August 2007 Virtual Tasting: 20 year old Tawny

Post by **Andy Velebil** » Sun Sep 02, 2007 5:22 pm

Gary,

Burmester is not very easy to find around my area, in fact, off the top of my head I can't recall ever seeing a Burmester tawny at shops around me.

As for the Taylors, I'm not a big fan of their tawny's with an indication of age. Of the 4 they make I think the 30 year is the best. IMO, There are other producers who make a better bottle for the same price. But that is just my preference and thank goodness we all have different likes and dislikes.

Robert O. · Post by **Robert O.** » Sun Sep 02, 2007 5:30 pm

I very much enjoy the Taylor 20 year but I haven't tried a lot of aged tawny ports. Makes me wonder what I am missing! In Kansas City, it's hard to find a large selection of port of any kind. In this hot weather when shipping is out, I am pretty much limited to what my retailer has.

Bob

Todd Pettinger · Post by **Todd Pettinger** » Sun Sep 02, 2007 7:26 pm

Gary Banker wrote:Looking at the list of 20-year tawnies that were reported for this month, I'm a little surprised not to see Taylor's. I've always liked the bottles that I've had and it seems to be well distributed.

This is one that I have in my cellar and was tempted to open, but I know my dad absolutely LOVES this 20 year and as I only have one bottle left at present and many VPs to buy prior to Christmas time, I'm saving this one for when he visits at Christmas.

Of course a TN will be posted in the TN Forum, and I will try to remember to link that posting back to this thread so that there is a relevant link back for later review.

I'm actually surprised as well that it is not in here.

Todd

Michael C. · Post by **Michael C.** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 9:21 am

Gary Banker wrote:Looking at the list of 20-year tawnies that were reported for this month, I'm a little surprised not to see Taylor's. I've always liked the bottles that I've had and it seems to be well distributed.

I actually had a 20-year Taylor's during the month, but posted my review in the TN forum. We need a policy on how to handle cross-posting. When I go looking for specific tasting notes, I only search the TN forum. Should we simply post the same entry in both places? Seems like that would cause two separate threads of conversation...

In case you're interested, here is a link to my original review:
http://www.fortheloveofport.com/ftlopfo ... php?t=3530

Post by **Andy Velebil** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 11:25 am

I cross post in both, that way it is easier to search for in the TN Section and/or if I have another bottle I can just add another post to the original thread.

Todd Pettinger · Post by **Todd Pettinger** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 1:51 pm

Andy V. wrote:Burmester is not very easy to find around my area, in fact, off the top of my head I can't recall ever seeing a Burmester tawny at shops around me.

Only time I have ever seen anything from this producer is when travelling to the San Fransisco area. Saw an old VP by Burmester, and while the bottle intrigued me, my budget was limited.

Andy V. wrote:As for the Taylors, I'm not a big fan of their tawny's with an indication of age. Of the 4 they make I think the 30 year is the best. IMO, There are other producers who make a better bottle for the same price. But that is just my preference and thank goodness we all have different likes and dislikes.

I have to agree that there are better Age-indicated Tawnies than Taylors. For the longest time, the 10 YO was my mainstay Tawny Port... I have since found several others that I like better and continue to explore to determine which I like the best.

I have not tried the 30 YO Taylor Tawny. Every other (10, 20, and once in a restaurant, a single glass of the 40) but not the 30. The 30/40 get really expensive up my way and it makes it extremely difficult to justify.

Todd

Kris Henderson · Post by **Kris Henderson** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 11:05 pm

Gary Banker wrote:Looking at the list of 20-year tawnies that were reported for this month, I'm a little surprised not to see Taylor's. I've always liked the bottles that I've had and it seems to be well distributed.

Gary

Hi Gary,

I can fix that.

Taylor Fladgate 20 Year Old Tawny Porto (Bottled 2007)

This is the old stand by for me and was probably the first 20 year Tawny I tasted back when I was first getting interested in Port. I have had it a dozen or more times since then and it is always consistent and good. Perhaps not the best 20 year Tawny but it always brings pleasure.

It's been over a year since my last taste of this so I was looking forward to opening this bottle.

The color has a surprising reddish tint to it. It is a medium tawny color with a light ruby component to it. The nose has dried cherries, wood, walnuts, dates, and a little cinnamon. The palate is sweet and smooth with good balance except the aguardente has a harsh quality to it. The finish has good length with more dried fruits, nuts, and some caramel. 90

Scott Anaya · Post by **Scott Anaya** » Tue Sep 04, 2007 7:32 pm

Gary,

The taylor 20 has been my standard tawny this summer as I picked a bunch of bottle sup at auction for a song. I do like this 20 yr tawny. But after hitting both the Sandeman 20 and Ramos Pinto 20 this month---I know for my taste that I will be buying these later two well before considering Taylor again. They were on a whole other level when tasted by groups of friends and I.