Wine Advisor
Palmer 2002
View analysis
Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at Handford’s 21st Anniversary tasting in Holland Park. The 2002 Palmer is maturing nicely, the new oak better integrated with further bottle age with ripe blackberry, sandalwood, sous-bois and graphite. Very natural and refined. The palate is tannic and taut on the entry, still with that crisp thread of acidity but I am still finding just a touch of hardness on the finish that needs more persistency. Give this another couple of years. Tasted October 2010.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A tour de force in winemaking, the 2002 Palmer (52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 8% Petit Verdot) exhibits great intensity along with tremendously complex and compelling aromatics of acacia flowers, creme de cassis liqueur, a hint of espresso, and vague notions of underbrush. Although extremely concentrated, full-bodied, and dense, with blistering levels of tannin in the finish, there is enough extract and glycerin to provide balance. Nevertheless, this will be a Palmer to forget for 7-10 years. There are 8,500 cases of this brilliant effort that is in the same qualitative league as the 2000. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2025+
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Tasted at the Grand Vin Masterclass in January 2010 Deep garnet colour. Quite a plumy / spicy nose giving aromas of cinnamon, cloves and mace plus a whiff of sweaty saddles A hint of cedar still poking through. Nicely structured with a backbone of high acidity and a medium to firm level of fine tannins. Long savoury / gamey finish.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted three of four times. At the chateau in Oct-03: The nose has really fattened out since last tasted during en primeur. Very dense, slightly truffly but beginning to close down. Developing marvelously. The palate has silky smooth tannins inter-twined with lush blackberry and cassis. More masculine than the 2000 and with better balance. This is certainly one of the best 2002's I have tasted. From 2010. Tasted June 2003.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
A deep ruby/garnet hue. The nose is a little angular with a sous-bois character, a little herbaceous. The medium-bodied palate is quite dense with blackberry, a touch of dried raisin and graphite. A little hardness on the mid-palate but this has fine definition. A conservative wine like many 2002’s, very classically lined and perhaps linear. Tasted October 2006. Drinking 2012-2020
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at Farr’s 2002 Bordeaux tasting. A very polished bouquet, some quality new oak here, some that still needs to be resolved, but underneath there is some ripe blackberry fruit interlaced with some subtle herbaceous notes in line with the vintage. The palate has noticeable acidity on the entry, quite a racy wine with blackberry, raspberry leaf and some hardness that needs to soften (perhaps a tad too much vin de presse?) Persistent finish. Assertive. Tasted October 2009.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good bright ruby-red. Sweet, penetrating aromas of raspberry, currant, flowers and sweet oak. Tight today but not hard, with burnished oak notes sweetening the dark berry and floral flavors. Finishes long and firmly tannic, with cabernet-dominated floral and minty notes.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good medium ruby. Pungent, slightly medicinal aromas of raw blackberry, bitter chocolate and camphor. Penetrating, pure and leanish; classically dry but fruity, with a distinctly herbal component to go with the crushed berries. Quite tightly wound but expanded nicely in the glass with aeration. Finishes with rather forbidding tannins for a young Palmer, as well as a flavor of chocolate. Even the merlot was rather powerfully structured in 2002, noted Bouteiller. Will this always show a stiff side? (Other early tasters apparently found more obvious ripeness and refinement to go with the wine's freshness than I did.)
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A successful wine for the vintage, this blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 8% Petit Verdot boasts complex notes of menthol, black currants, plums, licorice, and a hint of cappuccino in its stunning aromatics. Dense, medium to full-bodied, with high levels of tannin in a big, full-bodied style (much in the spirit of such classic Bordeaux vintages as 1966, 1986, and 1996), this wine possesses superb purity and serious length, but should be purchased only by those with considerable patience and a good, cold cellar, since it will need plenty of time. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2028.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2002 Palmer has a well-defined bouquet with smudged red fruit, melted tar, dark chocolate and mint. This has held up well over two decades, but it is missing some of Palmer's DNA. The palate is medium-bodied, simple yet balanced, with fine acidity and firm tannins. It lacks some vigor and comes across as rather austere and more Saint-Julien in style on the finish. Not bad, though I prefer the 2000 or 2001 by comparison. Tasted at the Palmer vertical at the château.
About the Producer
The fine seaside climate and soils of Long Island’s North Fork provide exceptional conditions for the making of world-class varietal wines. With 110 acres planted with Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc to supply the winery’s 20,000 annual case production, Palmer strives to preserve and enhance the purity of flavor and distinctive, fresh character which makes this region’s wines so unique. The state- of-the art winery contains the most modern winemaking equipment available today, and also includes substantial new French oak cooperage, purchased each year, for both barrel fermentation of our Chardonnay and the aging of our premium red varietals.
1955(1)1960(1)1970(1)1976(1)1977(1)1979(1)1981(3)1982(1)1983(1)1985(1)1987(1)1988(1)1989(2)1990(6)1992(1)1993(1)1994(4)1995(2)1996(8)1998(6)1999(5)2000(6)2001(3)
Package Size
