For The Love Of Port

Purchased on release. A small amount of seepage, but it has been stable for well over 12 years. Good fill.
Dense, dark color. Just starting to go brick at meniscus.
Barest hint of VA, but well within my tolerance as a fan of old Madeira. Aromas of oranges, bing cherries, kirsch. Warm spices with cardamom and cumin.
Not a blockbuster but a higher acidity, more elegant style. Very fresh. Red fruited. Still a good deal of tannins.
Good length and intensity. Still youthful.
92+ points. Will try again this evening to see if it continues to improve.

The seepage was caused by a rogue secondary fermentation after bottling, creating internal gas pressure. Back in 2008 I re-corked several of mine, one of which had so much gas it erupted. The wine remaining was spritzy and effectively undrinkable. Since then the evidence of seepage on bottles seems to have dried off.

Not all bottles showed seepage, hinting that the secondary fermentation did not kick off in every bottle, and some bottles have reportedly drunk well.

That your bottle had some evidence of seepage AND drank well, lends hope to a little hunch of mine that the negative products of this secondary fermentation might not be chemically durable and might pass with time.

For that reason, I've not disposed of my stock (even though Dirk has swapped a lot of bottles and will still do so, I think)

Where did the problem come from? Dust getting into bottles waiting to be filled is one theory, but I noted that the bottle that erupted on me had a very feeble cork, and the other corks I replaced didn't look too clever either.

Will probably pop one of mine next year some time, when they turn 24..