Decant: 3½ hours - From Tappit Hen (ex-cellars) and in a black glass. Dusty nose, very pronounced, full of mouldy cherry. Tight and closed on entry, with plenty of dark fruit; surprisingly youthful and with tannins still quite fierce, pushing the wine out of balance on the palate. Very dry, but not through a lack of fruit. Dry and tart on the aftertaste, with a long espresso or black chocolate finish and a dark cherry concentrate core.
In common with the other two tappit hens opened on this night, the decant was way too short for the wine to show well. Later in the evening the wine was much better and over the following 2-3 days it hit a peak where the port would have scored 4-5 points more than it did on the night. It was rightly compared to a younger vintage port not quite coming out of its closed phase. 88 points
1977 Dow Vintage Port
Moderators: Glenn E., Andy Velebil