1952 Dalva Golden White Colheita Port

[Roy Hersh]

I have had this particular Port a dozen times in the past three years, although this is only the third bottle that I have opened from my own stash. My good friend Richard Beeken was born in '52, so when I come up here to celebrate with him and moderate a Port tasting at a local retailer (deVines Wine Shop in Edmonton, Alberta) it is always fun to pull one of these out.

I have seen some bottle variation and the bottle I brought up here two years ago, although very good, was not this explosive. We had a lineup of 1990 Dom Perignon Oenotheque, Mag of '85 Krug, a great '75 3 star Auslese, followed by a fabulous Meursault and a pair of old and amazing Burgundies, a '52 Barolo, a dandy of Vega Sicila Unico and Chateau Mouton R., and a few others I am forgetting at last night's birthday dinner. Dessert was the 1977 Taylor VP (we saved some for today) which did not show as well as it should have.

As a surprise, I broke out the '52 Dalva at a slight chilled 60 degree temp. without any decanting. Of the 9 pariticipants at the table, 5 thought it was the wine of the night (I was not one of them ... although I am jaded). However, this was the single best showing of any '52 Dalva I've experienced.

The nose was bright and singing with beeswax, lemon custard and orange marmalade. It really made a big impression, even following the '77 Taylor which is no easy feat. The acidity was so focused that guests were absolutely in awe and some mentioned Sherry while more people thought it was as acidic as a great old Madeira. I was really happy with the sharp and tartness that it added to the flavors of caramel, over ripe pineapple and tangerine. The mid-palate was literally stuffed with layers of complexity and the soft and smooth elegance in the mouth even had me raving about this beauty. The strong point was in the finish which had an ethereal aftertaste that was just so darn long that it left the crowd silent. It was fun to watch. Normally I am in the 94-95 point range with this wine but on this particular night, this singular bottle was well-deserving of a full 97 points. I wish they all were this great!

[Andy Velebil]

A wonderful Colheita that I love. Glad to hear this showed so well.

[Roy Hersh]

We saved a couple of glasses of the '77 Taylor to see if it will show better. Also about six ounces of the '52 was saved for after dinner tonight.

After a nice long hike today in the woods (just as I like it, about 30 degrees at the time ... Farenheit of course) I was in the mood to kill these two but Richard had planned very wisely to keep my mitts off them. He opened up a 1954 Leacock's Verdelho Madeira for us to enjoy with a couple of NFL games, so tonight we head back to Ports.

As much as I am looking forward to the '52 again, it will be the '77's performance that really intrigues me.

[Moses Botbol]

The '52 Dalva is the best port I have ever tasted. Super rich nose, fantatic taste with just enough sweetness. Incredible color, and balanced long finish. This stuff is perfection in a bottle! 98 Points.

[Roy Hersh]

I have another TN on this Colheita in addition to the one above, that will appear in the Dec. newsletter. I finished it on the airplane today.

Glad that you got to try it Moses. It pays to have friends like Sean!

[Derek T.]

I have only had this once, at Vinopolis in October 07. It was a truely wonderful port but what amazed me more than anything is that it was brown

Derek

[Todd Pettinger]

I have had this particular Port a dozen times in the past three years, although this is only the third bottle that I have opened from my own stash. My good friend Richard Beeken was born in '52, so when I come up here to celebrate with him and moderate a Port tasting at a local retailer (deVines Wine Shop in Edmonton, Alberta) it is always fun to pull one of these out.

I have seen some bottle variation and the bottle I brought up here two years ago, although very good, was not this explosive. We had a lineup of 1990 Dom Perignon Oenotheque, Mag of '85 Krug, a great '75 3 star Auslese, followed by a fabulous Meursault and a pair of old and amazing Burgundies, a '52 Barolo, a dandy of Vega Sicila Unico and Chateau Mouton R., and a few others I am forgetting at last night's birthday dinner. Dessert was the 1977 Taylor VP (we saved some for today) which did not show as well as it should have.

As a surprise, I broke out the '52 Dalva at a slight chilled 60 degree temp. without any decanting. Of the 9 pariticipants at the table, 5 thought it was the wine of the night (I was not one of them ... although I am jaded). However, this was the single best showing of any '52 Dalva I've experienced.

The nose was bright and singing with beeswax, lemon custard and orange marmalade. It really made a big impression, even following the '77 Taylor which is no easy feat. The acidity was so focused that guests were absolutely in awe and some mentioned Sherry while more people thought it was as acidic as a great old Madeira. I was really happy with the sharp and tartness that it added to the flavors of caramel, over ripe pineapple and tangerine. The mid-palate was literally stuffed with layers of complexity and the soft and smooth elegance in the mouth even had me raving about this beauty. The strong point was in the finish which had an ethereal aftertaste that was just so darn long that it left the crowd silent. It was fun to watch. Normally I am in the 94-95 point range with this wine but on this particular night, this singular bottle was well-deserving of a full 97 points. I wish they all were this great!

Ack - I am really disappointed that I could not be present for this Roy. Especially when I found out that there was Taylor '77 being served in the same night (I have one in my cellar that was destined to be my wife's 30th Birthday present, prior to the discovery that she was expecting AND hearing from some that it may be at least a decade too early open the Taylor. I'd have enjoyed the opportunity to evaluate that claim for my own, but I certainly would have enjoyed the opportunity to see this Dalva, after you told me about it.

One day my friend, perhaps one day we will be able to sit in your back yard sipping on something like this... I'd have a tough time finding something to come close to matching it, but I could certainly TRY! :)

Todd

[Marc Sherwin]

This is one of the last bottles I bought on my visit to Sintra and I found it in a grocery store. I knew nothing of it except I had open space in my boxes and money left in the travel budget. Now I can't wait to get it open...

[SEAN C.]

OK here's our notes on the 1952 Dalva from last weekend and a picture!

The 1952 Dalva white Port had a intoxicatingly fresh nose of brown sugar, flan, and young Madeira. In the glass the color was similar to golden raisins and dark yellow Sauterne. The taste was very lively with loads of caramel, apricot, a hint of grapefruit, and slightly woody. Overall one of the best Ports I have ever tasted, perfectly balanced and a hands down winner in any category of wine.

Sean C. 97/100
Moses B. 96/100
Joe M. 95/100

[Marc Sherwin]

My bottle was bottled in 2005, not 2007.

Once opened, do the white's keep for a few weeks?

[Andy Velebil]

In my experience with this Colheita, after being opened for more than a couple days its still very good. But a fresh bottle (within 2 days) is noticably better. I'm talking about splitting hairs and only a few points. but hey, whats the difference between 98 points and 95-96 points

[SEAN C.]

In my experience with this Colheita, after being opened for more than a couple days its still very good. But a fresh bottle (within 2 days) is noticably better. I'm talking about splitting hairs and only a few points. but hey, whats the difference between 98 points and 95-96 points

Yeah what do you know anyway..I'm clearly the Dalva expert here!
I've now had it twice!

I'm about to finish off the half bottle today that has ben opened for 7 days now..I'll report back... I'm sure the one we had in Portugal had been opened for at least the same time or more...and it was great!

[Moses Botbol]

Several days open, this port was still a winner

[Roy Hersh]

I had it again this past weekend. As excellent as always. I see nothing wrong with it keeping for a couple of weeks even, better so if kept in refrigeration which slows down the oxidation. A very sound wine. I hope that Sean will enter his tasting note seperately here so that when we move to a searchable data base (early 2008), his will show up as a distinct TN.

Thanks!

[Marc Sherwin]

What was I thinking - worried about whether the bottle would keep. I opened it with a total of 3 us drinking and 3 more with a small taste. The bottle didn't last the night.

It was a wonderful surprise - most of us had little to no experience with whites. I'll be on the look out for another bottle!