Chateau Palmer 1988

Chateau Palmer 1988 starts when the estate’s namesake, Colonel Charles Palmer purchased the vineyard. The property is much older. Originally, the vineyards were part of the much larger estate belonging to the owner of Chateau dIssan. Once the vineyard was separated from dIssan, it was soon known as Chateau de Gascq. The estate took its name from the current owner, the de Gascq family. In the early 1800’s, the formidable owner, Marie Brunte de Ferriere, better known as Madame de Gascq, was trying to sell the property.

When she met Charles Palmer, she told him in no uncertain terms that the wine they produce at Chateau de Gascq is as good as the wine of Chateau Lafite! It was not long after their initial meeting that he purchased the famous Margaux estate and like many Bordeaux chateaux owners of their time, he renamed it after himself, calling it Chateau Palmer.

Charles Palmer started increasing the size of his vineyard. In time, he managed to triple Chateau Palmer to 80 hectares of vines accompanied by an additional 80 hectares of trees and parkland. The vast majority of growth took place between 1816 and 1831. Much of the vines were located in some of the best terroir in the appellation located in the Cantenac, Issan and Margaux communes.

Chateau Palmer and its Alter Ego are the two wines produced by the estate. Alter Ego made its debut with the 1998 vintage. The birth of Alter Ego coincided with the purchase of 8 hectares of vines, which became the heart and soul of Alter Ego. Because Alter Ego comes from different plots than Palmer and is produced with a different blend than the Grand Vin, Chateau Palmer does not view this as a second wine. They produce and market the wine as its own, unique wine.

Chateau Palmer produces a sensuous wine of beauty. Everything that makes up a great Bordeaux wine is found in Palmer. Complex aromatics filled with spice, truffle, violets, spring flowers, earth and leather scents. Full bodied and rich, this wine personifies elegance in a Bordeaux wine.