For The Love Of Port

Double decanted three hours before service. Unknown provenance on the bottle. Light reddish brown with a clear rim. Perfumed nose. Some alcohol heat, but mostly dissipated. Good acidity. Sweetness is very light. Primary flavor is Robitussin cough syrup. If you have any, drink them very soon. They're...

1980 Graham Porto Vintage - Portugal, Douro, Porto (3/20/2026) Double decanted six hours before service. I drink a good amount of 1980 vintage port, and this bottle is clearly the best 1980 Graham I've ever had. I put this bottle on a par with the 1980 Gould Campbell, which I think is the second pl...

1994 Ferreira Porto Vintage - Portugal, Douro, Porto (2/1/2026) Double decanted 5 hours ahead of service. Dark ruby with a clear rim. Most of the hot alcohol has blown off with the five hours. Lots of figs, dates, and fruit cake. An excellent wine that I think is fully mature but won't decline for ...

Definitely a Colheita, but hard to say what the bottling date is. I'll post the number on the IVDP cert that's on the bottle to see if anyone can help by dating the cert. Would possibly help. If not mistaken, the label wasn't used beyond the early 1970's. (About 1974-ish, give or take). Your bottle...

I have never seen a 1959 Port. Great in the rest of Europe. 1959 (my birth year) was awful in Portugal. I know that the Nieporte family made some that they only keep for the family, and Dirk refuses to sell me a bottle. :evil: There's a Ramos Pinto in the FTLOP tasting notes. This bottle popped up ...

I have a 1941 (maybe 1940, I'd have to check) bottle of this with the same exact label. I always assumed it was a Colheita because it said "matured in wood" but it didn't have a bottling date, so I guess it is a vintage Port? Definitely a Colheita, but hard to say what the bottling date i...

1959 Antonio Jose da Silva Porto Vintage - Portugal, Douro, Porto (9/22/2024) Made by Quinta do Noval. Antonio Jose da Silva bought QdN in 1894 and replanted all the vines after phylloxera devastated the vineyard. What a difference a couple of days makes. On the first day, after four hours decant, ...

1900 Niepoort Porto Colheita - Portugal, Douro, Porto (1/24/2024) Day 1 - Decanted five hours before service. Light brownish gold. Dominated by monstrous acid coming from 55 years in wood. Underneath there's good signs of toffee, brown sugar, molasses, all those sweet notes you want from a port. It...

I've had this one and the VV with several hours of decanting and it was stunning. So I don't think you would go wrong with a few hours of air. I agree with Andy. Anything wood-aged Port that's been in bottle that long needs some decant time, so a couple of hours (or a few) will be beneficial. Thank...

I am fine with the way it is. Comes down to whether I like the tawny and think it's priced accordingly. Call it 10, 20, or whatever. But the issue with that is that the producers clearly price based on the stated age on the bottle. The average consumer, the people not using this forum, judge that o...

Andy Velebil wrote: ↑Fri Jan 05, 2024 8:25 am I've had this one and the VV with several hours of decanting and it was stunning. So I don't think you would go wrong with a few hours of air.

That's great Andy. I have served the VV as well, and I believe I gave that a few hours of air as well. Thanks for the help!

I am fine with the way it is. Comes down to whether I like the tawny and think it's priced accordingly. Call it 10, 20, or whatever. But the issue with that is that the producers clearly price based on the stated age on the bottle. The average consumer, the people not using this forum, judge that o...

For those who have tasted the 1900 Niepoort Colheita, most of which have statements on the bottle that it was bottled in 1972, do you have a recommendation for how far in advance the wine should be decanted before service? My gut tells me a couple of hours, but I thought I would ask those who have c...

I just caught up on this old thread that reemerged. Ultimately, the truth should be followed by adding "style" to the label instead of misleading the consumer that the wine in the bottle is 10 years old. Remember that lots of regulations are written to help support industries and not neces...

1964 Taylor (Fladgate) Porto Vintage Quinta de Vargellas - Portugal, Douro, Porto (9/20/2023) Double decanted earlier in the day and served several hours later. Really amazing for what it is, and an excellent drink in and of itself. Brown with red color notes, very much like a tawny that's probably...

2001 Smith Woodhouse Porto Late Bottled Vintage - Portugal, Douro, Porto (4/21/2023) Decanted 12 hours before service. Opaque purple color. Medium sweetness with still some alcohol heat showing. Lots of red fruit showing. Not close to maturity yet. https://cdn.ct-static.com/labels/94e759b9-d400-4f8...

1983 Gould Campbell Porto Vintage - Portugal, Douro, Porto (11/25/2022) Double decanted three hours before service. Light red color. Good tannins but only a little alcohol heat. Medium sweetness. The overall experience was what I expected for what's turned out to be a lesser declared vintage. I lik...

Hi John, Just wondered if, 2-3 weeks later, you've found the 1937's profile has changed for the better... is the residual sugar still so dominant? I have 2 bts of the same bottling, & was thinking of gifting one to a friend who prefers a high acid, drier style of madeira... Hi Nigel, I'm afraid...

1937 D'Oliveiras Madeira Sercial - Portugal, Madeira (10/3/2022) 2017 bottling. Double decanted two days before service. Clear medium brown color with a green rim. Very high acidity, as expected from a relatively young Madeira. Lots of residual sugar hidden by the acid. A couple of hours later, the...

Brought to a dinner by a friend. I don't know anything about provenance. Oporto bottled in 1947. Decanted 5 hours before service (too long?). Light brink red in the glass. Alcohol heat still intense. Any sweetness is masked by the alcohol heat. Flavors of raspberry and cooked rhubarb. After about 15...