Alter Ego de Château Palmer, Margaux, 2022
Made from a blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot from the lighter gravel and sandy soils at Palmer. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the team here decided not to do soft extractions. They wanted to build a backbone so elected to go deep with their macerations. The result is dark and sultry Alter Ego with notes of liqueur fruits, brioche, graphite, bramble and plums. There's a lot of attack and some good definition, but it perhaps lacks the spark and energy of the vintage's most successful wines.
critic reviews
The 2022 Alter Ego is quite high-toned on the nose, with lavish black plum and blueberry scents, not quite as sophisticated as the '22 Giscours, although it improves significantly in the glass, gaining delineation with each swirl. The palate is relatively understated on the entry, sapid black fruit commingling with liquorice and a dash of white pepper. It coheres nicely towards the finish. A keeper. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting in London.
Alter Ego is 51% Merlot, 43% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot, almost a mirror image of the grand vin, the blend as always determined by soil more than selection. This takes a little less than 30% of the crop. The élevage for the second wine is around 30% new oak, passing the first year in barrel, the second year in foudre. A beautiful concentration on the nose here, introducing some dried-fruit elements to the mix, with elements of confit cherry and raspberry, currant too, with a rose petal note, very Margaux in style, but with Palmer intensity amplified by the dry concentrating effect of the vintage. A very solid, composed, polished style on the palate, relaxing just a touch in the middle to reveal layers of dried summer berries and dark chocolate, with firm, dusty, powdery tannins intertwined, leaving the finish coated in fine but dry tannins. I can see this evolving in a very confident fashion, although I would have liked a little more freshness in the fruit profile. The alcohol on the label is 14%.
Damson plum colour, intense, concentrated and spicy, with the lightness of touch coming in through the floral aromatics, and a lift of white pepper and sage spices. Big punch of fig and blackberry fruit, and a tight umi plum edge that provides contrast. Deft and skilful, great quality. Harvest September 7 to October 5, yield 23hl/h. Thomas Duroux director. First year in barrels and then into larger oak casks for the rest of ageing.
A blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot, the 2022 Alter Ego de Palmer offers up aromas of cherries, wild berries and plums mingled with vine smoke and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied, deep and brooding, with a layered core of fruit, lively acids and rich, powdery tannins, it's a gourmand, voluptuous wine that will offer a broad drinking window.