Taylor's LBV 2017

Taylor's LBV 2017

Inky dark ruby colour with a fruity and alcoholic nose. The taste was a balance between rich fruity flavours and a marked spiciness. This was a smooth and rich port which was eminently drinkable but lacked character.

Taylor's Golden Age 50 Year Old

 Taylor's Golden Age 50 Year Old

 Deep reddish brown colour with a nose strongly reminiscent of an old wine cellar combining a sweet fruity element with a mellow mustiness. Tasting revealed a complex mouthful of flavours having a dry oakiness to the fore. This was followed by a rich fruitiness consisting of dried fruits, plums and walnuts. As you would expect the after taste was rich and long lived.

Maynard's Colheita 2004 bottle in 2019

Maynard's Colheita 2004 bottle in 2019

Deep reddish brown colour with a hint of amber on the rim and interesting woody elements in the nose. Tasting revealed and rich and full bodied port having a long finish. The flavour was a complex and satisfying mixture of sweet plummy and dried fruits mingled with deep dry oak flavours derived from the barrel. This was certainly a port to savour.

Kopke Tawny Reserve (2023)

 Kopke Reserve Tawny (2023)

Well it looks like I last reported on this in 2009. We've found a supplier in the UK, which is great as we've always had a soft spot for Kopke's tawnies. This time we have a deep clear reddish brown colour with hints of amber. There is a hint of oaky richness on the nose. Tasting reveals what could be the ideal port for everyday drinking. It is smooth and sweet with plummy and dried fruit flavours nicely poised over a subtle dry oakiness.

Vieira De Sousa Colheita 2003

 Vieira De Sousa Colheita 2003

There was no indication as to when this was bottled so the length of its time in the cask is a mystery. It had a strange colour with ruby, tawny and amber in approximately even measures. It was quite turbid. There was quite a lot of fruit on the nose alongside subtle hints of oak. The flavour had a significant amount of plummy fruits tempered by some dry oak astrigency suggesting that this port had spent a fair bit of time in balseiros rather than pipas. Still it was pleasant enough to quaff.

Vieira De Sousa 30 Year Old

 Vieira De Sousa 30 Year Old

Clear deep brown colour with just a hint of amber. The nose was quite light with alcohol the predominant feature. Tasting revealed a rich and full bodied port. The flavours combined a complex oakiness with hints of sweet dried fruits. 

Vieira De Sousa 20 Year Old

 Vieira De Sousa 20 Year Old

Fairly dark brown colour with hints of amber and slight turbidity. The nose was light but carried hints of sweetness and oak. Tasting revealed a rich port with bags of dried wood flavours only just tempered by sweet notes of dried fruits.

Vieira De Sousa 10 Year Old

 Vieira De Sousa 10 Year Old

Clear light amber colour with a rich sweet and oaky nose. This was a rich port with a dry woody astringency subtly balanced with a butterscotch sweetness.

Vieira De Sousa Fine Tawny

 Vieira De Sousa Fine Tawny

Dark brown colour with fair turbidity. Strong alcoholic nose with hints of oak. There were hints of dried fruits and wood but there was also a strong taste of raw alcohol. One wonders if the aguadente used was a bit rough of if the port itself is a bit on the young side. On the other hand it could be that this was more on the dry side than I expected.