose showed maturity, with green herbs and grass, some vegetables, touch of library and furniture wax, leather, mushrooms, forest floor, and wet earth.
Fully mature, silky palate, with typical Merlot and Cab Franc silkiness (like an old Cheval Blanc), sweet red fruit, leather and earth.
Not all that sensational, not bad, just not great.
Perhaps this was a badly stored bottle, since I can see that other tasters have had a completely different experience?
No signs of any flaw thought, just not anyway near what is described by others here that have had recent experiences with this wine.
And I really enjoy old Bordeaux wines…
Points based on this bottle, that felt over the top.
Would be fun to try another one, and see if it shows the same?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/12/2015 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
What a beauty. Grab a handful of silk, a portion of velvet, mix it with perfectly ripe plums, cherries, cassis and blackberry, toss in some truffle, tobacco and smoky cocoa, blend it all together and viola, you have an idea about 1983 Palmer. The wine was made from a blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The harvest took place from September 28 to October 13.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/7/2015 - Wine Canuck wrote: 95 Points
(LCBO Tasting Bar Sample) Pours light in colour with heavy bricking. This is showing even more advanced than the already advanced bottle I had last year. It was from an enomatic machine so who knows if a little oxygen slipped in. Nose has virtually no fruit. Decaying leaves and twigs, leather, pot pourri, old furniture, roasted nuts and farm yard dominate the aromatic display. The palate is also drying out with some still drying tannin remaining. Finish is medium plus in length built on nuts and decaying wood.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/10/2014 - Pknut wrote:
This is just great. Soft black fruits, dried herbs, and a melted carob/truffle note in the back. The sides here are worn, while the center is still rather deep and dark. This is classy. Can't help but note that the '95 Ridge Monte Bello and '98 Ogier Cote Rotie also on the table are showing advanced and past peak, while this is showing plenty of underlying strength and breed. Fairway Cafe with the guys.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/9/2014 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
From magnum. No material difference from prior 750s. Great wine with a long life ahead.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/16/2014 - galenico wrote:
MONFORTINO VERTICALE (ENOTECA ROSSORUBINO TORINO): Bello bere un Bordeaux maturo e in piena forma in mezzo a Monfortini austeri, con nasi gentili e poco frutto, perchè si apprezza ancora di più la bordata di sensualità, profumi, frutto che invadono i sensi e costituiscono ciò che a mio avviso è il fulcro dell' esperienza degustativa.
Chinato, erbe aromatiche, fiori secchi, profondissimo e cangiante.
Il cilindro di un prestigiatore, da cui esce di tutto... a profusione, senza soluzione di continuità.
In bocca tanta glicerina, seta, acidità e freschezza risciacquante, persistenza da maratoneta.
Un vino completamente diverso dagli altri, forse più facile, suadente, forse troppo perfetto e "scontato", ma che non può non lasciare a bocca aperta.
Sempre un' esperienza ammaliante
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/30/2014 - DonalOB Likes this wine: 97 Points
This took a while to open up but then after two hours equaled other bottles. Superb and again outclassing the '82.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/17/2014 - puppetclause wrote: flawed
Flawed.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (1)
7/14/2014 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
Pure silk and velvet in texture, there are no hard edges, rough patches or missing links, this is intense pleasure from start to finish. Drinking great today, it's only going to get better and better!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/7/2014 - Russell Faulkner wrote:
UAE Wine Dinner: Much lighter than the Margaux, more merlot? This was in some ways a slighter version of the same, not worse for it but less impressive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/19/2014 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:
If modern day, 99 point oak, I mean wine, from Napa is your thing, you'll hate this. Earthy, to the point of near off-putting, this needed every bit of the two hours it was given in the decanter before it bloomed, finally transcending its blanket of poopy soil and decaying mushrooms. Perhaps it was some bottle variation, but this became thin, almost shrill by the last glass, 90 minutes after its full aeration in decanter. The second bottle from a case purchased on release. Whereas the first bottle kept gaining intensity right through the final glass, this slipped, again, hopefully due to bottle variation. Drink or hold for 15-20 more years if cellared properly. recommended
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/15/2014 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
Les Nomades BYO Dinner (Les Nomades Chicago): Consistent with prior experience. Very youthful and vibrant. Nicely integrated. Less finesse than Chateau Margaux.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/8/2014 - BradE wrote:
Two bottles. Both drank well, and were a step function above two 70's we had with them. One of the stars of the vintage.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/26/2014 - DonalOB Likes this wine: 96 Points
Still fresh and young. Deep colour. Even after a few hours in the decanter this wasn't fully open yet. Magnificent fresh nose and balanced full palate. Stunning.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/26/2014 - RayOB wrote: 96 Points
Drank in Hong Kong
My brother pulled out a bottle of the '83, always a nice supprise (thanks). Still incredibly young tasting with lots of fruit and tannins (fully integrated) that will last it many years to some.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/8/2014 - fcxj wrote: 90 Points
Enjoyable
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/29/2014 - mwanasheria Likes this wine: 96 Points
Château Palmer vertical (Burg Layen, Nahe, Germany): The bouquet is still spectacular with malt, coffee, truffles. On the palate sweet chocolate, underwood, coffee. A real beauty.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/12/2014 - RockinCabs wrote: 95 Points
Nose: Perhaps the most perfumed Bordeaux I have ever had. Elegant layers of Cherry, Raspberry Jam, Cherry Cordial, Aged Tobacco, Flowers, Baking Spice and Hot Stone. Palate: Crystaline and gorgeous bright red fruit with powdery tannins. There is a slight blackberry streak in the palate, but it is mostly red fruit. Some nice baking spice and almost a mushroom like note. Finish: Cherry, Leather, Tobacco and nice acidity.
Decanted 1 hour, but could have decanted 3 hours or more. This is ready now, but will hold and improve. If the palate ever catches up to the nose watch out.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/11/2014 - englishman's claret wrote: 95 Points
Dinner with Phil at Troquet (Troquet): Beautiful, beautiful nose. Perfume really - there's no other way to describe it; full of flowers and pure fruit. So Margaux. Perfect balance on the palate but it's elegance and not power that characterizes the wine. A hint of green on the finish. Years left - the dregs were the most dense and concentrated. Really opened out at an hour and a half in the decanter; best after two hours.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/1/2014 - SimonK wrote: 97 Points
minze, rotejohanisbeere, mango, salz,
pfeffer, tintenfischtinte, brombeere, chili, mangustine,
jugendlich, komplex mit vieeel zukunft.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/16/2013 - Wine Canuck wrote: 96 Points
Tasted at the LCBO tasting bar. Notable bricking on this, with some transparency out to tinges of orange and brick on the rim. Legendary nose. Massively complex: espresso, earth, brown spice, farmyard, celery seed, red currants, cassis, mocha, caramel, dark chocolate, and charcoal. In the mouth this feels fully mature with almost non-existent tannin. Finish is wildy long carried on spice, espresso, and celery seed. This really feels fully mature to me out of 750. While it may hold on it likely will not improve further.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/15/2013 - soyhead wrote:
5th Annual Best of Bordeaux vs Kings of Kalifornia (Yan's China Bistro): tasted blind
nose - beautiful stinky nose, rottting fruit, earthy
mouth - earthy, lovely, great funk. wow wine. my WOTN
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/7/2013 - noppakit s. wrote: 97 Points
I drank this wine before (in 2009) and it was not at the right time.
Last night, it only just begun. The wine was really good and still have long way to go.
Now I know that : There's nothing wrong about wine. If there is, it all our mistake. A bottle in 2009 was not ready to drink at that time.
From this moment, 1983 Palmer will be better and better. This is a very good Palmer and the best part is at 3rd hours when it showa the strong cassis smell like Haut-Brion and Latour combination.
The structure was superb, great balance with an austere finished. Barnyard like a first nose of Cheval Blanc. Long and linger finished.
Super fine wine indeed !!!
Drink now - 2045
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2013 - godx wrote: 93 Points
MNF Dinner at Tommy's (Vancouver, BC): Wow...what a beautiful nose. Classic Bordeaux fruit with a nice perfume and cedar. Soft and smooth on the palate with a rich and lengthy finish. Solid acidity balanced out the soft and smooth texture and gives a nice lifting sensation. This is drinking really well right now. Outstanding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/13/2013 - RayOB Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank in Boot & Flogger
Wonderful stuff, see my previous note. I think this has many years ahead of it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/11/2013 - puppetclause Likes this wine:
Opened with a compromised cork. Slight flaws creeping in which I have to attribute to the cork. Elegant dark fruits for days with great structure and balance. Needs time or a healthy decant, neither of which we gave it. Will try another early next year and give it 3+ hours to fully open up. All the signs point to something special though.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/5/2013 - lifebreath Likes this wine: 94 Points
Opened, decanted and poured. Dark red with very slight bricking. Almost no sediment and very fine. Started out with a core of red fruit, cherries jubilee with hints of vanilla, cocoa and smoky dusty earthy minerals some lavender on the nose. Not a hard edge to be found. A lingering lively finish. Perfectly integrated. Over the course of two hours, the wine evolved through a middle stage where pepper emerged - almost a cayenne spice - and more stony notes. A little later, it was Kirsch and black licorice, and some complex herbal notes hinting of Chartreuse liqueur, which I thoroughly enjoyed. A very elegant wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/31/2013 - robertek wrote: 96 Points
Best Bdx of the night. Good nose and great structure and length. As good as it gets from 83.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/28/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote: 95 Points
Zachys in Chicago (EL Ideas - Chicago IL): Another phenomenal opportunity to taste Palmer 1983 and 1989 side by side, with 1983 coming out on top tonight. Incredibly elegant with charming and fresh red and black cherry in front of emerging mushroom. Some licorice, cedar and woodsy spice. Very long and persistent. My Wine of the Night in a very good night of wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/27/2013 - Wine_lvr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Palmer Vertical Tasting (1982 - 2004) (Switzerland): Tasted blind: Leather, black licorice and tobacco in the nose. The tannins are nicely integrated into the sweetness. This wine is very elegant and shows good length. If this wine would have just a tiny bit more of "juice" it would be a "WOW" wine...still complaining on a high level as this is a wonderful Palmer. Surprisingly the 1983 is still quite youthful so no hurry to pop the cork.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/25/2013 - RayOB Likes this wine: 96 Points
Drank in London
Nose of blackberries, tobacco, leather, forest floor and spice. Rich smooth complex palate that just keeps going. This is amazing and is a benchmark for mature claret.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/29/2013 - Button Yang Likes this wine: 97 Points
No need to describe this wine precisely. The 1983 is absolutely the second best vintage after the historical 1961 when we talk about Palmer. Amazing wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/15/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Talk about all the right stuff, the wine is pure silk and velvet with an intoxicating perfume of caramel, spearmint, ripe blackberries, flowers, truffle and cigar box. The opulent textures make up reach for the bottle to refill your glass. But don't rush it, as it gets better in the glass. While this is pricey, for a mature Bordeaux, it's one of the top choices for quality and price. If you want to know why people go crazy for older Bordeaux, or you already know and just want a special bottle, this is one of the top wines in the market today.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/4/2013 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
Dinner at Rob's. Decanted and drank over 3 hours. Had along side the 1983 Margaux. Similar to my last note, but this showed so much more bright red fruit than the Chateau Margaux, but this was not as elegant or broad on the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/3/2013 - DAN BAILEY Likes this wine:
Served without decanting. Fabulously rich nose of dark fruit and raspberries with figs. Ripe but not overly so. Palate was a little tight still though.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/26/2013 - ricknat1 wrote:
1983 tasting. All wines opened immediately before serving. Palmer did not show well tonight but I love this wine so will not rate
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/4/2013 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
At home. Nose of earth, herbs, mint, chocolate, leather and dark fruit. More dark fruit and a streak of bright red fruit on the palate that become more pronounced with time in the glass. Great texture. At first it was slightly bitter on the finish, but this rounded out with time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/29/2013 - SimonK wrote: 97 Points
N: rotkirsche, brombeere, minze
P: schwarze johannisbeere, brombeere, limette
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/8/2013 - Zweder wrote: 94 Points
Dream tasting (@ Merlet): Beautiful and expressive bouquet with luxurious oak, red fruits and a pleasant touch of barnyard. On the palate a slightly sweet start followed by dark and red berries. The tannin is completely melted and the old age acidity is starting to show a bit. The bouquet is a true feast and on the palate still very luxurious. Completely ready now. If this bottle was exemplary: Don’t wait too long.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/8/2013 - jkoenen wrote: 94 Points
Dreamtasting #5 (Restaurant Merlet, Schoorl): (*) Now this is old-school Margaux! Dried flowers, soft touch of mocha, some leather, small currants, violets and warm compost. Allthough, at the age of 30, this wine is losing weight and urge, it's still extremely charming and rewarding to sit and sip and let it take over your thoughts and memories. Very soft, charming and elegant, some might call it feminine. A very pretty wine, in the best sense of those words. Unhurried and relaxing, which I think are true virtues in this day and age... 18.5/20
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/8/2013 - Ary wrote: 96 Points
Left Bank Bordeaux from the 1980-s (semi blind) (Amsterdam Wijn Antiquariaat): Dark purple colour with orange brim. Thick dark fruits, vanilla, tobacco, cedar and herbs in the nose. Super smooth (velvet) and sweet, dense and elegant. Definitely shares characteristics with Chateau Margaux. Drinks excellent now but should keep well for at least a dozen more years to go.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/23/2013 - cooberp wrote: 93 Points
1983 Margaux Mini-Horizontal (Tocqueville, NYC): Much darker-profiled and slightly fuller-bodied than the '83 Margaux tasted alongside. So much cocoa on the nose complementing rich dark fruit. Suddenly becomes tremendously minty after 90 minutes of air, like Andes candies or mint chocolate chip ice cream. Tangy in the mouth. A slightly sour, clipped finish is the only blemish in an otherwise outstanding wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/7/2013 - -E- wrote: 92 Points
Ch. Palmer vertikal (Oslo): Lett, grumset rød med innslag av oransje. Mild, innsmigrende og floral nese med mørk bærfrukt.
Bløt i munnen med frisk, tiltalende syre. Milde tanniner. Flott lengde. Bra vin, men ikke 100% flaske.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/7/2013 - LWI wrote: 92 Points
Palmer vertical: Some complexity, structured and long, tart, lacking in depth of fruit for a truly glorious bottle. I have never found this to live up the hype.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/4/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote: flawed
Slightly corked. Seemed very muted on nose and approach, then some corked character starting coming through on finish once open a couple of hours. Drinkable, just nowhere the level of most prior bottles.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/21/2013 - MilaBuchelska wrote: 90 Points
Pronounced and complex nose.
Nicely floral,sweet tobacco combined with sweet spices, cocoa, coffee, leather, gamey and a vivid dark fruit.
On the palate shows a creamy texture, round and luscious, subtle with persistent finish.
Quite savoury and easy on the tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/17/2013 - cfk49 wrote: 92 Points
The wine needed some time to open, then showed Margaux/cedar perfume with medium-full body and some firmness on the palate to go with strawberry fruit. This wine is still 5-10 years from full maturity.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/25/2013 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
Drank over 3 hours. This got better and better with more time in the glass. Great full on nose of dried herbs,leather,tobacco and sweet dark fruit. More sweet red fruit on the palate. Great texture. Smooth and well integrated. Long finish with interesting spice. This is fully mature and I'm sure will hold
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/7/2013 - Papies wrote: 94 Points
1983 Red Bordeaux Horizontal with Richard Brazier (Handford Wines, London): The nose is a touch on the muted side, especially following the etheral Pichon Lalande 83. Quite powerfull still, fresh and fleshy wine. It feels like it could well last another 10 years and granted it has a few 83 issues such as sone dryness on the edges still it has a nice balance and presence. Very good wine and a good 94 from us.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/2/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote: 96 Points
Great Wine Dinner with Friends and Wagyu (Western Chicago IL Suburbs): Sensational spice aromas with fresh plum and cassis, then similar on palate. Nuanced, charming and incredibly textured on palate, this was an incredibly exciting bottle of this great wine. Probably my Wine of the Night (in a night of great wines).
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/16/2012 - sdr Likes this wine: 91 Points
Purchased from Crown decades ago, the label, color and bottom neck level were promising. The cork was extremely dry, though. The wine had a typical violet floral fragrance but it was somewhat muted. Smooth, full, harmonious but just very good rather than fabulous as the best bottles of '83 Palmer can be.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/24/2012 - Dave Canada wrote: 99 Points
The Eleventh Annual Stonefields Dinner (Guelph, ON, Canada): From magnum, decanted for sediment and served approximately 30-40 minutes later. Deep garnet colour.
This nose was utterly intoxicating. I have never smelled a wine that had such pure floral notes. Lillac, lavendar, violets in addition to notes of cherry, cassis, blackcurrants, earth, spice, and minerals all danced on this nose. Utterly profound! The palate showed such pure fruit augmented with similar floral notes, earth, mushroom, wet leaf, black currants, spice, cassis herbs, cedar, leather and tobacco. The finish is never ending with layers of flavours. This is such an amazing showing.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (1)
11/24/2012 - alittle wrote: 98 Points
Once in Lifetime...: From magnum, decanted approximately 30 minutes prior to service, deep garnet in the glass. Wow…what a stunner this was. An absolutely explosive nose of black cherry, red currants, blackberries, earth, dried tobacco, undergrowth, intense florals, leather, crushed rocks and dried herbs. This is one of those wines where you can keep going back and picking out more every time you stick your nose in the glass. Not surprisingly the palate is aligned with the beauty of the nose, showing an immense richness, while still maintaining a certain level of elegance and finesse; exceptionally balanced, with lifted acidity. The finish is incredibly lengthy, lingering in the mouth with tastes of blackberry, licorice, mineral, earth and dried flowers. Still a touch of grip on the finish of some unresolved tannin. Up against some very stiff competition tonight, this wine takes the cake. Well done, Palmer. While this was very strong out of the gate, with some time in the glass, this faded substantially after the second hour.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/15/2012 - godx wrote: 93 Points
Alvin’s 60th Birthday Dinner (Le Gavroche): Medium red with some bricking at the rim. Wow this had a really nice perfumey nose of blackcurrants, plums, cedar, tobacco with hints of floral and funk. In the mouth this was warmer, rounder and easier drinking than the ’83 Margaux with a rich and soft texture but there’s also great acidity balancing it out. This is softer, more approachable and less structured than the ’83 Margaux, but I think this Palmer showed more communal typicity. This is drinking extremely well right now but should cruise, and maybe even improve a bit, over the next 10+ years. Outstanding. 93+?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/7/2012 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Pre WWS 2012 GJE dinner at Devero Ristorante - 85 La Las, 09 DRC VR and etc (Devero hotel - outskirts of Milan): Laurent decide to serve the wine blind. As Bill K likes to say, it is better to be lucky than good. Initially thinking the 83 Chave, cedar, cherry and mineral I am thinking. With time, it tastes more and more like a left bank Bordeaux. Laurent informs us that it is from 1983. Fresh, red fruits, merlot like jammy expression, floral and perfume. Soft, round and silky palate. It somehow reminds me either Chateau Margaux or Palmer but seems softer and feminine so I call Chateau Palmer. Lovely wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2012 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great as usual although outshone by the 1970
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/4/2012 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 96 Points
The definition of class and lusciousness. This benefited from not doing a side by side with the Margaux as I have in the past. Decadence in a glass
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/28/2012 - Jeff Leve wrote: 90 Points
It's always disappointing when a wine you know normally offers thrills and chills takes a turn in the wrong direction. Keep in mind, every bottle is different, especially when a wine is in its 3rd decade of life. This particular bottle smelt and tasted unclean. There were marked dirty scents along with the tobacco, earth and blackberry notes. The wine did not show its normally, opulent nature and instead tasted far too earthy. My guess is, this bottle was not stored correctly at some point in its life, and while a nice Bordeaux, it was not a great tasting experience. However, do not let this note dissuade you from this wine, which is normally a stellar vintage of Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/27/2012 - JulianSkeels Likes this wine: 95 Points
This bottle was disappointing... from sound provenance (my cellar) but showed how the serving method impacts enjoyment. First - the wine: decanted 4 hours by a top-restaurant, initially had the Palmer nose of violets and blueberries, with medium finish. However, aromatics faded after an hour in the glass and the wine lacked depth and richness of previous bottles.
The service: I highly recommend decanting this wine for at least 5 hours in advance (slow-ox for longer even better, if practical), before returning to bottle and cooling down (fridge or cold-sleeve) before serving. Really increases density and aromatics.
I normally rate this wine 97pts now, with potential to improve more over the next 10-20 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/7/2012 - Burgundy Al wrote: 91 Points
Acker Merrall BYO (Sepia - Chicago IL): A wine I've always liked, and I was excited to taste this alongside Margaux 1983. However this bottle seemed more tired than any I've had before. Person who brought the bottle had just purchased it last year, so provenance is unknown.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/1/2012 - -E- wrote: 91 Points
Bordeaux Søskenparsmaking (Moss, Norway): Rødbrun med rødlig kjerne, oransje kant. Nydelig, floral og syrefrisk, rødbærsdrevet nese. Ren og frisk frukt med preg av kirsebær og noe kokte jordbær. Flott syre som løfter vinen. God lengde.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/1/2012 - LWI wrote: 92 Points
Bordeaux Siblings (Moss, Norway): Wonderfully rounded, complex, a warmish fruit. Perhaps not an optimal bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/1/2012 - Apotheca wrote: 90 Points
Very seducing nose with red berries and a floral note. Sadly the mouthfeeling falls short, not living up to the great nose. Maybe this whould have been decanted longer than what it did. A little disappointing from the expectations.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/18/2012 - misterstarre wrote: 96 Points
Right at its peak. Not yet bricking. Red. Nose was cedar, moss, earth and plum. On the palate I got earth, forest floor, cedar, tobacco, plum and blackberry. Tannins were fully integrated. While definately mellow, not totally soft. There's still a bright spot in the fruit. Brought with me Joel Robuchon. Decanted before my arrival for a half-hour, plus another 45 minutes while we had the first couple of courses.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/11/2012 - rsbeck wrote: 97 Points
Popped, breathed in bottle 60 minutes, poured, consumed over next two hours. This was singing right from the start and still gradually improved until the final sips. Everything you want in a mature Palmer, a seamless tapestry of aromas and flavors, so balanced and complex you cannot isolate all of the various components. I can still taste it hours later. A real beauty.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/19/2012 - Lombardi wrote: 96 Points
What a fantastic complex nose with multiple layers of meat, leather, earth with such a constant intensity. Very dense and concentrated on the palate. Very powerful and muscular, full-bodied. The tannins are 100% solved, very pleasant and almost seamless. Incredible balance and long finish. It kept showing its strength and elegance restlessly. This is close to being a perfect Bordeaux I imagine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/18/2012 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Part of a dinner at Bouley pairing 79, La Mission and HB, 82 Barton and Las Cases, 93, Palmer and Margaux and 89 Pichons
The Palmer was winning at the first taste as the 50% merlot gave immediate gratification. The Margaux has depth, complexity and perfect balance that made it the ultimate winner
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/28/2012 - MGrange wrote: 95 Points
Wine dinner at L'Etranger:
Wine of the evening with the Chave Hermitage 2004. We had it with the cheeses. Opened the bottle 1 hour before and should have been more like 2 or 3 hours as the wine got more body while in the glass. Old bordeaux nose.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/29/2012 - Le Musigny wrote:
Very nice bottle of older Bordeaux with hints of leather and earthiness coming through with good fruit and silky tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/26/2012 - Remony wrote: 92 Points
Perfect fill, capsule, cork. Decanted 3 hours. Took it to dinner with Nick Marriner at Bruce Arms. My last remaining Palmer (of any vintage -- not my favourite chateau). Not as robust as I expected, lightening in colour, mature Margaux of only medium intensity. Some pixellation, and a hint of age. Only just stood up to the beef. I quaffed the last large glass, as Marriner had moved on to the Yquem! Not a wine to be sipped & savoured, but a very pleasant drink. No real length. I would be drinking up if I had any more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/15/2012 - Zweder Likes this wine: 96 Points
Perfectly beautiful, classical and elegant bouquet. Completely mature on the palate with soft tannin and a beautiful balance between sweetness and acidity. Completely ready but not a bit too old yet and it can probably stay on this level for several years, although it will not improve anymore. Had this wine a few times before (TN's not in CT (yet)), but this is without any doubt the best bottle I tasted.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/20/2011 - AtoZ wrote: flawed
Huge 9 bottle equivalent and sadly very corked.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/17/2011 - Goldstone wrote: 95 Points
Another Dinner with Greg & Sayo (Their House, Hong Kong): Beautiful bright translucent crimson red color. Nose is OFMG....everything you want in a mature Bordeaux...perfect expression of new saddle leather, pencil lead, compote red berries, damp fern and dry bracken undergrowth, fresh rain on warm asphalt.....stunning! Palate is pure caressing sensuous velvet, totally harmonious and resolved tannins, beautiful linear precision but with a softened edge compared to a first growth Pauillac. It is incredibly fresh and vibrant....literally bursting with perfect small redcurrant fruit. Medium bodied and not silence-creatingly long but just so elegant and charming. Very complete...although it reached a level within 30 minutes that it never progressed from, possibly because we had double-decanted it for a bit too long (10 hours). From magnum.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/22/2011 - Rupert wrote: 95 Points
A Palmer Vertical 1966-1999 (Medlar, Chelsea, London): Has the red fruits and spice of the first flight, but purer, a touch riper, more poise, this is fantastically grand
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/22/2011 - SimonG wrote:
Ch Palmer @ Medlar (The Medlar, London): Wonderful nose. Alongside the 89 this has an extra layer of ripeness and density compared to the previous flights. Very meaty, rich and slightly blood tinged. Complex, long and moreish. Complete, the right balance of sweet fruit and savouryness. ***** Does start to dry after a couple of hours.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/10/2011 - steinersing wrote: 96 Points
Amuse Bouche HK with L and N: Think my fourth or fifth bottle and again so clearly in its Zen - seductive, sweetish nose - almost mature Burg - opulent in the mouth and amazing length. What a wine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/23/2011 - psmith wrote:
Palmer Vertical (Boka): Great forefront tobacco notes framing black cherry fruits. Early in maturity. Great balance and mouthfeel, and tamed a bit by age. Feminine. Wonderful texture. Really good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/23/2011 - Burgundy Al wrote: 96 Points
Chateau Palmer Dinner (Boka - Chicago IL): This wine evolved tremendously in the glass, so I'm not sure it was decanted and given as much air as many of the other bottles tonight. Started with good black cherry and black currant and very good spice on the nose. Leather, cigar box and anise all came through nicely. Over 30 minutes, the spice evolves into something truly remarkable and almost exotic. Fruit was not ripe but incredibly pure, clean and precise. Great acid, textures with charming earthy flavors taking over near the finish. At a great place now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/15/2011 - lepetitchateau wrote: 89 Points
Smooth and perfectly acceptable, but this is totally unexciting, and quite dull.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/15/2011 - lepetitchateau wrote: flawed
Corked
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/10/2011 - Pre-emptive wrote: 95 Points
This condition of this bottle is not as good as the last one. Medium body and lighter on the palate than the previous bottles. Still very elegant and complex but the tannin has mostly resolved.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/31/2011 - Zazzaman wrote: 96 Points
Decanted one hour: deep colour with hint of age on rim. Plums, blackcurrants, cedar wood and spices and pepper. Very long on the palate, fruit still ripe, leather, chocolate, herbaceous notes, exquisite.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/7/2011 - spaniel wrote: 98 Points
One of the best bottles of wine I have ever tasted. Sublimely complex nose that stretches out to infinity. Rich volputuous palate. Can still taste its memory the next day.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/8/2011 - Eric wrote:
Dinner at Canlis with Wilfred (Seattle, WA, USA): Booyah! I am a a Bordeaux guy after all. It seems like we were getting twitchier with each bottle, and there was a slightly edgy note on this that hinted at TCA but then quickly became a slightly minty edge. This is just such a bottle of Bordeaux. Perhaps one could call it clumsy after all of the more precise Burg, but it has such glorious secondaries starting to emerge, meaty, smoky, sultry, tobacco, red fruit moving to soy and shiitake. I could have pondered this one for hours. So deeply satisfying.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (2)
6/3/2011 - Wangenhome wrote:
Wine was good- not absolutely perfect, but very good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/1/2011 - Pre-emptive wrote: 97 Points
My favorite palmer. The wine has been drinking very well for years and still has no sign of decline. Rich, soft and complex with the right amount of soft tannins. It has everthing I want for a matured claret. The 83 Margaux was drier, less complex and more tannic by comparison.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/24/2011 - Rob MacKay wrote: 99 Points
Pop and pour and from the moment the bottle was uncorked the scents of this wine filled the room. Initially a tiny bit of a bretty note that quickly dissipated and revealed floral elements mixed with truffle, earth and worn leather. Amazing nose that you just want to inhale all day long. Very little bricking in the color and surprisingly little sediment throughout the bottle. On the palate this was still fresh and pure good acidty, rich cassis fruit and nicely resolved tannins giving it an incredible mouthfeel. I feel like this wine is in a near perfect place right now. One of the best Bordeaux, if not best overall bottle of wine, I've ever had.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/15/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
Violets, cassis, truffle, earth, spice and Cuban cigar aromas fill your glass. Pure silk and velvet in the mouth, this sensuous, seductive wine is what great Bordeaux is all about. The wine fills your mouth and coats your palate with layers of deep, suave, elegant, pure sensations of plums, cassis and blackberry. This is drinking great today and time will continue being good to this special Margaux as well. It should continue getting better for decades.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/27/2011 - IAMVLAD wrote: 91 Points
i would argue that the wine is past peak. however, that didn't detract from its being quite enjoyable.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/25/2011 - sdr Likes this wine: 95 Points
Flat out great Palmer just about at its glorious peak. Deep, deep ruby, much darker than the '83 Margaux we had with it. Very plummy in the best sense, packed with beautifully ripe fruit. Lingering finish. Totally integrated oak, acid and tannin. A "wow" wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/11/2011 - rwstorer wrote: 96 Points
Clear red color with a slight truffle nose. Flavors of harmonious red fruits. I just keep thinking "amazingly great" and can't get past that description. We popped this and let it sit for about 2 hours before pouring. Wish we had more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/14/2010 - cgrimes wrote: 95 Points
I finally had a chance to taste the famous '83. The color was still a dark ruby with little evidence of bricking. Nose of cassis, blackberry, pencil lead, minerals and tobacco. Small amount of leather. Similar on the palate. Excellent balance. Still plenty of tannins. Can any wine live up to its hype and legendary status? Probably not, but this was an excellent, excellent wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/27/2010 - danielk168 wrote: 95 Points
Open 3 bottles this night, the other 2 were 70 Lynch Bages and 90 Pichon Longueville Comtesse. All voted for the Palmer. It was vibrant and full of life, nose was very delicate with layers and layers of fragrance which charmed me most. palate was soft but with character, tannins are there but you could barely taste them, overall an excellent bottle and if the price is more affordable, would love a few more bottles!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/26/2010 - PatrikO wrote: 95 Points
Another good bottle, strong notes of dried blood, chocolate and dark fruit. Felt that it needed minimum decanting time, ready to pop and pour.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2010 - sdr wrote:
I can't put a score for this bottle. It looked fine, and I'm sure it was well stored, but it was very sullen, both aromatically and on the palate. I don't think it was corked, but I couldn't get much out of it. When it's on form, it can easily do battle with the '83 Chateau Margaux, but unfortunately not on this night.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/24/2010 - bonniewai@waiconnor.com wrote: 99 Points
This wine was served next to the 1983 Chateau Margaux. I was dying of curiosity as to which of the two wines would show better, and on this night, this 1983 Palmer was a fantastic bottle. It had very attractive bouquet of raspberry, smoke, leather, and the wine was perfectly harmonious, elegant, and had such freshness and vitality that was amazing. In my opinion this bottle flirted with perfection and had an ethereal quality about it. This bottle somehow was sexier than the 1983 Chateau Margaux.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/27/2010 - BradE wrote:
Terrific, and drinking beautifully as usual. One of the stars of 83 bdx.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/18/2010 - Le Musigny wrote: 94 Points
MB bottle. Decanted and poured right from the cellar. Cristal clear color. Started off a little tight because of the tempature. With time the nose opened and well as the flavors. Dark fruits, leather and tar, with well intergrated tannins, silky smooth.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/13/2010 - PatrikO wrote: 96 Points
Dinner Vivan and Tara. Pristine bottle with a high fill, spent a couple of hours in the decanter. It tastes and feels very young, fantastic aromas of liqourice and dark fruit also found some nice chocolate notes coming through. Delicious sliky mouth feel and an after taste that lingers on for a while. Stunning!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/3/2010 - ricknat1 wrote: 94 Points
Smokey, multi-layered with dark berries, leather and perfectly blended tannins make for an elegant, delicious wine. This is the little brother of the 83 Margaux. Extremely good wine. I would guess it is fully evolved but shows no sign on wear or tear.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/13/2010 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
This still looks young! Cassis, dark berries, flowers, coffee and five spice aromas put the spring in the aromatics step. Full bodied and packed with layers of silky, elegant, ripe fruit. The tannins are ripe and round. The long finish fills your mouth with purity, intensity of flavor, velvet laced textures, freshness and balance. This stunning Bordeaux wine ends with a long, ripe, plush, fresh blackberry filled finish. This special wine keeps getting better every time I taste it. Still young, this will age and improve for decades.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (2)
5/26/2010 - LWI wrote: 92 Points
Similar to 1989 – rather evolved. Underbrush and cedar; Rather subdued, the middle phase was best, dies out slowly. Tight and good, wonderful acidity, spice and leather/mocha, but a tad too light.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/15/2010 - reichken wrote: 93 Points
Ledbury-great looking bottle, top fill.decanted for 4hrs+, clear clean color, still quite lively. youthful vibrant, nie mix of tobacco and red fruit, a bit of leather firmness. in general a real pleasure to drink . when these bottles are good they are really good!!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/12/2010 - zoulodi Likes this wine: 91 Points
An outstanding Palmer, firm and solid, with great dark color and fresh plum aromas and flavors with a hint of new wood.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/12/2010 - Hank Gillespie wrote:
Pre-Auction Tasting - Chateau Palmer 1970-1983; 5/7/2010-5/12/2010 (Edmonton, AB): Wine still up in the neck. Clearly the class of these wines ! Deep ruby colour with some purple still showing – extremely dark and dense looking; blackberry and black currant fruit ushers forth in abundance in the aromas; firm structure, with excellent acidity and the tannins, while in evidence, ride beneath the fruit; full bodied and rich on the palate – hugely concentrated - with the dark fruits filling the mouth; the fruit extends out to an enormously long finish. Much more promise to come in this wine, which might last another decade or two. Wow ! This is classic !
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/9/2010 - BigRed1000 wrote: 92 Points
It's a good bottles of wine but didn't live up to the hype. Some around the table though it showed a little brett but I didn't pick it up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/25/2010 - soyhead wrote: 91 Points
Mixed Bordeaux at PRIMA: nose - sweet cherry, cranberry, damp earth, and flowers. A very fragrant nose.
Mouth - still potent. shows a good combo of red fruit, tobacco, and coffee. Still with considerable structure.
Some interesting herbal essence on the finish. An elegant wine. Drink up - i cant see this getting much better.
Not necessarily for fans of big bold fruit bomb-y wines, however... (you know who you are)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/8/2010 - PatrikO wrote: 96 Points
Ledbury dinner, fuller and richer than the 89, sweeter fruit and silky tannins that laces the tongue, probably on decent from its peak, so time to drink..
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/15/2010 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Chateau Palmer Vertical with Thomas Duroux (La Plume, Jefferson Hotel, Washington DC): This seems a lot more mature than the 89. Very complex nose.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/14/2010 - Faryan wrote: 97 Points
Palmer Vertical with Thomas Duroux (La Plume, Jefferson Hotel, Washington DC): The star of the show, a blockbuster wine with elegance and touch, hardly showing its age. The wine explodes out of the glass with layers of kirsch, berry and cassis. It has the brightest pitch of any of the wines we have had yet! Simply incredible. This wine should hold up wonderfully for another 10+ years. Wonderful.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/22/2009 - 60ouvrees wrote:
Similar to the last bottle I drank. Showed nothing upon opening so I roughed it up a bit before pouring it back into the bottle and taking it to dinner. Once there, we decanted it once again and it finally started to give something but it was more "come and find me" than "here I am." Very enjoyable but nothing at all like the explosive and wonderful bottle I tasted 4 years ago.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/19/2009 - JJL wrote: 96 Points
I have had this bottle a few times before a few years ago, and enjoyed it each time. This bottle was better than the previous ones. Good whiff of barnyard on the nose along with ivory soap, oak, tomato vine and charcoal. The palate was big and got bigger as the night wore on. Sour cherry, green peppercorns, tomatoes, oak and a long plum finish. Had great acidity, like the '83 Margaux it was paired with.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/15/2009 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Aromatics filled with deep black cherry and black raspberry fruits, orange rind, flowers, spice and cassis introduced you to the wine. The wine flows like pure velvet. This is deep and concentrated, as well as elegant , round and refined. Few wines express elegance married to power as well as the 83 Palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/14/2009 - Zweder wrote:
Light brown color. Oak, iodine and celery in the bouquet. There is some juiciness, but mainly thanks to the high acidity. Medium long somewhat drying finish. This wine should have been drunk at least 10 years ago. After the bottle was unmasked I was really disappointed. I hope we just had a bad bottle. Because it had something special I still scored it 83, but I will not put it in CT, because it must have been much better in the past. (and now if the bottle was flawless)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/14/2009 - WildeMeeuw wrote: 75 Points
Paris Tasting in Zwolle (De Librije - Zwolle): 1983 Château Palmer (Frankrijk, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux) Kleur: Diep donkerrood, neigt naar oranjebruin. Aroma / bouquet: Duidelijk subtielere neus, wat mij beteft toch wat minder complexiteit. Donker jammig fruit, hout, jodiumtonen / medicijnkastjes. Smaak / Afdronk: In de mond is het eerste wat opvalt een oxidatietoon, biedt echter wel voldoende kracht en structuur, maar met een wat zurige en metalige laatste indruk. Algemeen / potentieel: Wijn is niet in balans. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 8 + Smaak / Afdronk: 8 + Algemeen / potentieel: 4 = 75/100
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/11/2009 - BradA wrote: 94 Points
We attended a commanderie de bordeaux meeting in Seattle and this was poured with the main course. Really showed well with damp earth, lots of rich loamy flavor and a 30 second finish. All the components of a great wine were there. While I did not take formal notes, this was by far the best wine on offer. Perse's second wine from 2005 was also tasted and seemed either too young or too california for my palate at present.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/1/2009 - winenuts wrote: 91 Points
Clarity 5/5, colour 5/5, Aroma Intensity 8/10, aroma Nose 17/20, aroma complexity 13/15, Taste balance 15/15, taste complexity 18/20, finish 10/10. The wine was opened by the sommelier 2 hours before I arrived the restaurant, may be the nose will be much better when it was opened for 1/2 hour. I need to stay with this wine all the time once it has been opened and the get the nose from the beginning next time. It will be more fair to judge it's nose.
A very good and elegant wine. decant for 3 hour up to the peak and last for another 1/2 hour, then down slope. It is very funny, with wine in the glass, the nose is light, but after finish the wine, the glass's nose come very good and nice. last for half hour still having the nose in the glass.
light vanilla and cedar, blackberry, cherry, plum. Complex and attractive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/21/2009 - rosenst1 wrote: 94 Points
This bottle was a gift from a birthday 7 years ago; unknown provenance before that. The cork was absolutely
perfect and the wine decanted for an hour prior to dinner. Upon pouring a taste - I just started laughing as
the nose was just spectacularly wonderful - very bright fruit - just joyous. On the palate probably a little
past its peak with perhaps a small amount of VA and medium bodied, but nice texture. The nose on this
is 100 points, the palate and taste closer to 90. Very different from the 83 Margaux which has much more depth and richness. This was slightly overshadowed as the evening progressed by an 82 Conseillante which
I had cellared since 84.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/30/2009 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Truffle's, smoke, olives, pipe tobacco, earth and flowers are what the taster first notices. Very long and intense. This full bodied, concentrated, elegant, polished wine finishes with soft, chocolate covered, blackberries.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/19/2009 - Siggy wrote: 96 Points
Tasting Group Dinner - Bordeaux (Dave's House): Second time I've tasted this. From the same source as the bottle tasted in January 2009. Another terrific bottle. Intense, complex layers of flavor, including perfumed cherries, earth, leather and tobacco. Gloriously ripe and balanced. Silky, supple, and long. Intellectual as well as sensual. Elegance personified. My WOTN.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/18/2009 - bon vivant wrote:
This time (after several more dead bottles) we found a keeper. Took a good 2 hr to give us some dark yet broad flavors with lots of dark fruit and solid grip some nice mint notes as well as a nice elegant finish. Liked this a bunch the last glass was the finest can easily age another 3-5 if not more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/17/2009 - kcho wrote:
lam didnt enjoy it, but i thought it got better after half an hour..; drinking well
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/14/2009 - bon vivant wrote:
Faded and prematurely advanced bottle -there are some sweet mature notes which give an indication of the wine's potential but overall a disappointment. Some suspected TCA. A crushing disappointment from the pre festivities top candidate. Oh well....
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/30/2009 - cos82 wrote: 91 Points
The last of 3 from my cellar purchased on release at $ 30.00 per. Part of a flight of 3 that included an 83 Lafite (89) and an 83 Haut Brion (94). Decanted an hour prior. Crumbly cork and no sediment. Not showing any maturity. Still black cherry in color. A decent nose, but not the floral elements and perfume you expect from a Margaux. Mostly cassis and earth with some cedar. A subdued palate at first of lead pencil and earth, but after a half hour in the glass, nice sweet fruit emerged of cherry and cassis. Nice finish. My limited experience with this wine suggests that while excellent, it is both overhyped and overrated.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/25/2009 - Old Claret wrote: 94 Points
(94-95) Drank with Eddie and Miki at Alto Restaurant in NYC. Rich, full, clearly has plenty of life left.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/27/2009 - winefool wrote: 94 Points
LdC Palmer vs. Margaux Dinner (Primehouse): Medium red crimson color. Nice nose of red fruit spice and lovely floral violets. big black dustry pencil black fruit on the long chewy finish. Best of the 82/83 pairings.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/12/2009 - noppakit s. wrote: 94 Points
Old oak, cassis, fruits, sweet, good texture, good finish....I prefer Vega Sicilia 1970 testing togethet....
Just a nice bottle of Palmer, for this price...I won't buy it...1967 was pretty good for me.
Palmer's top vintages were not meant to me.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/8/2009 - sdr wrote: 87 Points
Unfortunately, this bottle may have been slightly corked because it was rather dull by comparison with other '83 Palmers I have had in the past. Just a hint of non-descript black fruit on the nose. Better on the palate and very drinkeable but the usual mass of ultra-ripe showy fruit is just not there and the finish was limp.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/25/2009 - BradKNYC wrote:
Pratt's Bordeaux table and then some: Aromatically, it’s rather nice. There’s perfumed cherry, dank earth with a touch of eucalyptus and brown spices. However, on the palate it’s a bit withdrawn and not really showing as it usually does. Up front there’s some nice warmth by way of earthy and spicy notes, but there’s no fruit in the middle or end. Normally this wine has plenty of fruit. The finish shows some toughness and too much eucalyptus for my taste. B+/B.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/23/2009 - Siggy wrote: 95 Points
Tasting Group Dinner - '75, '83 and '85 Bordeaux (Brad's House, Minneapolis): Tasted alongside the '83 Margaux (see TN), the Palmer was smooth, expressive, and deep. Concentrated red cherries surrounded by truffles, spices, and tobacco. Does not quite have the silk or perfume of the Margaux, but a beautiful bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/10/2008 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
If I could use only one descriptor, "stunning" expresses how great this wine is. The perfume shoots from the glass like a bullet from a gun. Flowers, cassis, earth, truffles fresh black fruit with spices are only the introduction to this wines ample charms. In the mouth, pure silk, satin, velvet and enough verve to give it lift. The long, fruit filled seamless finish is pure pleasure for the senses. Still young at close at over 25 years of age, this sublime wine will improve and offer amazing pleasure for decades. Keep in mind, this bottle was popped and poured from the cellar. With some air, this
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/23/2008 - 60ouvrees wrote:
Seemed a bit more restrained than the bottle I drank 3 years ago, but still a delicious wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/23/2008 - 60ouvrees wrote: flawed
Corked
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/29/2008 - Rupert wrote: 95 Points
Horizontal tasting of 1983 bordeaux (Institute of Directors, London): Like the Gruaud, this had a huge rich, truffley farmyard fragrance, on the palate really substantial, deep fruit, earth, cedar - rich and very exciting
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/16/2008 - sdr wrote: 90 Points
The color is starting to lighten so it must be mature. Perhaps I over-decanted it (3 hours) but there was density and delicious blackberry flavor, but I was hoping for more energy and length. I gave the edge to the '83 Margaux this night but I was in the minority.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/7/2008 - MRichman wrote:
Bordeaux 1983 horizontal (Morton's NYC): Awesome. Complex, deep with full fruit and packed into a tight, strong body. Some nice dark notes, very well integrated. All working together smoothly. Has a long life ahead. I'd been under-whelmed by this wine in the past, but this was an entirely new experience for me. Wonderful.
A/A+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/1/2008 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
This cassis, earth and floral scented wine is a wonderful example of Margaux and mature Bordeaux. Very elegant in the mouth. This is at a great place, and it's only going to improve from here. It's odd that a wine this good with 25 years of age sells for about the same price as the 05! Markets move in mysterious ways
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2008 - Claudio161 wrote: 92 Points
Kdawgs birthday and tasting event (Cotes du Rhone Restaurant, Chicago, IL): Sight: Still looks like a young wine. Clear and medium to medium dark red. Some purple tinges. High viscosity wine. Wow - this is a 1983 being drunk in 2008 and it has no bricking! Wow!
Nose: Sweet fruit. Minor heat. Red currants well integrated with woodsynotes. Some herbal aspects as well. Riding along was some saddle notes as well (but not much). Floral roses were wonderful and some stewed fruits stood off to the side in the background.
Taste: Soft, smoothm and integrated. Minor heat. Slightly soft on the mid-palate. However it's well integrated and a very sensual wine experience.
Overall: A fine+ wine. 92 Points.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2008 - jordanj wrote: 92 Points
Kdawg's Birthday 80's Bordeaux dinner (Cotes Du Rhone, Chicago, IL): Lighter in color than recent bottles. The palmer exhibited an intoxicating nose of grilled steak, lilac perfume, a slight mocha, and a very attractive underbrush character. In the mouth the wine was much less powerful than previous bottles. It was somewhat disjointed in the mouth with a short finish. When this wine is on it is one of the best of the vintage, sadly this bottle was not and I am finding more and more lack-luster bottles of the 83 palmer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2008 - KeithAkers wrote: 94 Points
80s Bordeaux Birthday dinner (Cotes Du Rhone Bistro(Chicago, IL)): nose: wonderfully pretty and effusive nose that shows the class of palmer with loads of floral tones, red currants, herbal spices, grilled steak meats, and later on barnyard tones(I said that it smelled like a giraffe's ass, it's my birthday celebration, don't ask) started to take hold along with more hi floral tones
taste: wonderful soft cherry and cranberry tones that move into a beautiful floral treatment of lilacs, lavender, and geraniums accompanied with exotice spices on the mid palate and a bit of soy sauce on the back end of the palate
overall: this wine was showing great by the end of the night. This was the first of teh offical wines, but in retrospect, showed even greater at the end. A beautiful and sexy bottle with silky length and feel that just exudes that palmer class. This wine is just genuine class
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/9/2008 - sdr wrote:
Surprisingly, this did not make much of an impression on the guests at the Cataldo Bordeaux blowout night (including me).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/26/2008 - loverboy wrote: 94 Points
The cork was torn but we've managed to get them out. The color still in deep ruby. Super nose of cassis, blueberries. very smooth in the mouth, at it's peak and will still go for years
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/29/2008 - queneau wrote: 91 Points
Aroma of horse saddle; iodine; barn; green pepper rolled in horse barn dirt; classic Bordeaux nose. Serious wine, tasting of barn dust, tart red fruits, some blackcurrant flavours.
Vegetative nose lingers, as if the horse turned his nose away...I enjoy this wine for it's complexity, roundness and mouth feel.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2008 - Dubliner wrote: 93 Points
Lovely wine but completely overshadowed by the sublime 1961.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2008 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 88 Points
Château Palmer Vertical (Morton's): I’ve had this wine several times now and never understood the fuss over it. This bottle was about as resolved as the ’78 and ’75 were—richer, to be sure, but just as straightforward.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2008 - MRichman wrote:
Palmer vertical at Morton's, NYC: Smooth, suave, sweet, classy. Full fruit, brawny, menthol. Lots going on. Just coming of age. A beautiful wine with good strength and fabulous subtlety.
A
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/2/2008 - BradE wrote:
Five of six crowned it WOTN. Great bottle, and a wine which is really beginning to radiate a "mature bdx" profile, and is clearly now in middle age (a great place to be).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/27/2008 - Burgundy Al wrote: 94 Points
Margaux vs. Palmer Dinner, served in single blind flights (Primehouse - Chicago IL): Single blind flight 82/83 Margaux/Palmer. Great color, looks so young. Blackberry, spice, tobacco aromatics with hits of leather. Black sexy fruit with great texture. Flavors kept evolving in the glass through the flight. Great balance. Lots of great life ahead of it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/12/2008 - dream wrote: 96 Points
A perfectly conditioned bottle at Veritas, NYC. Absolutely stunning Bordeaux that's in middle-age with a gorgeous Margaux-perfumed nose. Silky elegant but with rich fruit and a strong backbone, this wine is drinking beautifully but still has not wandered off into its secondary level of flavor development. The flavors are spectacular; deep dark red fruits with silky slate, rich dark earth and a hint of violets. This is drinking like a first growth! 96+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/11/2007 - CamWheeler wrote: 95 Points
Beautifully complex nose of tobacco, red berries, chocolate, briar, gunflint and truffles. Some at the table suspected some brett influence, but I didn't see it. The palate is structurally excellent with long, complex and superbly balanced flavour. It lived up to both reputation and expectations for me, this was my wine of the night among some excellent company.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/16/2007 - thomaskeil wrote: 94 Points
"Bring your Best" Reno tasting (Mark and Megan's): Decanted 90+ minutes. Deep red/violet with some browning. Evocative, almost pretty, somewhat perfumey, nose of earthy flowers, light spice and dark fruits. Super-refined palate of very soft (but present) tannins, flowing fruit and dancing acidity. Greatly balanced round finish with great length.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/15/2007 - RiedelBeagle wrote: 89 Points
Tanzer has commented on bottle-to-bottle variability in this wine, and the varying reviews here support that observation. My bottle clearly wasn't one of the good ones. It was a wimpy wine coming out of the bottle, small, gentle, and generally unimpressive. After a while a Rhone-like mossy funk started to emerge, and seemed like it might get interesting. But it never really did. In the price-per-value sense, this wine was a serious clunker.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/23/2007 - Eric wrote: 97 Points
Dinner at Eleven Madison Park (New York, NY): Initial notes of diaper are quickly overwhelmed with a soaring nose of truffles and flowers. Mmm, this is drinking gorgeously with singing acidity, rich and luscious with cherries bathed in minerals. Fantastic!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/23/2007 - Keith Levenberg wrote:
Claret Coup d'Etat (Eleven Madison Park): Better than the last time I had this but still not the knockout of popular or critical consensus. There's a pretty aroma here of tobacco and smoky ash, then a mellow, red-fruited palate with a thin cloth of tannin hanging on that adds a bit of gauzy fibrosity to the otherwise smooth fruit. In the mouth it's lightweight and buoyant, not especially effusive but probably the most compelling and seductive claret on the table, versus the '89 Palmer and the '86 and '89 Comtesse. I especially like the finishing minerality of iron and rusty rock; none of the other wines had reached that level of transparency.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/29/2007 - sdr Likes this wine: 93 Points
At Equinox. This bottle from Crown many years ago. Perfectly sound, lusty, beautiful young wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/28/2007 - JScott wrote: 88 Points
Only great bottles. Not what it should have been. Maybe this was ridden hard through the years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/26/2007 - BradE wrote:
A fabulous wine, drunk side by side with 83 Pichon Lalande. Out of the gates, it took a quick lead, but the 83 PLL won out in the end. A great bottle of a great wine, but seemed better in the first couple of hours, and seemed to fade a bit during our four hour dinner.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/17/2007 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
A flashy array of black fruit, wet earth, coffee and a variety of spices explodes from the glass. Elegant, very sophisticated and sexy style of wine. Extremely concentrated with ripe fruit and a boatload of glycerin. As good as it was, it will still improve!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/10/2007 - cct wrote: 97 Points
Now we step it up a notch. A darker younger rugy color. the nose was huge yet well controlled. Dark plums, cassis, black licorice, baking chocolate, vanilla and rose petals. This wine had great texture. Dense yet not heavy, more baking chocolate, and cassis. Still just early peak. What an upside this has! Wish I owned some. 97 pts.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/24/2007 - trankin wrote: 97 Points
"Very Special" Dinner at Picholine OL (Picholine Wine Room, NYC): WOW. Lovely nose of leather, earth and moss. Expressive and elegant. Gorgeous palate with lovely fruit. Perfect acids. Floral notes - violets, lavender. Pomegranate. A concentrated attack. Outstanding, lengthy finish. Just a beauty. And another one right in it's sweet spot. My unquestionable WOTN. Group's WOTN.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/12/2007 - Alpine wrote: flawed
Sadly this bottle was badly corked.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/13/2006 - G SQUARED wrote: 98 Points
Dinner at Mina's with Wilf and Peter Marks, MW. Now we're talkin. Stunning wine. Has everything! Words fail me. I just know I don't have enough!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/1/2006 - buckeye76 wrote: 97 Points
EXCEPTIONAL COLOR, RED BROWN ON THE EDGE. BLACKBERRIES, CURRANTS, AND BLACK CHERRIES IN THE NOSE WITH A BIT OF EARTHINESS. STILL WONDERFUL FRUIT IN THE FLAVOR. GREAT COMPLEXITY AND A LONG FINISH
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/27/2006 - KenK wrote: 96 Points
Chicago's Best Bordeaux Tasting Ever? (Ken's Home): Dense and dark with sweet ripe fruits.
Spicy round with very good complex flavors.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/11/2006 - jdtonic wrote: 94 Points
Opened after the 1990 Ch. Mgx. was dwindling during a five (eight) course at Fleur de Lys. This wine tasted so similar to the '90 Margaux that the table thought I was switching glasses. Had less body than its sister, though. I had expected more red fruit/ strawberries from reputation? Very, Very Good. Typifies margaux.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/1/2006 - BradE wrote:
Always a great wine, this bottle was no exception. The nose was wonderful, and in the mouth it is balanced and classy. Mmmm.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/10/2006 - Dubliner wrote: 95 Points
Absolutely beautiful, vibrant nose of perfumed fruit. I sat drinking in the bouquet for what seemed like hours before venturing to taste. Classic margaux taste of lavendar and fruit, in a fabulously elegant package.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/10/2006 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 88 Points
The Petrus Excuse (Eleven Madison Park): Served with Summerfield Farm Ribeye, Herb Roasted with Bone-Marrow Crust and English Peas à la Française. Glossy wine with the tannin fully resolved to a buttery but vibrant mouthfeel of old claret and orchard fruit, and a finish of tobacco. I expected more from this aromatically, and the remains in the decanter started to oxidize by the end of the meal.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/1/2006 - Zweder wrote: 95 Points
Southern Nights #1 (@ PVa): Impressive; hardly any ageing in the color and the bouquet. Beautiful and feminine wine with good juice, sweet spices, good acidity, tannin and bitterness. Great length, Beautiful wine with still a great future.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/20/2006 - Eric wrote:
An unreal tasting of Château Palmer and Château Margaux with Thomas Duroux of Palmer (Los Angeles, CA): This was my wine of the flight. A sexy, kinky and spicy nose. Wowza, there is a little bretty funk here as well, but it is quickly overtaken by some sharper notes of flint/gunpowder. Wow, the balance on this wine is impeccable, and the 1983 Margaux looks dry and tannic in comparison. This is drinking very young and very beautifully.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/3/2006 - aerlith wrote: 92 Points
Lovely ruby color with just some small lightening at the edge. Nose reserved at first, red fruits and cedar with a sweet lift of raspberry. Round and concentrated, tannins are still present but not at all overbearing. Horizontal rather than vertical, sweet with good length and body. Still with life left, and a very nice wine, just lacking a bit more body and aromatic complexity/ bloom to push it into the next tier. This bottle purchased about three years ago, so provenance unknown.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/7/2006 - jordanj wrote: 98 Points
This wine gets my vote for wine of the vintage. Had this along side the 83 margaux and this was heads and shoulders above it. Thick dense and fuller bodied then the margaux. The wine has a wonderful all spice in the nose and midpalate that is just pure silk and layer upon layer. Great complexity and balance. This wine is a wine to judge all others by. I think it is now at its peak where it should stay of years to come.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/1/2006 - winefool wrote: 94 Points
Deep black/purple with hints of lightening. Huge forward cinnamon, smokey, allspice black fruit aroma. Big rich spicy black fruit. Very nice and interesting. To me the Margaux was round and lilting, while this Palmer is all spice and complexity. Take your pick! Mid 90s. 2/06
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/31/2006 - Burgundy Al wrote: 94 Points
Good Bordeaux, Burgundy and Rhone Dinner (Custom House - Chicago IL): Black cherry, cigar box with licorice and dried herbs on nose. Same black fruit on palate with incredibly elegant and silky structure, great length and finesse.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/28/2006 - wfm wrote: 96 Points
Still youthful. Starts to open up within a half hour of pulling the cork. Just a Fabulous wine!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/15/2006 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
The wine's aromatics explode from the glass. Black fruits, cassis, spices, cedar wood, floral and earth were in full force. Over the last few years, this has put on weight and rounded out. The multiple layers of perfectly silky fruit that cascade over your palate in wave after wave of plush textures is what great Bordeaux is all about.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/14/2006 - sdr wrote: 93 Points
This is clearly a great success for Palmer and is arguably their greatest vintage after 1970 and before 2000. Not far off the fabulous '82 Margaux with which it was drunk at Marks Las Olas with Greg and Hugh. A big wine by Palmer standards. So far it has intensity to burn but hasn't yet developed the aromatic beauty and complexity it may well do in anoher 5 - 10 years. Long potent finish portends the great wine this surely will become.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/28/2005 - KRB wrote: 95 Points
Perhaps one of the great restaurant wine list finds of all time, this was purchased and consumed tonight for $138.
This was bought on release and stored in a very cold Massachuseets cellar and it showed. The wine is an adolescent really. That said, out of the bottle and into the decanter it showed a remarkably bright, clear, ruby color with absolutely no bricking on the rim. Into the glass immediately after decanting it immediately showed it's youth. Almost nothing in the first 15 minutes. From there, it was like a small 4th of July fireworks show. With time, air, and much vigorous swirling, single rockets started to burst. An hour in small combinations of explosions came in waves and finally after 3 hours the grand finale in all it's glory. This was an incredibly youthful and vibrant wine with a rich smooth unctuous mouthfeel, layers and layers of fruit and a very long finish- I absolutely could not believe it was an 83. Secondary characteristics were only just begininng to develop. It showed hints of cigar box and leather and perhaps a tough of earthiness, but always the fruit remained at the front. This wine made the 82 Leoville Barton tasted last week look like an old geezer and that is saying something as the Barton clearly still needs 10 years. Really everything I could want in a wine except that it probably still needs 15-20 years to really, really sing- I venture to say it may approach perfection then. I plan to find out as the owner/Maitre D' really hit it off so to speak and I think he will sell me a couple bottles for the cellar. As a side note it went extremely well with a perfectly prepared Beef Wellington. I was in Hog Heaven. What a great way to wind down 2005.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2005 - Rupert wrote: 96 Points
Still very dark, medium bodied, big bretty nose, on the palate coal and blackberries, really vibrant, huge long finish - perfect claret that lived up to its reputation
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/17/2005 - sdr wrote: 90 Points
Rich, full and satisfying to be sure, but lacks the flair and excitement of the best examples of this usually terrific wine, yet still just about outstanding. Not much to smell, the pleasure is mostly in the texture and mouthfilling quality. It's just a little too young; I'm still confident this will be the successor to the great '61/'66/'70 trio in time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/18/2005 - gasman wrote: 94 Points
Dark ruby color to the rim without bricking. Dark fruits with a hint of violet and licorice. Adequate acid for the mid palate and could certainly go for another 5 to yen years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/9/2005 - Hank Gillespie wrote:
Château Palmer: A purple/ruby colour - very dark, probably the darkest colour of any of these wines; full blown aromas featuring dark berry fruit, some spice, sweet oak and an edge of chocolate; big and full on the palate, with enormous blackberry and black currant fruit; well knit structure, with fine acidity and still some considerable tannins in evidence; long, long finish where the fruit shows up front and the tannins follow through to the end. No idea when this wine will reach maturity, but there is still a massive concentration of fruit, and the tannins are not aggressive. Might be worth trying again in 4 or 5 years - still a baby after 20+ years, with plenty of promise here for the long pull.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/14/2005 - sdr wrote: 94 Points
This was Greg's contribution to the Bordeaux dinner we had at Trina and to me the star of the show. (He had recently purchased it from Wine Watch.) While some might prefer the more autumnal style of the '70, I enjoyed this youthful, powerful, stylish Palmer in its early plateau of maturity. The depth of color accurately predicts the concentration of really ripe plummy, but not jammy, merlot fruit. Excellent structure and fine-grained tannins with just enough supporting acidity make for a wonderfully balanced wine than is big in Palmer terms. At its current price ($250), hardly a bargain, but actually worth it for an outstanding Bordeaux to drink now and over the next dozen or more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/12/2005 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
Ruby with some bricking. Notes of cedar, black cherry, cassis, earth, spice, cinnamon and cloves. Full bodied with some tannin to resolve. On the palate a rich display of plums and black fruit. The texture is pure silk. The 83 Palmer is one of the most elegant wines I've tasted in ages.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/4/2005 - PaulH wrote: 94 Points
Bon Voyage Jeff Cassetta (Some Palmers & Etc.) (Fringale Restaurant, San Francisco): Color is still a deep and dark red looking very youthful. Nose is flowerly with sweet lavender, violets, saddle leather, cedar and plums. Tannins are fully resolved, with the palate showing nice richness and a bit of oak. The finish shows a lingering taste of anise with slightly dry tannins. A really lovely and enjoyable bottle of wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/18/2005 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 95 Points
Tasting four 1983 Bordeaux, first place. Lovely rich dark fruit and cedar and tobacco on the nose, more of the same on the palate, great rich fruity taste in the mouth, concentrated, structured, very long finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/15/2005 - Eric wrote: 95 Points
Bordeaux Legends with Leve at Sona (Los Angeles, CA): This was clearly the strongest of the 83's on this night, the darkest in color and with the deepest texture and persistence. Initially it was also the most tannic, but it unfurled to reveal a pure, powerful wine, an absolute hammer actually. Cranberry, truffles, minerals all come out to play on this outstanding wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/15/2004 - JasonD wrote: 94 Points
STG - woopin it up at Roys (Roys Crib): Lots of cedar/cigarbox, annis, licorace, spices and leather. The palate was thick with dark fruits. The finish was long and still somewhat tannic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/11/2004 - Jason wrote: 95 Points
Year end SG Dinner #2 (House of Hersh): The nose was intense with beef blood and iron. The palate was thick and lush with tastes of beef blood, sweet fruit, and spice. This really needs more age though it showed signs of opening. Well balanced. I would have liked to have spent an evening with this.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/11/2004 - Eric wrote: 93 Points
Seattle Tasting Group 'End of Year Dinner' #2 (Sammamish, WA, USA): This first wine just screamed of minerals on the nose and palate. Earthy with some truffle notes of its own, the aforementioned minerality, and some iodine, a great nose. The palate was bright with good acidity. The finish was perhaps my favorite part with a hint of barnyard and turns to a leather for about 30 seconds.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/1/2004 - sdr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Premier Cru bottle. Exceptionally dark, no amber. Dense, youthful nose of black cherry and graphite. Hint of cranberry. Still a fair amount of tannin. Needs 3-5 years. Clearly outstanding potential.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/1/2004 - sdr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Crown Liquor bottle. Outstanding Merlot dominated Bordeaux. Full color, amber edge. Completely mature. Velvety texture of the best Palmers. Nice aroma of mixed berries. Medium weight. Became more and more spicy in the glass, to the point of overpowering. Wonderful integration of tannin, oak, acid.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/24/2004 - bdenuyl wrote: 94 Points
Drank 7/04 elegant, smooth with an acid edge, but overall very nice. I wouldn’t buy more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/22/2004 - Will wrote: 88 Points
Verticale of Chateau Palmer (Toulouse, France): Another outstanding wine that really suffers from being drunk after the '82 (but which wine wouldn't?).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/12/2004 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Sweet black fruit, tobacco & cedar notes filled the air. Full bodied, elegant and graceful. Cherries and assorted red and black fruits caressed your palate. Rich, soft, silky and sexy is a great description for this stunning wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/31/2003 - HamishR wrote: 93 Points
Still deep colour, lovely classic nose, matured fruit tannin on palate, lovely balance, longgg finish! Still very youthful!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/1/2003 - sdr Likes this wine: 90 Points
Andy’s bottle. Youthfully firm, just beginning to relax. Ripe yet stern fruit. Will last well.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/3/2003 - Burgundy Al wrote: 96 Points
Wine tasting. Similar to when tasted six months ago but perhaps a bit more fresh and primary. Same black cherry and black currant with lots of perfectly integrated tannins and great acidity. Great texture and mouth feel. Fruit is also elegant, not ripe or overpowering. Some cedar and leather on the nose, continues on to the finish. Long balanced finish. This will last for at least 20 more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/1/2003 - sdr Does not like this wine: 82 Points
Premier Cru bottle. Very disappointing despite excellent condition. Deep ruby, pretty color. Closed, firm and bitter. There is some fruit but it’s too hard and unyielding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/1/2002 - sdr Likes this wine: 95 Points
Easily the best of the. Palmer mini-vertical - ‘89/‘’85/‘83/‘70. Good color. Perfectly mature now. Very vigorous and lively. Dark red fruits and cedar. Nice blend of Merlot elegance and Cabernet backbone. Intense mid palate and lingering finish. Now finally an indisputably great wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/15/2002 - Burgundy Al wrote: 94 Points
Wine tasting. Great flavor of black cherries, black currants and some really good tobacco character. Great spice throughout, really long finish. Elegant, not overpowering. My first time with this wine in this vintage.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/13/2002 - kevin h wrote: 87 Points
An historic note. Only tried once but for me this has to be one of the most over-rated wines I've ever drunk. It is ranked by many commentators alongside the Chateau Margaux in this vintage as the best of the year in Bordeaux (I've had that wine too and it was great). However, for me this just demonstrated all that I don't like about the 1983 Bordeaux vintage: lean and dry wines with little charm and too much unripe tannin. I had cellared this myself since buying it in 1987 so I know that the wine was stored correctly. It wasn't that the wine was past it, just that this bottle lacked any depth of fruit on either the nose or the flavour. Drinkable but ordinary. The tannins were quite harsh at the finish. I have had great bottles of Palmer from other years (the 1962, especially, was wonderful and the 1989 very fine if still youthful) but I wouldn't include this one in that list. Perhaps I was just unlucky as many people rate this wine highly?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/29/2002 - peternelson wrote: 93 Points
Nao’s: Nice aroma, minty hi notes, subtle peppery taste.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/1/2001 - OneLastSyrah wrote:
($100) The First Big DFW Tasting, Casa Vineyard: Very nice. One of the best older Bordeaux I've tasted even. Ripe, supple, nuanced, a little delicate, but still very much alive. DFW Tasting.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/26/1999 - mdefreitas wrote: 87 Points
Pre Auction Wine Tasting w/ Angelus/Palmer/La Mission Haut Brion (NYC): A bit of a muted nose, which was dissappointing. Good fruit concentration, but a bit dumb.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/1/1999 - sdr wrote: 87 Points
Difficult to judge. Closed and acidic at first. Much better after 2 hours, though, although the structure is more prominent than the fruit. Needs time. With luck, could become outstanding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/1/1998 - sdr wrote: 88 Points
Big, tannic, closed. Hard to tell exactly where this is headed.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/1/1998 - sdr wrote: 87 Points
Premier Cru bottle. Medium color. Surprisingly forward. Modest pleasant elegant Palmer nose which faded after 20 minutes. Medium light body. Essentially no tannin. Mouth cleansing tartaric acidity. Ready.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/1/1995 - sdr wrote: 88 Points
Very dark. Faint blackberry smell. A big wine for sure but currently the fruit is buried in the tannins. Far from ready. Not much fun now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/1/1994 - sdr wrote: flawed
Richard’s bottle, Rare Wine Sonoma. No fruit. Maybe corked.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/19/1991 - MicklethePickle Does not like this wine: 76 Points
With K and Miranda at home at dinner--my belated birthday dinner, because I had the flu on the 13th (filet mignon). Rich ruby color; great depth and richness. Rich, elegant nose. Mulberries. On the palate, lots of butternut, oak. Silky smooth. But where is all the fruit I expected??Long, long finish. But not fruity. Is this wine corked? Not fit to accompany dinner. What a disappointment. 5-11-7-3: 76/100.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (4)