A tasting with Moses
Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 3:23 pm
A few Saturday's back Moses Botbol graciously hosted a port tasting at his home. There were four of us in total. Moses proposed a theme of 1960's VP with comparable tawny's from the same producer.
The official lineup included Dow's 1963 VP, Dow's 40 Tawny, Sandeman 1963 VP, and Sandeman 40 Tawny. Moses also added in a Kopke dry red and a D'Oliveiras Terrantez Madeira.
After a period of tasty snacks, great conversation, and excellent wine, Moses got serious and pressed us for our opinions. I started with a disclaimer that while I had enjoyed enough fine whiskies over the years to give accurate notes and scores, I am a relative newbie to port and hadn't tasted enough bottles to have good reference points. So with that, here we go ...
1963 Dow VP – Big fruit up front, full bodied, nice rich mouth feel. Transitioned to alcoholic and finished dry. I quite enjoyed the big rich fruitiness at first, but as the night progressed that aspect became less interesting and the alcohol notes started to detract. 90 points.
1963 Sandeman VP - Very nice, but felt much thinner in flavor and mouth feel than the Dow's at first. As the night progressed I changed my opinion and felt the Sandeman was far better balanced and nuanced than the Dow's. 93 points.
Dow's 40 Tawny - Sweet with significant spice including cinnamon and cloves. Some acidity but the sweetness dominates. Score 90
Sandeman 40 Tawny - Perfect balance of sweetness and acidity. Both present themselves clearly and coexist well. Flavors of dark fruit and cooked caramel. I love the acidity in balance. Score 94.
The Kopke and Madeira were also excellent and provided great counterpoints. No formal notes on these.
All four of the ports were excellent. I would be pleased to sit and contemplate any one of them. Only when compared side to side did preferences emerge. I tend to prefer tawny's at the moment, and gave them an edge over the VP's. The favorite bottle of the night (not unanimous) was the Sandeman 40 Tawny.
Thank you again Moses for your tremendous hospitality. It was a great evening and I hope to do it again soon.
The official lineup included Dow's 1963 VP, Dow's 40 Tawny, Sandeman 1963 VP, and Sandeman 40 Tawny. Moses also added in a Kopke dry red and a D'Oliveiras Terrantez Madeira.
After a period of tasty snacks, great conversation, and excellent wine, Moses got serious and pressed us for our opinions. I started with a disclaimer that while I had enjoyed enough fine whiskies over the years to give accurate notes and scores, I am a relative newbie to port and hadn't tasted enough bottles to have good reference points. So with that, here we go ...
1963 Dow VP – Big fruit up front, full bodied, nice rich mouth feel. Transitioned to alcoholic and finished dry. I quite enjoyed the big rich fruitiness at first, but as the night progressed that aspect became less interesting and the alcohol notes started to detract. 90 points.
1963 Sandeman VP - Very nice, but felt much thinner in flavor and mouth feel than the Dow's at first. As the night progressed I changed my opinion and felt the Sandeman was far better balanced and nuanced than the Dow's. 93 points.
Dow's 40 Tawny - Sweet with significant spice including cinnamon and cloves. Some acidity but the sweetness dominates. Score 90
Sandeman 40 Tawny - Perfect balance of sweetness and acidity. Both present themselves clearly and coexist well. Flavors of dark fruit and cooked caramel. I love the acidity in balance. Score 94.
The Kopke and Madeira were also excellent and provided great counterpoints. No formal notes on these.
All four of the ports were excellent. I would be pleased to sit and contemplate any one of them. Only when compared side to side did preferences emerge. I tend to prefer tawny's at the moment, and gave them an edge over the VP's. The favorite bottle of the night (not unanimous) was the Sandeman 40 Tawny.
Thank you again Moses for your tremendous hospitality. It was a great evening and I hope to do it again soon.