1999 Quinta de Roriz Vintage Port

[Glenn E.]

Decanted at 11:00 am for Memorial Day festivities starting at 2:30 pm and dinner at 4:30 pm.

An interesting note about the capsule - I used a foil cutter to remove the out metal capsule (is that aluminum? tin?) and discovered that there was an additional plastic capsule under it. The plastic capsule had a metal insert over the cork, and that metal insert had a '+' shaped cut in it to allow the cork to breathe.

The bottle, cork, and capsule were all in pristine condition. The cork removed easily and had (for a cork) a bright red stain on the bottom. I thought it was unusual because those stains are almost always purple, even in younger VPs.

The bottle and cork smelled like a lodge in Vila Nova de Gaia... there's a distinct profile to that aroma that I can't put into words, but which is really obvious. It's probably old Port-soaked oak or something like that. It has a very faint cedar tone to it.

My first impression from the Port itself (can't let those drips go to waste!) is of tart cherries.

In the decanter it smells like a hodge-podge fruit medley, mostly red. The dregs, which I poured into a Port glass this time instead of my usual lowball, show signficant alcohol and a faint hint of what I'd call "greens." It's not vegetal... more like the greens used to dress up a vase of flowers with a hint of mint tossed in with it. The fruit medley is less powerful in the glass, and I can make out some brightly ripe raspberries.

There's quite a bit of very fine sediment in the glass, so my first sips are somewhat compromised. However there is a good amount of bright red fruit along with carrots (no, really) and some smokey oak. A shot of heat follows, and then the finish starts with some whole grains like oats. It then vanishes completely, or seems to, before returning 10-15 seconds later with some mellow red fruits and apples.

All-in-all, very nice so far. But it's fresh out of the bottle, so we'll see what happens with some air time.

[Glenn E.]

D+4 hours
One glass before appetizers, so a hopefully unaffected palate for tasting. Unfortunately the only glass available is a white wine glass.

It's a deep red/garnet in the glass, and fades cleanly to the rim where it becomes translucent.

Still some greens on the nose plus a little bit of alcohol.

In the mouth the fruits are starting to turn purple, and there's a tartness to them that still reminds me of tart cherries without actually tasting like tart cherries. The tannins are firm and present, but not overpowering. It is drier than I expected and seems a bit spicy... if you served it to me blind and told me it was a Taylor Fladgate I'd probably believe you. I get a bit of milk chocolate as well.

D+8 hours
After dinner and dessert, with plenty of time for dinner to (hopefully) fade from my palate.

No change in color. The nose has a lot of heat now, and my guess is that it would have been noticable in a Port glass at D+4 also. While certainly detectable as alcohol, I don't find that it stands out. The greens are gone, but the mint remains and is closest to eucalyptus.

The whole grains are now present in the mouth, though as more of an aromatic than an actual flavor. Lots of heat, bordering on medicinal alcohol. It's nearly covered by the fruit, but not quite. I still get a sense that this is a dryer style of Port. I also get a sense of impending doom... the fruit and alcohol feel like they are teetering on the brink of becoming disjointed. I'll have to revisit this again in a couple of hours before bed.

The finish starts out with hot raspberries - or perhaps vodka soaked raspberries - and simply fades evenly. An even heat fades in after 15-20 seconds and is followed by some tart apples, then everything resumes fading. A faint hint of mint teases the soft palate.

[Glenn E.]

D+10 hours

Not much change from D+8 hours, which isn't a good thing. It's pretty hot, and while it's not unpleasant it's not entirely pleasant either.

At 10 years old I wouldn't think it would be in a dumb phase, but perhaps it's just coming out of one. Right now I'd say that if you're planning to drink one, 2-3 hours of decant time is all you'll want to give it and then drink quickly before it heats up.

I'll continue tasting over the next day or two and see what happens.

[Glenn E.]

D+25 hours

The heat has subsided a little bit, and the fruits have mellowed out some also. Whew! After that late taste last night I was afraid that this bottle was on its way down the drain, but it seems to have recovered some.

It's still pretty warm, but it no longer borders on doom & gloom. The berries have smoothed out, now tasting fully plump and ripe. The tartness from early on is mostly gone, though there's still a hint of it hiding in the spiciness that's still present.

I'd still say to either drink this after a short 2-3 hour decant, or give it a full day. Or better yet, don't drink it now - it could probably use a few more years to finish coming out of whatever "phase" it's in.

[Glenn E.]

D+33 hours

Just a quick update as I didn't take detailed notes, but the glass I had tonight after dinner had continued to mellow and is now drinking very nicely. The alcohol has mellowed enough that I'd just call it "warmth" now instead of heat, so it's quite enjoyable.

The spiciness has mellowed too, though, so I don't think it would fool me as a Taylor Fladgate at this point, but it's a nice quality Port. Since I'm trying to work on rating Ports, I'll call this one 88-90 points. It's good at this stage of its life, but not great. I do think it has room to improve, though, as the tannins are still quite present and the fruits are still pretty bold.

[Glenn E.]

I finished off the last of the bottle last night (which would put it at about D+80 hours), and I have to say that it kept getting better right until the very end. It did seem to lose a bit of its complexity as time went on, but as the alcohol integrated it became much more easily drinkable. A bit of the classic VP chocolate was showing near the end, too. I'll give it an extra point with an extended decant, so 89-91.

I think I'll give the rest of my bottles a few more years, though, as anything that needs 24+ hours in the decanter to really hit its stride is clearly too young!

[Mark DaSilva]

Interesting.

I am a fan of these Quinta de Roriz ports, they tend to be cheaper yet scoring high. Hard to find though, our distributor's don't have anymore and we receive a lot of requests for it (plus searches). I had the 99 and loved it, had the 2004 and thought it was just okay. Obviously needed time. Perhaps this does need ageing more than others. Even after decanting. Hmn...

[Andy Velebil]

Glenn thanks for the detailed and extended TN on this. I saw you mentioned it possiblly being in a closed or dumb phase at 10 years old. A number of the 2000's I've had recently are in, or starting in, that closed up phase. There is no majic number where the start and end these phases in. I do remember this question being asked in a newsletter and the answers were quite varied.