May 2007 Virtual Tasting: Ruby or Reserve Ruby

[Andy Velebil]

I'll start this out. I got a QUINTA DE LA ROSA Ruby "Lote nº 601"


A little info about this from their website before my note.

Grape Varieties:
Traditional port varieties, mainly Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesa, Tinta Barroca and Tinta Roriz.

Production Notes:
Quinta de la Rosa's Ruby Port is unique in that it comes from A graded grapes all grown on the Quinta. Most other ruby blends come from further down the river nearer Regua where there is higher rainfall and most grapes are B to D quality so the resulting port tends to be less concentrated. Many customers told us that our ruby was ‘too good to be called a ruby port’ so we christened it with the name - Lote 601 – taken from lote or blending number we use for the ruby. Some of our ruby is still made in the traditional way – trodden in granite lagares.

The Ruby is blended from our stocks of Port stored in large ‘tonels’ or vats to give a young, fruity, vibrant wine with an average age of 3-4 years. The blend will always have the same style from year to year. Unlike most port shippers, all products are stored and bottled in the Douro (at La Rosa and not Porto), allowing full traceability and ensuring quality from grape to bottle.

Found this at my local wine store for $10.00 and since I've never had it, thought it would be perfect for this month's VT event.

The first thing I noticed when i got it home, was it had a driven cork ...thats right, no T-stopper cork in this one. (actually I looked at the label to make sure I got the right bottle...I can't say I've ever seen a driven cork in a basic ruby before).

The color was very dark, but not quite to "squid ink" , very dark for a ruby. The nose was loaded with tons of dark rich blueberries, plums, and cherries. The nose reminded me of a young VP from a lower tiered producer. By now I was quite intrigued...driven cork, nose like a young VP....

The palate did not disappoint. The first thing I noticed was the heavy mouth feel, very atypical for a ruby. Some good acidity and some very noticable tannins. The palate has some slight cedar, plums, eucalyptus, and a very small touch of a tart cherry pie on the moderate finish. This is more on the dry style, with a slight earthiness to it that keeps it from becoming overly sweet. I must say, this is one glass that is hard to put down.

I think this is the best scored basic Ruby that I've had....89-90 points.

For this price, there will be more of this in my future. I see it becoming my new "house Port."

[Robert O.]

As luck would have it, I had unrelated to this months virtual tasting picked up a bottle of Qunita das Heredias Special Reserve Ruby upon the reocmmendation of my local retailer. I had been suspicious about his recommendation since all the other ports they sell are sugary crap. And for $19, it was reasonably priced.

I know Parker isn't held in high esteem around here but he rated this a 92 and I think he got it right. This was MUCH better than I thought it would be. Dark purple color, fruit on the nose. Juicy and dense on the mouth with a lot of fruit. Not too sweet, which I like. Finish is slightly hot, marring this a bit.

Overall, I'd give it a solid 91. Not as complex as I'd like but a real nice ruby and great value. Better than most LBV's that I've had.

[Al B.]

Warre's Heritage Reserve

Asda in the UK were offering these recently at £5 per bottle and at that price I decided this would be my contribution to the virtual tasting.

Tasting note was taken after allowing the port 4 hours in the decanter.

Mid red in colour showing an intriguing mix of bown and purple on the rim. (Must go back to the bottle and see if there is any clue to the bottling date.) Lovely, attractive nose of sour cherries comes strongly out of the glass. Smooth entry, slight bitterness evident but the sour cherry promise comes through strongly on the mid palate - not a lot else develops though. Nice acidic structure with plenty of fruit. The aftertaste is of cherries and raisins and lasts a respectable time before fading away gently.

Overall, this is a very enjoyable glass of port. Young and fruity and will not challenge the taste-buds or brain cells with anything too strenuous. I shall enjoy the rest of the contents of the decanter and will also look to pick up a couple more bottles for the future. 85/100.

Alex

[Todd Pettinger]

Warre's Warrior Special Reserve
I have to admit I have seen this in the store many times and each time have given it a pass; it's relatively inexpensive price combined with what I considered to be labeling that suggested more time spent on the label than on the port made for a "pass" decision each time. This month's VT has forced me to revisit my decision and try something which I have not before.

So, I bought a 375 of this, hoping that it was decent and that if it was not, I wouldn't have spent too much.

Dark, opaque purple in colour, bricking towards the edges. A bit spiritous on the nose but pleasantly filled with grapes, dark cherries and the slightest hint of mintiness. The palate comes through with the dark cherries and grapes. A short finish does not challenge much and the alcohol is slightly evident, a bit stand-offish from the rest of the palate, but does not last long.

+10 hours
Revisiting this bottle, the dark cherries are a bit more pronounced, which delights me. The spirit is a tad more integrated, but still an extremely short finish.

My conclusion is that Warrior is not one to write home about but one to include in an open-minded daily sipper category. I'll be revisiting this again in larger bottles and will see if I continue to like it.

[Alan C.]

Alex and Todd,

I've also had both those drinks in the last month, and I can heartily agree.
They were both the same......Ordinary!!!
Wouldn't turn it down if offered, wouldn't rush to have it.
Glad you guys went to the trouble of tasting notes to let everyone know. I'll just tack on the end that in the 'World of Opinions', mine is alongside yours.

Alan

[Frederick Blais]

A few days ago I did open a Raven Special Reserve from Noval.

It is only the 2nd time I'm drinking this Port and I do remember it was more concentrated and interesting than this in 2004. It displays a tranlucide ruby color with hints of licorice and red berries, the palate is smooth, full of fruit, lacking intensity but at least not much heat for a ruby. At 20$ for a 500ml it is clearly not a good QPR as you pay for the nice bottle design. This is the price of 10 yo tawny or a high end LBV. It is drinking fine but at this price there is so much better. I'd give 14-14,5/20

[Todd Pettinger]

Frederick, do you have a pic of that bottle? I believe it is the one I had not so long ago - which incidentally, I was not impressed with - but after checking, my (long empty) bottle makes no reference to "Raven" just "Special Reserve." Is it the long, tall 500 mL bottle that is square?

Todd

[Todd Pettinger]

A quick add-on note regarding my half of Warre's Warrior - after a day of sitting, the spirit is a bit more prevalent and not as pleasant. Alan is correct in his observation: Warrior is an ordinary ruby, with some good qualities, but should likely be drank fairly soon after opening. I know the crew here will have a tough time finishing an entire bottle in ONE NIGHT, but if you dig deep, I am sure you can do it!

Todd

[Derek T.]

Armilar Ruby Port (bottled & Shipped by C. da Silva)

Here is a picture of the bottle with the wine in Tom's decanter



I decided to go for something unusual for this thread so popped into our local Liddle store to see what the had. This was the only ruby port on the shelf and cost £4.29 :?

There was a surprisingly nice fruity smell from this as I decanted it. Despite the appearance in the decanter this is a very light ruby red colour in the glass. The nose has a hint of strawberry but is mostly raw spirit.

The first sip started off not too badly with a quick burst of red fruit. As the steam started coming out of my ears Wylie Coyote style I realised that I just begun to swallow that Semtex Wine that Tom has been talking about in another thread - the aftertaste made me wince and a small shudder took over me as it faded into a sickly sweetness.

Hmmm - maybe needs some decanter time before being turned into Chilli Con Carne 8)

Derek

PS: This bottle brought 3 first for me (1) shopping at Liddle (2) that strange wince & shudder thing when drinking port and (3) the T-cork was made entirely of plastic :? (you can see it in the picture above)

[Al B.]

On a more positive note than Derek's above, my Warre's Heritage reserve is still drinking nicely after 3 days in the decanter - sour cherry juice, no obvious spirit and a pleasant (albeit short) aftertaste.

Alex

[Derek T.]

Armilar Ruby Update

The heat has gone from the nose and is now replaced by a strange chemical smell which resembles oven cleaner.

The wine is much smoother now and the initial taste is actually OK. 5 seconds later and that shuddering thing happens again. The aftertaste is horrible, like cheap boiled sweets.

This is seriously bad port and, IMHO, should not be allowed to leave VNG via anything other than a drain

Note to self: £4.29 is better spent on 28ml of Fonseca 1966 8)

Derek

[Alan C.]

Derek,

Why did you bother to decant it? If it had been a pleasant Ruby, would have decanting it helped?

Alan

[Derek T.]

Alan,

I decanted it for 2 reasons - (1) because I thought it would have lots of heat that may blow off with lots of air exposure and (2) so that I could get Tom's square decanter in a photo.

Derek

[Derek T.]

Dow's Midnight Port

I bought this as a reserve to the Armilar.

Not much on the nose, just a little spirit. Colour is quite light for a basic ruby. Quite nice taste, strawberry and some cherry flavours. The mouthfeel is light but not weak. Not much of a finish but no bitter aftertaste that I get with most ruby port.

This is a pleasant drink, nothing special, but then it isn't supposed to be.

It does what is says on the tin 8)

Derek

[Roy Hersh]

This was the only ruby port on the shelf and cost £4.29

Sounds like a heck of a bargain. Please save me a glass, as by the time I next get to London (Oct.) I have a feeling that the alcohol will have integrated.

Interesting decanter!

[Andy Velebil]

Roy,

There will be no complaining until I see your TN here :twisted: BTW, same goes for Alan...let get to it guys, the month is ticking away

[Roy Hersh]

You are right. I have not had a Port in nearly a week. Early in the a.m. I am sipping Madeira this week, while I check out the Forum (from NY).

We all leave on Sat. for Portugal and hopefully, I'll be able to report from there as I will have my computer with me. I need this trip badly!

[Todd Pettinger]

Taylor First Estate Ruby
Another ruby that I have passed on many times.

Alarming nose, full of all kinds spirit and acidity. Nice enough colour, a deep ruby, dark purple towards the center. Brick-coloured meniscus.

True to the nose, this is full of all kinds of harsh spirit. I sense that there may be some decent flavours hiding beneath the surface, but they are buried deep.

+1 hour
I decided to decant this beast to see if some air (okay, a LOT of air, I swirled it incessantly in the decanter) would do it any good. No change.

This is destined for Bolognaise sauce

[Jay Powers]

Quinta do Infantado, medium dry Ruby.

Picked up for the VT on Ruby while trying to find one I have not had before. Got this at a local supermarket (Lunardi’s) in a 375 mL bottle.

A little heat at first, passing after the first hour or so. Much dryer than their VP, of which I have had two versions and quite liked. There is no mistaking this for anything but what it is, Ruby, and you would not guess LBV much less VP. A little strange taste, not corked but something which I eventually identified as cheddar cheese. Striking really, and very noticeable in the aroma. I will not be looking for this one again, and will stick to the VP from Infantando.

Jay

[Todd Pettinger]

revisiting the Taylor First Estate...
+6 hours
The heat is still on... while time has allowed a tad of the alcohol to blow over and not be so prevalent on the nose, the after-burn is still present on the palate. Grape and cherry notes, with a medicinal component to the mouthfeel. Short on the finish, thank the Maker.

Loads of acidity - to the point of detracting from the wine itself.

I will come back to this tomorrow evening to find out if 24+ hours gives it any more life as a drink or whether it is destined for some cooking in short order.

At this point, the recommendation is to avoid this one. The Warrior I sampled earlier on in this thread is (surprisingly) better.
Edit: to add cross-post URL
Alan,
There may be a bit of a point here... Alex stated in that other thread that sometimes he desired a fruit-forward, headstrong young Port and as such, he sacrifices a younger VP rather than going for a Ruby or Reserve. While I know that there are several rubies/reserves out there that may drink better than this, this particular port (along with Warrior, etc.) may be the reason he drinks the occasional young VP. None of the VPs (that I have tried young anyway) have had the astringent, medicinal qualities demonstrated by the Taylor First Estate. Warrior might be slightly better to my taste, but it remains highly inundated with spirit. A younger VP usually does not have the nastiness associated with some of these rubies or reserves.

Just my two cents of course! :)

Of course, we may have to test this theory out one day in a true FTLOP offline!!! (Don't worry, we'll feature mostly old port... mostly! )

Todd