One of the great years of Bordeaux now at 10 years old and showing why this is such an unusual vintage in terms of the depth of structure and muscular concentration that was achieved. In fact, I am upping the drinking window from the last time I tasted this, as there is such a pulse of life and grip that shows no signs of going anywhere. The initial layers are starting to be peeled back, but this retains primary black and blue fruits that are still full of flesh alongside baked earth, tons of liquorice and black chocolate with a grippy tannic structure, fresh acidities and a serious attitude. Brilliant stuff, that is clearly going to power on for decades. Harvest September 22 to October 20.

Inky purple in colour. This begs to be taken slowly, as even visually you can see that the texture is rich and velvety and will benefit from a few more years softening in bottle. Dark chocolate and orange zest on the nose, this performs the levitating trick of heading upwards through your palate with mouthwatering acidities while pulling you downwards towards the tannins that are underpinning the whole experience. In between the two you find cassis, bilberry, raspberry and strawberry puree, just a whole array of pure, chiselled but juicy fruits.This is living up to promise, but needs more time, still a trace of austerity on the finish right now, even though the complexity and the layers are hard to resist. Sculpted, intense and concentrated. Harvest September 22 to October 20 - a full leisurely month, mirrored by the unhurried pace that this takes through your palate. 60% new oak.

Compelling aromatics set off by flowers, blackberries, truffle and black licorice. In the mouth, the texture is pure silk and velvet. The wine is refined, polished, soft, fresh and elegant, with a long, sweet, fresh, rich, sensuous finish that remains on your palate for close to 40 seconds. The wine was made from a blend of 54% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot, the wine reached 14.5% alcohol. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/search-wine-tasting-notes/?szSearch=2010+Palmer+

While outwardly this wine is generous and opulent with great juicy sweetness, the core is structured and powerful. The wine is concentrated and complex, with dark tannins and a brooding, dense texture. This is a wine with a long-lived future.

(96+ points) Deep garnet in color, the 2010 Palmer rolls out of the glass with warm cassis, baked plums and boysenberries scents plus hints of candied violets, star anise and dried bay leaves. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is generously fruited, with a firm backbone of grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long.

The 2010 Palmer has an outgoing, intense and multifaceted bouquet with black cherries, boysenberry, crushed violets and hints of cassis - your quintessential Margaux turned up to eleven. The palate is medium-bodied with very supple tannins and a fine bead of acidity. Headier than its Margaux peers, it builds in the mouth with a complex, marine-tinged finish with cracked black pepper lingering on the aftertaste. This is an outstanding Palmer but it needs more time in bottle. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting. -- Neal Martin

This is riveting, with terrific tarry grip coursing underneath layers of smoldering bay leaf, warm plum confiture, freshly brewed espresso, dark cassis and well-steeped black tea. The charcoal and tobacco backdrop is gorgeous and should move forward through the core of fruit over time. Be patient though, as the structure is ironclad. This will really be electric once mature. Best from 2017 through 2040. 8,500 cases made. –JM

The 2010 Château Palmer is a quite powerful rendition of this fine estate, but without any signs of the ripeness here obscuring any of the potential purity that makes this great estate so beloved by claret fans the world over. My notes do not include the alcohol level on the grand vin this year (which was also absent from the technical sheet handed out by the estate), but the literature from Palmer this year does observe that “although the alcoholic degree is very high, like in 2009, the acidity and tannic concentration are greater (than 2009), making for wines with an extremely solid foundation.” Given a cépage in 2010 that is comprised of fifty-four percent merlot, forty percent cabernet sauvignon and six percent petit verdot, one has to assume that the alcohol level is in the range of 14.5 percent in this vintage. But the wine shows no ill effects from this level of ripeness, as it offers up a superb nose of black cherries, blackberries, coffee bean, tobacco smoke, gravel and a suave base of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite powerful for Palmer, with a rock solid core of fruit, very good focus and balance, substantial, but well-integrated tannins and excellent length and grip on the tangy finish. Stylistically, this will probably never be my favorite vintage at Palmer, as I tend to prefer this wine when it is at its most elegant, but there is no denying that the 2010 is beautifully-made and does show extraordinary purity and focus for such a broad-shouldered wine. (Drink between 2025-2100)