2005 Château Palmer, Margaux, Bordeaux

Enticing ruby red body, with aromatics that show a touch of orange zest and turmeric spice. The fruit is creamy, intense, a brilliant Palmer that has finesse and balance but a serious kick. Black pepper, cinammon, raspberry, bilberry fruits, smoked earth and campfire on the finish, so juicy, totally salivating with a slate-textured close of play. Delicious, and a great sign that the 2005 vintage is starting to swing open. Harvest September 22 to October 7, 60% new oak. A long dry summer, with 57% less rainfall than usual, although temperatures never climbed as high as in 2003. Impossible to stop smiling after this.Drink 2021 - 2045jane_anson_mw, janeanson_com (July 2021)

53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot.Impressive nose, driven by powerful but balanced acetic aromas as well as black cherry, toasted oak, farmyard, dark chocolate and olives. Wonderful breadth and depth, perhaps not as floral as you might expect from Margaux, classically. There is plenty of tannin though, and the wine is still only just opening up. A wine for the ages.Drink 2015 - 2035richard_hemming_mw, JancisRobinson.com (August 2022)

Superb bouquet of black fruits with dry spice, tobacco and liquorice. Densely textured palate with incredible backbone: ‘2015 has all the charm we had in 2009 but more precision to make a serious wine without being severe,’ says CEO Thomas Duroux.Drink 2022 - 2045Steven Spurrier, Decanter.com

The 2005 Palmer has been absolutely magical both times I have tasted it recently. Still wonderfully deep to the core, the 2005 is dense, packed to the core and luxuriously opulent. Even with all of that intensity, the 2005 remains vibrant. Lush red/purplish berry fruit, rose petal, lavender and sweet spice build into the towering finish. The 2005 is an epic wine that will have no problem reaching its fiftieth birthday. It is a rich, dramatic Margaux that checks all the boxes, and then some. I rated a second bottle even higher.Drink 2023 - 2055antonio_galloni, Vinous.com.com (April 2021)

Tasted at the Château Palmer vertical in London, the 2005 Château Palmer is a legend in the making. Apparently the vines received 57% less rain than average, yet the 2005 shrugs off any water deficiency and has nurtured a wondrously pixelated bouquet, whereby mineralité shines through the black cherry and blueberry fruit. Search deeper and you discover veins of graphite that impart a Pauillac-like allure. The palate is medium-bodied and intense, but it is not overwhelming, a Margaux that is galvanized with a firm backbone thereby ensuring this will age over the long term. The symmetry here is enthralling - a 2005 that is destined for greatness. The only question is whether it will surpass the 2009 or 2010 Palmer? It will be fun finding out. Tasted May 2015.Drink 2022 - 2050Neil Martin, Wine Advocate (May 2016)

Its bigger sister, the 2005 Château Palmer (53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot), is one of the great efforts of this superlative vintage. Floral notes mixed with blackberry, cassis, plum, licorice and spring flowers soar from the glass of this dense ruby/purple wine. It is medium to full-bodied, surprisingly opulent (it has a big percentage of Merlot), long, multi-dimensional and textured. This wonderfully pure, stunning wine once again performs as a first-growth. It should drink well for the next 20-25 years.Drink 2015 - 2040Robert M. Parker, Jr., Wine Advocate (June 2015)