2007 Croft Vintage Port

[Glenn E.]

From a flight of repeat performances tasted at Roy's house November 15-18, 2009. We're going to do the reveal before day 4, so I'm posting final scores today so that they're not affected by label bias.

2007 Fonseca Vintage Port
2007 Croft Vintage Port
2007 Taylor Fladgate Vintage Port

2007 Croft Vintage Port

Day 1
Color: A pretty standard just-bottled purple. 3/16" fade at the rim.
Nose: Rich and fruity, mostly purple notes. Moderate alcohol. Black raspberry, possibly blackberry.
Palate: A blend of ripe red and purple flavors. Strong tannins, good acidity. Medium bodied, neither sweet nor dry. Boysenberry and marionberry.
Finish: Bright red and purple notes, a surprise tanky twist, then some grape stem. Decent length, and plenty of tannins.

Initial score: 89-92 points.

Day 2
Color: Deeper purple, possibly bluer.
Nose: Mellow blackberry, faint blueberry, mild alcohol.
Palate: Purple and ripe red fruits, good acidity and tannins. Medium bodied, neither sweet nor dry. Somewhat warm, but not hot. Tannins aren't as strong as day 1.
Finish: Red, purple, and tangy. Tannins. Both apples and grape stem. Good length.

Intermediate score: 89-92 points.

Day 3
Color: Back to a standard purple like day 1.
Nose: Blackberry, alcohol, and something vaguely minty... possibly xanthan gum?
Palate: Mellowing purple fruit, good tannins, good acidity, medium bodied, neither sweet nor dry. Nice warthm. Tannins seem to be fading and it seems to be picking up a bit of a harsh green note.
Finish: Some purple-red notes followed by tannic grip and leftover mouth watering from the acidity. Faint bitter note that's probably related to the harsh green note that is appearing in the mouth. Late warmth.

Pre-reveal final score: 89-90. This one feels like it's not enjoying being open. If it continues to decline I'll have to revise it down a point because it would be hard to call it even borderline outstanding.

Day 4
Color: As with the other two, the bluer tone seems to have settled in for the long haul giving the color a very rich look.
Nose: Brighter purple fruits like marionberry and boysenberry, but still significant blackberry. Mint barely noticeable at first, but stronger (and cleaner) after time sitting in the glass.
Palate: Good tannins and good acidity. Dry, but with a medium full body. Still the most tannic of the trio. Black raspberry, ripe red raspberry, and perhaps mulberry. Vastly improved balance over day 3.
Finish: Dryish, with a long slow fade. Faint bitterness mellows into grape skin, then eventually green apples. Pleasant.

Post-reveal final score: 91-92 points. The Croft recovered nicely from a disappointing day 3. I have had it 5 times now, and on all three blind occasions I have ended up in the 89-92 range. The two non-blind experiences were significantly better - in the 95 range. It is perhaps telling that both of those bottles were presented by TFP representatives who were wonderful hosts, so my score might have been raised by the environment. This bottle was far more tannic than any of the other 4, which made me guess that it was the Sandeman before it was revealed.

[Andy Velebil]

This has been one up and down VP. I have no idea where this will end up in the long run. I've had one great bottle and two not so great bottles....strange

[Roy Hersh]

Not including the two times I have had this non-blind, I have now opened 5 bottles of Croft, both finished and cask samples and agree that this is the most enigmatic young Port I've ever experienced. Notes to follow shortly.