For The Love Of Port

From a tasting at Pete's Fine Wines in Bellevue, WA, on December 14, 2008.

Graham's Six Grapes
paired against Dow's Trademark Finest Reserve Porto

Purple in the glass, almost to the point of being inky. It's not quite opaque, though. Somewhat stewy nose, but it's more because of the massive medley of fruit than from heat damage. It's nice, though the aromas are difficult to separate.

Bold, aggressive tannins in the mouth. A huge explosion of generic fruityness tending toward black fruit. It fades rapidly in the mid palate, though, and compared to the Dow's has almost no finish.

Palatable, but not a winner on this particular night.

I like this one far better on day two or with 8-10 hours decanting. It does need some decanting IMO to fully show it's best. I know a lot of people may disagree as it's just a Reserve Ruby but keep in mind this is an UNfiltered Port and, after their VP, their next best grapes goes into it

I don't decant Ports from this category ... although I definitely agree that this improves a couple of days into the drinking as air gets into the bottle and smooths out some of the edges. I find this is the case with most Ruby Reserve Ports and the same goes for the majority of LBVs I drink. I typically try to save a glass if opening it for a gathering, to try the next day ... or if drinking alone, I will take cursory notes the first day and make a more academic assessment the next 2 days.

Like Andy, I am a fan of the 6 Grapes style.

I had a pour of this at my neighborhood bar awhile back. For whatever reason, I tasted grape juice and I tasted alcohol. Spiked grape juice, it seemed to be. As mentioned before, the finish was virtually nonexistent. That said, I am guessing that what I tasted was not truly representative of this port. So my question is why did I taste what I tasted? Was it me, was it a bad bottle, did the bar mishandle the bottle, was the bottle on the shelf for way too long, was it because it wasn't decanted, or none of the above? Should I give this another chance?

Brian,

Definitely give it another chance. My guess is it has been sitting open at the bar for a long time and has since gone over the hill, a common problem at bars/restaurants. I rarely buy Port by the glass at any bar for just this reason....the Ports just don't taste like they are supposed to after being open for so long.

As Andy mentioned, sadly, bars and restaurants are notorious for leaving open bottles of Port to sit on their shelves until finished or vinegar. It is not uncommon to find this, especially in places that typically don't have a Port clientele. It is not like a bartender would ever take it upon himself to dump the remaining half bottle of Port that has been sitting on the shelf for the last 10 months. Sad but true!

Andy, does Graham really put their "next best" grapes into the Six Grapes? After the VP and Malvedos wouldn't they go into their LBV, filtered though it is?

Haven't had the Six Grapes for quite some time. Must give it try though it is sometimes difficult to justify buying it at regular price when recently I've found the Graham's and Smith Woodhouse LBVs on sale.

Cheers........Mahmoud

Mahmoud Ali wrote:Andy, does Graham really put their "next best" grapes into the Six Grapes?

Yes! Amazing isn't it. As far as I know they are the only House that does this. That is why it is one of Reserve's that I recommend so much. You really do get the best bang for your buck with Six Grapes. BTW, Six Grapes is a "limited" production, the grapes only come from "A" grade vineyards, and it accounts for ony about 11% of their total production.