NV Ferreira Porto Duque de Braganca 20 Year Old Tawny

GS Irving · Post by **GS Irving** » Sat Nov 14, 2015 9:42 pm

Bottled 2014

Incredibly attractive deep amber color. Brilliant clarity.
Initial aromatics are smoky with copious amounts of spicy alcohol and oak barrel character. Some orange citrus fruit, raisin, plum, and sweet orange blossom honey follow. The spice character is difficult to identify because there isn't a standout, but it's very well blended together in an extraordinary fashion; there are hints of cinnamon, all spice, clove, anise, and a hint of mint.

Surprisingly firm tannins and medium-high acidity balances the oxidized caramel, raisin, orange, and honey-like sweetness. Towards the finish a hint of vanilla and a bit of hazelnut appears which makes me happy.
Extremely long finish, with spicy alcohols and caramel-coated hazelnuts lingering.

Barrel character shines through in this bottling. I was pleasantly surprised by the structure and balance. No two sips are the same--it's a complex and dynamic tawny.
94 points

Post by **Andy Velebil** » Mon Nov 16, 2015 6:40 am

Love this Port, one of my favorite 20 year old tawny's. Nice note!

GS Irving · Post by **GS Irving** » Mon Nov 16, 2015 4:14 pm

Thanks Andy! I really enjoyed this one--I'm going to order another bottle.

Bradley Bogdan · Post by **Bradley Bogdan** » Mon Nov 16, 2015 8:35 pm

This is the 20 year I measure all others against for value and quality. A wonderful wine and one that seems to hold a high level of quality across bottlings.

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Thomas V · Post by **Thomas V** » Fri Nov 20, 2015 11:46 am

This bottle will go on sale in a Danish grocery story on Sunday for roughly 35 USD a piece which is a fairly good price.

I think I should pick up a few of these for safe keeping.

Thank you very much for the taste note. The timing couldn't have been better.

Post by **Glenn E.** » Fri Nov 20, 2015 1:39 pm

Thomas V wrote:This bottle will go on sale in a Danish grocery story on Sunday for roughly 35 USD a piece which is a fairly good price.

That's a great price for the Duque! It's usually closer to $50-55 when I can find it.

Thomas V · Post by **Thomas V** » Fri Nov 20, 2015 1:41 pm

Glenn E. wrote:
Thomas V wrote:This bottle will go on sale in a Danish grocery story on Sunday for roughly 35 USD a piece which is a fairly good price.
That's a great price for the Duque! It's usually closer to $50-55 when I can find it.

Shall I pick up a few for you as well Glenn

Post by **Glenn E.** » Fri Nov 20, 2015 3:43 pm

Thomas V wrote:
Glenn E. wrote:
Thomas V wrote:This bottle will go on sale in a Danish grocery story on Sunday for roughly 35 USD a piece which is a fairly good price.
That's a great price for the Duque! It's usually closer to $50-55 when I can find it.
Shall I pick up a few for you as well Glenn

Sadly I don't think I will be to Denmark any time soon. But get one, drink it for me, and post another TN about it! I'll have to enjoy it by proxy.

Post by **Roy Hersh** » Sat Nov 21, 2015 12:37 am

That was a really fine tasting note. Impressive clarity and description. Almost as if I was sitting at the table with a glass in my hand.

Thomas that was a great price. I have been drinking that as my standard 20 year old Tawny and long before FTLOP was even an idea, I probably sold dozens of cases of it by talking this up, across the internet and the early days of FTLOP. When I said, "standard" I mean that it was an excellent Port that I enjoyed being around, and always having a back up bottle on hand to replace one that was open. My earliest purchases were somewhere between 1992-1996 and IIRC, the price was $36 originally and then went all the way up to $38. I was sad when it finally hit then crossed the $40 barrier. But it is still one of the top 20s produced.

GS Irving · Post by **GS Irving** » Wed Dec 09, 2015 7:37 pm

Thanks for the kind words, Roy!

I don't have much experience writing about port, but I'm a beer judge in the BJCP so I get to review a fair number of home-brews during the year. The BJCP scoresheet is more structured than a free formed review, however, both encompass virtually the same info: aroma, appearance, flavor, mouthfeel, and overall impression. I can't wait to review some more ports. I received my shipment of S. Leonardo Tawnies a couple of weeks ago. More reviews to come.

For The Love Of Port