At 8 AM i decanted the bottle. A very dark purple, although not quite to the level of “Squid Ink” .
I noticed there is absolutely no sediment at all. Talking about value for money !!
A strong nose of cherries, raspberries and lots of other red and black fruit hits me when i pour the wine into the decanter. I let it breathe for about 3 hours before my first taste.
11:00 AM. As promised my first taste. Wow, my fist impression is: Fresh ! Sweet ! Then the tannines hit me, i never had so much tannine in 1 glass. I must say i enjoy it very much. The finish is medium in length and goes down quite smoothly. The alcohol on the nose is very well integrated and balanced with the fruit on the palate. Also, i noticed a faint earth taste which is fine with me. At this point i cant quite taste the fruit that much. In 3 hours or so i will try again. Definately a promising wine although not a blockbuster yet.
16:00 AM. Tried my second glass of the day together with some São Jorge cheese. The cheese is from the Azores where it has been considered the best cheese of the Azores. A full flavoured unpasteurised cow`s milk cheese with salty and sweet taste, earthy, deep, pungent, almost smoky-peaty. So this will go well with the wine was my guess.
Indeed, what a treat. The cheese really lifts the wine to a higher level, making it almost a creamy delight. I can taste fresh fruit like cherries, plums and grapes aswell. I even detect almonds and smoked wood. The smell is even better, heavy on the nose but never too overwhelming. Man oh man, the best port i ever tasted till now.
This is simply gorgeously balanced for a wine this young. That said, there is structure and tannin that should keep this going a while. I don’t know if this will be a 30 year port, but I would bet on 20. I am very curious how this wine will develop over time.
I rate this 93-95 now with 5 bottles left
