(WE 95–97 points) The wine is dense with warm tannins supporting black fruit tones and acidity. Juicy and spicy, the wine's Cabernet Sauvignon shows so well with black currant flavors. It is fresh and it obviously it will age well. ROGER VOSS

Perfumed chocolate cherries with bramble tones on the nose. This has a rich and round mouthfeel, clear structure on show but also with life and lift - a sweet, bright cherry element given definition by strict but fine tannins. You have a really beautiful, delicate opening, quite wide and airy then the depth arrives on the mid palate, with chalky tannins and red fruits coming into play before the spiced liquorice enters on the finish. The texture is striking, velvet-like with layers and a sublime verticality of freshness and minty aeration. It may be less glamourous and overtly plush and seductive than bigger previous vintages but I love the classicism on show - a focus, precision and sophistication. Superb winemaking from Thomas Duroux who successfully navigated the difficult vintage conditions in 2021.

Vivid ruby and violet colour, this is a brilliant wine, inky and with clear supple give to the tannins. Give it a full 8 to 10 years before drinking, and here you feel that they have sacrificed very little to the vintage, this feels entirely Palmer in character. Savoury but abundant blue and black fruits, plenty of crayon, cocoa bean and slate, with a floral prettiness and a mouthwatering finish. 27hl/h yield, harvest September 24 to October 16, 55% new oak (first year in barrel, second year in larger oak caks of 3,000l).

Clearly, one of the wines of the vintage, this is superb, and quite an accomplishment for the vintage. The wine is rich, concentrated, firm, and elegant with layers of black and red fruits, spice, dried flowers, tobacco leaf, and cocoa. The palate is loaded with sweet, ripe, energetic berries, dark chocolate, plums, espresso and a hint of mint. The refined, lifted end notes keep on going. With some age, this could score even higher. The wine blends 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Petit Verdot. Yields were a paltry 22 hectoliters per hectare, so not much wine was produced. Drink from 2027-2060.

The 2021 Palmer is a heady, showy wine. Clay-rich soils yield a Margaux of breadth, power and textural richness. Black cherry, lavender, mocha and dried herbs infuse the 2021 with tons of character. A wine of density and intensity, this is seriously impressive. It is also going to need time to fully blossom. There’s real juiciness from the Merlot, and an exotic quality that suggests it was picked on the later side. The 2021 spent one year in barrel and one year in cask, as is the norm these days here. -- Antonio Galloni

This wine is very fragrant, with blackberries, blueberries, black olives, bark and forest floor as well as some minerals and stone. Medium-bodied with racy and firm tannins that build to a fresh and steely finish. Needs three to five years to soften. You can almost taste the skins. Reminiscent of the 1995 Palmer but with more precision. 56% merlot, 41% cabernet sauvignon and 3% petit verdot. Best after 2028.

The 2021 Château Palmer is 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Petit Verdot. It's similarly ruby/plum-hued yet is more tight and focused, with beautiful blue fruits, violets, graphite, and spicy oak aromas and flavors. As with all the top 2021s, it has an incredible purity, polished, and refinement, with silky tannins, a flawlessly balanced mouthfeel, and outstanding length. It’s one of the few 2021s that demands 4-6 years of bottle age and will have upwards of two decades of prime drinking.

(95+ points) The 2021 Palmer has turned out beautifully in bottle, wafting from the glass with expressive aromas of blackberries, cherries and mulberries mingled with notions of iris, dark chocolate and spices. Medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with an enveloping core of succulent fruit framed by rich, sweet tannins, it concludes with a long, expansive finish. It's a blend of 56% Merlot, 41% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Petit Verdot. - William Kelley

Offers an almost juicy edge, making this difficult vintage stand out from the pack while giving its core of black cherry and black currant some energy. Subtle alder, tobacco and warm earth accents underscore the finish. Shows a late mineral twang, with just a wisp of the vintage's austerity. Serious kudos here. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2035. - JM