Chesterfield in town for a tasting!

My young brother Harrington Chesterfield was in town this weekend and Lillian and I spent an evening in the Neck with the family. To celebrate this mini reunion, we decided to go digging in the Johnson Avenue vault and pop something special. Upon assessing my collection, I realized that I was still sitting on 3 Niepoort 1997s. Hmmm... I'd been loving the 97's I'd had recently, and it had been a good 8 years now since I first tasted it so hey... why not? I can't say I regret the decision - it was a decidedly different wine from the first sampling. **Bill - I supplemented the collection with a bottle of Niepoort 2000 at the same time as I removed this bottle of 97, so don't worry, we'll still be enjoying plenty of good Niepoort together in the future!** As is often the case when a bottle gets popped early in the evening at number 175, a second bottle was soon to follow. I'd been sitting on a bottle of Romariz 97 for about 7 or 8 years, and as I had recently read some pretty lackluster opinions of it, thought it might be a good one to sacrifice. It turns out it lived up to the drab reviews. Oh well, you can't win em all...

NIEPOORT VINTAGE 1997

Since drinking this wine last - 8 years ago now - the color has certainly begun to show some maturity. It's become a very pretty purple/raspberry hue at this point. The nose offers a very unique and intense bouquet of eucalyptus, coffee, bittersweet chocolate, and a high-toned and prominent note that is redolent of enamel paint or nail polish. This may have been due to a bit of taint in the wine, though in any case, as strange of a note as it sounds, it doesn't distract from the other notes in the wine, it's just rather unusual. Fills the mouth with a full-bodied attack, though only moderately sweet, it dishes up a decidedly earthy palate of flavors - the eucalyptus and coffee characters on the nose are also apparent here, as well as cranberry, a strong medicinal cherry aspect, and notes of tar on the long finish. Although it's opened up a great deal since first tasted as a baby, this port still has a brawny tannic foundation and great depth on the palate that should carry it for a very long time to come. An iconoclastic and delicious offering from one of my favorite producers. 95pts, Tasted 4/08

And here were Harrington's thoughts...

Cherry-purple in color, starting to show it's age a bit. A perplexing, slightly spirited nose with strange hints of sourness, but in a pleasant way, sweet and slightly syrupy. Notes of medicinal cherry, bitter orange rind and spice. One of the most unique ports i have tasted, very different from how it tasted 8 years ago. This port might be a chamaeleon, changing in character as it ages.

ROMARIZ VINTAGE 1997

Medium dark purple in color with burgundy highlights. Shows some pleasant dark fruit on the nose along with a leafy/cabbagey aspect - perhaps a sign of a lack of ripeness? Comes off a bit better on the palate with medium sweet blackberry fruit, black pepper, and just a hint of dark chocolate. The tannins are soft and the finish is on the short side. Overall, one-dimensional and unexciting. 81pts, Tasted 4/08

WOODHOUSE ROCKS THE HOUSE...

Cheers! In keeping with the theme of tasting younger vintages of late, Lillian and I picked up the Smith Woodhouse 2000 to pop this past weekend. I'd read some flattering press about it when the 2000's first came on the market and had always been curious to try it. The only other vintages I've sampled from this particular member of the Symington stable are the 1985, which I had nearly 10 years ago, and at the time was a big juicy fruit bomb type of a port, and the 1997, which I drank recently and was of a rather lighter-bodied and more open style. Both were very enjoyable, though if memory serves me correctly with respect to the 85, I'd say this is my favorite so far.

SMITH WOODHOUSE VINTAGE 2000

Royal purple color with a raspberry red rim. The nose is deep and inviting and opened up nicely after about three hours of decanting: boysenberry, strawberry, violets, licorice, and a touch of leather. Full bodied palate offering lots of sweet, plummy dark cherry fruit, big, chocolately tannins, and Christmas spices that linger through the long and rich finish. A well built, delicious, cellar-worthy vintage port from Smith-Woodhouse that should become a beauty as it ages. I'd probably give it until 2020 before it's at its best, but I certainly enjoyed it now. 93pts, Tasted 4/08

EPTT website updated

It's hard to keep up with the tasting adventures out east, but I think I got them all.
http://www.freewebs.com/jammysense/

Bill

Calem gets a second go 'round

After a pleasant experience drinking a bottle of the 1994 vintage from the house of Calem recently, Lillian and I decided to give the 97 a shot when we spotted it at a local shop here in Park Slope...

CALEM VINTAGE 1997

Fairly dark colored port - eggplant purple at the center becoming a bright burgundy toward the rim. The nose has a warm, roasty quality to it with prominent scents of raspberries, blueberries, and grape jelly. Sweet fruit on the palate - lots of raspberry and blueberry coming across strongly again; there's an almost candied quality to it, with subtle hints of tar and a dash of pepper. Medium bodied with mild tannins and a mid-range length of finish w/ a touch of a medicinal edge to it - well balanced and very tasty. Doesn't have the heavyweight structure for long aging, but a straightforwardly enjoyable port that will probably be at it's best in the shorter-term - over the next 10 to 15 years. 88 pts, Tasted 4/08

April is still port season...isn't it?

Lillian Petherbridge and I recently indulged in another night of vintage port sipping...

TAYLOR FLADGATE
QUINTA DE VARGELLAS 2001

Very dark in color, virtually black at the core still. The nose also has a dense and dark quality to it. It comes across with aromas of blackberry, raspberry, and black cherry fruit along with rich notes of dark chocolate and roasted coffee beans. The palate is full and sweet with plump, tar-edged dark fruit, a prominent tannic backbone, and a burst of pepper and spice that leads into the long and persistent finish. A strong and burly style of port with the balance and structure to hold it all together. Delicious stuff. I'd give this at least another 10 to 15 years before it really shows it's full potential, and my guess is that it will probably still be going strong 30 years from now and then some...93 pts, Tasted 4/08

Warre's hits the mark again...

First off I'd like to say cheers to Bill on the recent tastings. Nice to see that the drought has ended, and I hope you enjoyed that Graham's 77 as much as I did! Here's the most recent update from the east coast:

WARRE'S VINTAGE 2003

Rich dark purple in color - like concord grape juice - with a bright burgundy rim. As with most vintages as young as this, it took quite a number of hours of decanting before the nose opened up. It shows warm scents of dark berry jam, like cherry or blueberry pie filling, with perfumed aromas of orange blossom intermingling, adding a pleasingly exotic aspect. Delivers pure sweet black cherry and raspberry fruit on the palate - good depth of flavor - with a milk chocolate undertone, firm tannins, and a long mouthwatering finish. 92pts, Tasted 4/08

Having now tasted through the 94, 97, 00, and 03 offerings from this house, it is apparent that Warre's has produced an excellent string of recent vintages. I still feel that the 97 is the standout of the bunch, and would guess that it will live the longest, but all four are delicious and well structured ports that should age very well. I certainly hope I have the chance to sample all of them again as they continue to mature and develop.

Kalyra 20 year old Muscat tawny

My friend picked this up at the winery in California, but the bottle indicates it was produced in Australia.

Hazy orange-red in color. Bright notes of orange peel, cardamom, and dried fruits on the nose. Sweet and concentrated the palate with tastes of dates, figs, and caramel. The finish is slightly sweet, but the woody character makes this wine on point with Portugal's better tawanies. Livigingston 4/08

Comparing port color to paint charts?

Noting the color of port always seemed a bit subjective to me. I have to admit that I am not well educated when it comes to color and I pale in comparision to Lamont's knowledge of an artist's palate. What are you thoughts about comparing the color of port to a paint chart? It seems that this is could be a way to document the change in color over time. Maybe its the scientist in me, but I'd like something more definitave than purplish-red (like my Graham's 1977 review).

Bill sips a vintange - 1977 Graham's

My first attempt to taste this wine was cancelled due to a cold. Having since recovered, it was time to sip port. My review was similar to Lamont's and I agree that this wine will only improve with a few more years.

Graham's 1977 Vintage
Translucent purple-red in color. The nose is sweet and thick with jammy red fruits. The palate is fully fleshed out with exceptional notes of raspberries, plums and a touch of vanilla. The tannis are soft and the finish is long and smooth. Nothing two dimensional about this wine; it is very well balanced. It is delicious now, and should improve over the next ten years. Livingston, 4/2008.