Tawny 10 or 20?

[kaley b]

So I'm new to the world of port. Just had a bottle of 10 year tawny. Loved the caramel-ish taste. Question is how will a bottle of 20 year tawny compare? Can't imagine it being much better. Also I've got a bottle of 1996 vintage......what should I expect when drinking it? Thanks for the info!

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[Glenn E.]

Hi Kaley, welcome to FTLOP!



If you liked the 10-yr old, then I highly recommend that you try a 20-yr old. The 20-yr olds are the peak of the quality-to-price ratio for tawnies. The 30-yr and 40-yr tawnies are better quality-wise, but their higher prices usually put them out of the competition for best overall value.

A 20-yr old will have the same flavors that you noticed in the 10-yr old, but they'll be more developed and more intense. The citrus and dried fruits (like apricot) are usually more prominent in 20-yr olds. There will also be new flavors that haven't had a chance to develop in a 10-yr old, such as butterscotch, vanilla, and then depending on which brand you get sometimes oak, cinnamon, and/or nutmeg.

Some good 20-yr olds to try are Ramos Pinto Quinta do Bom Retiro, Noval, Ferreira Duque de Braganca, and Sandeman. Of those four, the Sandeman is easily the most acidic so if you like your Port bright and tart, that's the one to try. The Noval is probably the most "standard" of the group and so might be the best to try if you're just not sure what you like. The Ferreira is a big favorite of many here, but can be hard to find in the US. My favorite is the Ramos Pinto, but some people feel it can show a little too much spirit.

As far as your 1996 Vintage goes, depending on which brand you have it may or may not be ready to drink. Some brands need 20+ years to reach a good drinking age, while others are ready at 15. 1996 was not a generally declared vintage, but there are still good Ports from that year. Which brand do you have?

[kaley b]

Its a 1996 vintage from qui ta do vesuvio. Thanks so much for the info, im becomming obsessed!

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[Eric Menchen]

Well that Vesuvio willbe nothing like a ten or twenty year old tawny, but might be ready. I can't say for sure, but the 1990 and 1994 are both very approachable now.

[Glenn E.]

Quinta do Vesuvio is a Port that is often approachable while young, but which will still age for decades. If you click the yellow "Tasting Note Database" button in the upper right corner of the screen you can then search for 1996 Vesuvio and find a bunch of tasting notes on the wine. I don't know if that feature is available via Tapatalk, though... you might have to wait until you can get to a desktop or laptop computer.

[kaley b]

Ok will do. Thanks guys for the info! What in general is the difference in taste between a tawny port and a good vintage port?

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[Al B.]

Kaley,

I'm a huge ruby port fan - and a Vesuvio fan in particular. Your 1996 Vesuvio is a bit of an unknown gem. It's a wine I really like but I plan to start opening mine in about 2017 and drinking them over the following 20 years!

In general, tawny ports (and colheita ports - tawnies from a single year) are dominated by flavours of dried fruit and nuts. They can have incredible concentration and presence and can be exceedingly acidic, but balanced by the concentrated sweetness that develops as these wines age in the barrel.

By contrast, ruby ports tend to be more tannic when young and dominated by black or red fruit flavours (blueberry when 2-3 years old, blackcurrant when 3-10 years, bramble when 10-15, plum and cherry when 15-45, redcurrant and raspberry and various times and for certain shippers). These are the ports that I love, especially when either very young (say under 5 years) or when mature and developed (say 21-100 years). The only thing you have to watch out for if drinking a vintage port is that they do go through a few years in their evolution sometime between about 8 years of age and 21 years of age when they are out of balance and disjointed. If you drink one when it is like this you will not get the right impression of what it might be like when it pulls itself together again.

If you're interested to know what your 1996 Vesuvio tastes like, but want to keep it for a few more years (lying down somewhere cool and dark) to allow it to develop, try to find a bottle or two of Traditional Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) ports. There are two types of LBV - traditional, which are intended to be able to continue to mature in the bottle; and filtered, which are intended to be drunk within a year or two of bottling. Traditional LBV will always say either "traditional" or "bottle matured" on the label and are made by a number of people including Noval, Fonseca, Warre and Smith Woodhouse. We did a tasting a few days ago which included Warre bottled matured LBV from 1974, 1995 and 2000 and these were all very impressive (and completely different in flavour profile due to their different amounts of bottle age).

Or you could buy a mature vintage port and see what all the fuss is about. If you decide to do this, go for a vintage from 1985 or earlier to see what a fully mature port is all about. But consider asking here before buying, as there are some stinkers out there...

But welcome to the world of port - it's easy to become just a little bit obsessed.

Alex

[Glenn E.]

Or you could buy a mature vintage port and see what all the fuss is about. If you decide to do this, go for a vintage from 1985 or earlier to see what a fully mature port is all about.

A reasonably priced but truly spectacular VP that fits Alex's recommendation would be the 1985 Graham. If you shop online you can probably find one in the $80 to $100 range and there are few VPs that are as consistently superb. Especially in that price range.

There are, of course, better Ports out there. But honestly there aren't very many that are better, and to get something better that is as approachable and ready to drink right now you'll probably have to spend twice as much.

[Al B.]

Glenn's suggestion of Graham 1985 is an excellent one - it is a delicious port.