December VT: Any Vintage Port from the 1980's

This forum is designed to help facilitate virtual tastings.

Moderators: Glenn E., Roy Hersh, Andy Velebil

Markus D.
Posts: 81
Joined: Sun Oct 18, 2009 9:16 pm
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

Re: December VT: Any Vintage Port from the 1980's

Post by Markus D. »

My first month participating :D

1988 Taylor's Quinta de Terra Feita Vintage Port
3.5 hour decant

Appearance: Redish purple - medium dark
Aroma: Alcohol and spice jump out first. Jam and cinnamon in the background.
Taste: Mellow fruits are first to hit the palate. Jams and cinnamon came through on the second sip. Relatively light tannins compared to the alcohol. A bit out of balance. Short to medium finish. Did enjoy it. Very Good 89pts
User avatar
Glenn E.
Posts: 8162
Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2008 10:49 am
Location: Sammamish, Washington, United States of America - USA
Contact:

Re: December VT: Any Vintage Port from the 1980's

Post by Glenn E. »

TN thread for my 1985 Churchill Vintage Port has been posted here.

Summary:

1985 Churchill Vintage Port

D+1 hour
Color: A very deep red, perhaps more garnet, with some bricking beginning. Clear and bright in the decanter.

Nose: Mild perfumed alcohol backed up by strawberries and ripe raspberries. Many floral notes float over the fruits and an earthy minerality provides substance. Also some tomato paste, which is mildly worrisome.

Palate: Initially tart, but mellows quickly in the mouth. Raspberries and red currant. Good acidity and tannins, but the tannins are almost hiding behind the acidity. Only moderately sweet... I might even go with medium dry. Insufficient quantity in this small glass to really get a feel for body weight.

Finish: Warm and fruity. Moderate length, finishes with grape skin.

D+4 hours
Color: Deep red/garnet/ruby. The bricking that I saw earlier is gone, and was probably due to fine sediment still floating in the glass.

Nose: Same as before, but I'm going to change the tomato paste to rhubarb now. There's something sugary and sweet that is very faint, and reminds me of an extremely faint VA.

Palate: First impression is still one of tartness, followed by raspberries and unripe strawberries. The tannins are coming to the fore now and stand equal to the acidity; both are good. Definitely medium dry now, and I'll call it a medium body. The late palate is taking on a tiny harsh note which bleeds over into the finish. If the alcohol were more forward or the fruits weaker, one might call this Port hot. But as it stands that's not the case, and my guess is that more time isn't going to hurt that balance.

Finish: Pleasant warmth, the aforementioned harsh note, and then a slow fade of moderate length. The heat outlasts the flavor, leaving you warm on the inside.

Score: 88 points. A moderate disappointment based on a previous bottle that JDAW shared with me in Paris, but still a very good Port and well worth the measly $26.50/bottle that I paid. QPR is very high, and I still hold out hope that the rest of the case will live up to the standard set by JDAW's bottle. As I recall that bottle was in the 92-93 range.
Glenn Elliott
User avatar
Roy Hersh
Site Admin
Posts: 21427
Joined: Thu Jul 28, 2005 1:27 am
Location: Sammamish, WA
Contact:

Re: December VT: Any Vintage Port from the 1980's

Post by Roy Hersh »

Markus,

It is great to have you participating with us here. In fact, this is one of the more popular themes we've ever had, or at least in many moons. Thanks to everyone who had a post here in December where they've actually mentioned their impressions of a Vintage Port from the 1980s! [notworthy.gif]
Ambition driven by passion, rather than money, is as strong an elixir as is Port. http://www.fortheloveofport.com
Post Reply