Two Affordable Values from Spain and Portugal

We drank these two Iberian wines last week.  Both are quite enjoyable and affordable.  The Bodegas Volver is a little more serious and should last a bit longer.  The J. Portugal Ramos is quite affordable, pleasing to drink both mid-week, or with a crowd at a party.  A bit of alcohol does show but the profile is tasty and the price is right. These wines are available at MacArthur Beverages.

2009 Bodegas Volver, Tempranillo, La Mancha – $14
A Jorge Ordonez Selection imported by The Country Vintner.  This wine is 100% Tempranillo sourced from 98 hectares of vineyards located at 660 meters.  The vines average 50 years of age and are located in sandy soils.  The wine is aged for six months in French oak barrels.  There is a pretty nose of dusty berries.  In the mouth there are notes of vanilla mixed with black and blue berries.  The fruit is supple but with acidity and texture from tannins.  There are some wood notes.  With air a little sweet spice develops during the initial flavors and the wine develops viscosity.  This wine will benefit from short-term aging.  Now-2016.

2009 J. Portugal Ramos, Loios, Alentejano – $9
Imported by Winebow.  This wine is a blend of 35%Aragonez, 35% Trincadeira, and 30% Castelao sourced from vineyards with soils of limestone and schist.  The grapes were fermented in stainless steel, underwent malolactic fermentation, and aged in stainless steel.  The color is a light to medium ruby purple.  The slightly warm nose makes way to gritty, fresh black fruit with a licorice component that is unique.  The pebbly flavors are from nice black fruit, gentle in nature, with mild acidity.  With time it puts on some weight and a bit of a green pepper note comes out.  Drink this solid value over the short-term.  Now-2014.

Three Tasty Wines For the Weekend

Terre Blanches, Image from Borie La Vitarele

I do not normally post five tasting notes in one day but I felt compelled to publish a second post.  We greatly enjoyed these three selections and I strongly recommend you consider purchasing these wines during your weekend wine shopping.  It has been a couple of years since we drank many bottles of the 2007 Borie La Vitarele so I am glad to see that the 2009 is just as good.  The Domaine du Pas De L’Escalette provides a second excellent vintage of Les Petit Pas.  This 2010 vintage is more floral and peppery whereas the 2009 was inky and gritty.

Vineyard, Image from Quinta do Crasto

Of these three wines I am most excited about the Quinta do Crasto.  Like the 2009 Duorum, Colheita there is such a lovely mixture of floral and berry notes on the nose.  Combining a sense of the Douro, enjoyment, and strong price you should try this along with the Duorum.  I hope that MacArthurs searches for more of these lovely Portuguese wines.

2009 Borie La Vitarele, Les Terres Blanches, Saint-Chinian – $15
Imported by Bacchus Importers.  This wine is a blend of 45% Grenache, 45% Syrah, and 10% Mourvedre.  The wine was aged for 12 months in oak barrels and tanks.  There is a fruity, youthful nose.  In the mouth there are flavors of cool fruit, stones, fine+ tannins, and a little spicy finish.  With air the high-toned red fruit mixed with hard blue fruit, showing subtle ripeness and raspberry flavors in the finish.  Slow to unveil it ultimately reveals a somewhat juicy and inky personality.  I would cellar this for a few years before drink but if you try it now give it 2-3 hours of air.

2010 Domaine du Pas De L’Escalette, Les Petit Pas, Coteaux du Languedoc – $15
Imported by Elite Wines.  This is a blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan.  This wine has a light nose with pure floral and pepper notes.  In the mouth the delicate red berries are fresh, gentle and ride on a medium beam of acidity.  There is mild back-end sweetness.  On the second night the wine puts on some weight and the pepper component is stronger.  This could stand a year in the cellar before drinking over the short-term.

2009 Quinta do Crasto, Douro – $15
Imported by Broadbent Selections.  This wine is a blend of 35% Tinta Roriz, 25% Tinta Barroca, 25% Touriga Franca, and 15% Touriga Nacional source from 20-year-old vines.  The wine was aged in stainless steel.  There is a light to medium strength nose of an attractive mixture of flowers and fresh berries.  In the mouth flavors of black pencil lead and low-lying sweet fruit are medium in weight with a great salinity.  This chewy wine has salivating acidity.  With air the nose becomes firmly medium-strength with Jenn finding a clean aroma of “oranges.”  I would drink this now or over the next five years.  Quite lovely.

Two Mature Wines for a Cold Winter’s Weekend

In searching my tasting notes for Domaine Les Pallieres I realized that I have not tasted the 2000 since December 1997.  The light amount of snow and ice this past weekend (and new episode of Downton Abbey) provided the perfect excuse to pull corks on the Pallieres and Harveys. The Harveys Vintage Port was bought almost four years ago for roughly $35 per bottle.  A John Harvey & Son selection, this was specifically imported into the USA by Heublein.  Many of the established British wine merchants with their extensive connections and experience bottling their own wines, carry their own house selections.  They generally represent good value.  Having shopped at Harveys during my Bristol days I readily snatched up 5 or 6 bottles of this port.

The Pallieres was a solid drink with its strength lying in the earthy nose.  At its peak this is an enjoyable but not thrilling wine which was easily upstaged by the 2003 Domaine Santa Duc, Gigondas.  The Harveys was thoroughly enjoyable.  It has been a few years since we last opened a bottle, when the alcoholic spirits were already poking out.  While that is a bit distracting, the nose and initial flavors have an enjoyable complexity; a glass of Dow’s 10-year-old tawny tasted ripe and young in comparison.  While this will chug along for some time I would recommend drinking it over the next five years before the fruit fades too much and the spirits take over.

2000 Domaine Les Pallieres, Gigondas – $33
Imported by Kermit Lynch.  True to my old note the nose is very earthy and rustic with lean fruit.  In the mouth the red fruit mixes with notes of minestrone soup, hints of ripeness and a healthy dose of fine+ drying tannins which cover the lips.  The higher-toned red fruit becomes lifted towards the finish leaving impressions of some minerals.  A solid drink that may be drunk without thought or a good precursor to better quality Gigondas.  Now-2017.

1983 Harvey’s Vintage Port – $103 (available in Switzerland!)
Imported by Heublein.  This is a Martinez Vintage Port.  There is a nose of cedar, tobacco, and hints of sweetness similar to BBQ bark.  In the mouth the black cherry are sweet at first with spices developing as the flavors expand in the mouth.  The first half is subtly complex.  The finish starts off spicy before the spirit reveals itself.  The flavors thin a bit in the finish with evidence of heat but the aftertaste is pleasing.  This bottle is comfortably within its mature plateau.  Now-2017.

Three Enjoyable Wines Under $12

I recently picked up these selections from MacArthurs.  After I had picked up the bottles I specifically wanted, Phil pointed out the Moulin de Gassac and Duorum as recent affordable additions to the shelves.  John pointed at the Coriole.  I must admit I was a bit sceptical about the Coriole with it being a Sangiovese/Shiraz blend.  Perhaps this was due to a limited familiarity with their more classical Lloyd Reserve and Mary Kathleen.  But it was good, Jenn thought so too.  Both the Coriole and Moulin de Gassac have a couple of years bottle age on them which really helps.  The Coriole is in the vigorous midst of its prime whereas the Moulin de Gassac has peaked.  The Dourum drinks like the younger wine it is with Jenn finding it quite attractive.  Having just drunk the 2009 Dourum, Colheita I can taste the familial resemblance and am impressed by the quality and the price.  I recommend you try all three.  $31 for three bottles of interesting wine is a good deal.

2008 Coriole Vineyards, Sangiovese/Syrah, McLaren Vale – $10
This is imported by Robert Whale Selections.  This Classic selection wine is a blend of 51% Sangiovese and 49% Syrah.  The supple, meaty fruit show some confected notes before it becomes dusty and dark.  Some tart red fruit comes out as tannins coat the inside of the cheeks.  This pleasing wine has settled down from some bottle age.  The aftertaste leaves fresh flavors of menthol.  This wine is quite large in the mouth with a richness that belies the relatively low alcohol.  A good value.

2010 Duorum, Tons, Douro – $12
This is imported by Winebow Inc.  This entry-level wine is a blend of 50% Touriga Franca, 30% Touriga Nacional, and 20% Tinta Roriz.  The fruit is sourced from vineyards grown on soils of schist at altitudes of 400-600 meters.  The wine is aged for six months in 2nd and 3rd year French and American oak barrels.  In the glass the wine is a ruby color with purple rim.  The nose reveals powdery, fruity aromas.  In the mouth the flavors are fruity with a strong floral, black berry note that is quite attractive.  The flavors start off a tad soft before it becomes juicy with plenty of acidity and a good finish that is racy with black fruit.  This is ready for current consumption.

2008 Moulin de Gassac, Guilhem, VdP Hersault – $9
This is imported by The Country Vintner.  This wine is a blend of 40% Syrah, 25% Granche, 20% Mourvedre, and 15% Carignan sourced from vines on soils of Jurassic limestone.  The wine was aged 6-7 months in stainless steel.  The wine is a light+ ruby color in the glass.  The light nose started off with earthy, red fruit before revealing strawberry aromas.  In the mouth the flavors start off pleasantly ripe with black fruit that turns towards sour red fruit (but not in a bad way).  The flavors become simple but remain enjoyable.  There is a bit of sweet spice in the finish, some very fine tannins, and a smidge of salivating acidity.  This wine has entered its mature phase and though it is not complex, it is satisfying and a good value that should be drunk up in the near term.

Two Engaging, Young Wines

The Clos des Fees and Duorum are perhaps an unlikely pair to drink together but they were quite complementary.  Both are young, fresh wines that show delicate texture.  The Clos des Fees is juicy, showing redder fruit, and while quenching right now will develop over the next several years.  The Duorum, with its darker fruit, is purposefully structured for short-term aging but manages to remain fresh and satisfying.  I recommend that you buy both!

2010 Domaine du Clos des Fees, les Sorcieres, Cotes du Roussillon
Imported by Simon N Cellars and available for $17 at MacArthurs.  This wine is a roughly equal blend of Grenach, Syrah, and Carignan and that was aged for eight months in concrete tanks.   The red fruit is powdery with flavors of cranberry.  There is fresh depth, acidity reminiscent of sweet Mandarin oranges, which form a very pleasurable drink.  In the aftertaste, the acidity makes the back of the tongue salivate as floral sweet spices come out.  This will develop over the short-term.

2009 Duorum, Colheita Vinho Tinto, Douro
Imported by Winebow Inc and available for $16 at MacArthurs. Duorum is a five-year old project between Joao Portugal Ramos and Jose Maria Soares Franco.  This wine is a blend of 40% Touriga Nacional, 40% Touriga Franca, and 20% Tinta Roriz aged for six to eight months in 2-3 year old French and American oak.  The nose is a pleasing mixture of blacker fruit and floral notes.  In the mouth, delicate fruit follows the nose with dusty red berries, sweet spice notes in the finish before textured, drying-tannins coat the inside of the lips.  This tasty wine leaves an impression of freshness.  This is well-balanced and will develop over the next several years.  This requires at least one hour of air if you are to drink it now.

Two Exciting Iberian Wines

We drank these two wines last week.  Mas Sorrer is a new venture from Sara Perez and Rene Barbier, Jr.  Founded in 2010 this bottle of 2009 represents their second vintage.  Sara Perez is winemaker at Mas Martinet, Cims de Porrera, and Venus la Universal.  Back in May, Lou and I drunk a bottle of her 2007 Mas Martinet Bru.  Conceito is a relatively new winery where Rita Ferreira uses the fruit from her mother’s estate.

The Conceito is imported by Vin de Terra Imports and available at Chain Bridge Cellars for $18.  The Mas Porrer is imported by Domaine Select Wine Estates and available at MacArthurs for $14.  The Conceito is more intellectual and unveils itself over a few hours.  The Mas Sorrer grabs hold of you and makes you want to drink more.  I am really excited about the level of quality here at such an affordable price.  I rather enjoyed both of these wines and recommend them!

2009 Mas Sorrer, Montsant
This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah sourced from 10-year-old vines in the La Fuina vineyard.  This vineyard is located at 300 meters with soils of granite.  The wine is aged for 10 months with 40% in tank and 60% in 4-year-old oak barrels.  On the second night the wine was Rhone like with its ripe, robust blue/purple fruit that vigorously expanded in the mouth.  This is really good stuff with a yeast note and fine tannins that coat the lips thoroughly. *** Now-2015.

2008 Conceito, Contraste, Douro,
This wine is a blend of Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional and Sousao.  The wine is aged for 18 months with 30% in tank and 70% in French oak.  The nose reveals scented berries.  In the mouth there is a lot of dark fruit which is elegant, with a powdery texture and gravelly note that is quite nice.  This wine is very approachable with some grapiness, a slightly savory midpalate, and in the end there is a lot going on.  This might be better with a year or two of aging. *** 2014-2019.

Four Wines Between $12 and $15

During the early weeks of this blog, I once took a break from posting for two days.  This prompted my friend Lou to check in on me, to make sure I was healthy and still drinking wine.  I am currently flying to Seattle and have recently passed over Fargo.  I was too busy having fun with my daughter to write a post for today.  Fortunately, Alaska Air has excellent inflight wi-fi as I demonstrated from this post.  So here I am once again blogging from the air.  Jenn and I have drunk some excellent wines from Washington and Oregon this summer but the majority of these bottles comfortably cost over $25 per bottle.    For this trip I plan on tasting and buying wines under that price point.  In this vein, this post includes notes on four different bottles all $15 or less.

The Thorn-Clarke was purchased for $13, the Alpha Box & Dice for $12, the Quinta da Rosa for $15, and the Plungerhead for $15.  All of these should be currently available at MacArthur’s.  My favorites were the Thorn-Clarke and the Quinta de la Rosa.  The Thorn-Clarke strongly delivers on value and the Quinta de la Rosa is at a decent price.  The Alpha Box & Dice and the Plungerhead were both too soft, jammy, and too sweet for my preferences.  If you are craving a zinfandel blend then spend an extra $2-$3 to buy a 2009 Ridge Zinfandel.

2008 Thorn-Clarke, Shotfire, Quartage, Barossa
This is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Malbec, 18% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot, and 3% Merlot that was aged for 18 months in 85% French and 15% American oak. I first tried this at the Fran Kysela tasting held at MacArthur’s. We recently tried a full bottle that I had purchased that day. This wine has savory, soft, dark fruit with notes of olive. It is smooth, easy to drink with textured tannins, and supporting acidity. It is definitely an Australian wine and one that Jenn quite enjoyed. On the second night there were more blue fruits and the wine gave the impression of maturity beyond its age. *** Now-2015.

2008 Alpha Box & Dice, Tarot, Grenache, McLaren Vale
This wine is 100% Grenache from 10-year-old vines grown on hard red clay over limestone.This is very youthful and fruity with ample flavors of raspberry. A bit jammy in the sense of sweeter fruit, some blue notes, and plenty of acidity. Pleasant but not the most interesting. Drink with in a couple of years. * Now-2014.

2009 Quinta da Rosa Vinhos, Dou Rosa, Douro
This wine is a blend of 30% Touriga Nacional, 35% Touriga Franca, and 35% Tinta Roriz that was aged in French barriques. The nose was light with floral and fruity notes. There were flavors of youthful, purple fruit that immediately left the impression of being an easy to drink wine. With air a gentle, berry, ripeness develops with an enjoyable perfumed violet and lavender quality. The fruit becomes a mixture of red and blue flavors as tannins come out in the finish. *** Now-2017.

2009 Plungerhead, Old Vine Zinfandel, Lodi
This wine is 98% Zinfandel and 2% Syrah sourced from mostly 30-60 year old vines. There are ample flavors of jammy, soft raspberries and strawberries. The flavors are a bit sweet, with unobtrusive acidity, and some spice.  Sealed with a Zork, which is actually quite handy for resealing the bottle. * Now.

Dinner at the Historic Taos Inn

The Taos Inn has served as a hotel since 1936. The hotel consists of several adobe buildings, some of which date to the late 19th century.  Originally owned by Arthur Manby, the renters Dr. Thomas Paul Martin and his wife Helen, eventually bought the buildings, turning them into the Martin Apartments.  When Dr. Martin died in 1933, Helen decided to go into the hotel business and created Hotel Martin in 1936.  In the 1940s Sam and Mary Albright bought the hotel, renaming it the Taos Inn.  In 1946 the hotel was sold to Mr. and Mrs. Street.  They added the thunderbird Taos Inn sign (the first neon sign in Taos), a restaurant, and a bar.

The Taos Inn

Last Saturday, Jenn and I dined at the Taos Inn restaurant known as Doc Martins. The winds had died down, the smoke had cleared, and the intense sun had lowered in the sky. We sat down on the patio for an early dinner. I had taken a brief look at the wine list whilst my daughter ate an even earlier dinner at the Adobe Bar.  At the bar there were three opera students and their instructor from Santa Fe were singing for the first part of the evenings music. I perused the wine list to various arias. The list is fairly broad with selections from all over the world and deep vintages for several wines from California. There is a Mexican wine, several from Washington state, a couple vintages of Heitz Trailside, and irresistible vintage port. I knew I would pass on the New Mexico selections but could not decided what to drink. I decided that I would leave it up to the sommelier.

2003 Quinta des Roques, Reserva

When we sat down for dinner, I was again tempted to just drink a bottle of port with our meal. But sanity prevailed and  I chatted with the sommelier about what we like and with complete obfuscation from my indecision about what we wanted to drink (or was it oxygen deprivation from the 7,000 feet of elevation?)  we started off with Craig’s recommendation.  He recommended the 2003 Quinta des Roques, Reserva, Dao, Portugal. He was careful to ensure we were comfortable with the wine and price range. He decanted the wine and made sure we were happy.

Jenn and I started with the Rattlesnake and Rabbit Sausage along with the Chile Relleno.

Rattlesnake and Rabbit Sausage

Chile Rellano

Craig checked on us a few times and we chatted about wine. He told us the story about Mr and Mrs. Street building a bomb shelter in the 1950s because they were afraid that Taos looked like Los Alamos from the air. The bomb shelter now serves as the wine cellar so you can often see Craig walking off into the complex of buildings then returning with bottles in his arms. There is a wine fridge on the main floor, perhaps holding more popular selections.

Jenn with our five glasses of wine

After seeing us receive our appetizers Craig kindly brought out glasses of the 2008 Gruet, Cuvee Gilbert Gruet, Pinot Noir to try. He was very excited about this new wine and thought it is a great example of New Mexican Pinot Noir. We were excited to try the wine because we had bought a bottle in Albuquerque. We did open the bottle so I’ll post a tasting note later on. He also brought out a glass of German Riesling for Jenn to drink with her Chile Rellano.

We then ate the pork and trout entrees.

Pork Entree

Trout Entree

By the time we finished our meal the winds had died down, it was a comfortable temperature, and we kept talking about drinking some port. There were selections of 1977 Gould Campbell, 1977 Grahams, along with, I believe, 1966 and 1963 Grahams. The prices were on the low-end, if not lower than, the retail listings on Wine-Searcher. Craig explained that he and the owner review the wine inventory once per month and set prices to encourage people to buy wines. They like people to drink the older bottles. Some selections that have been recently drunk up include 1999 Havens Burriquet for $45 and 1999 Beaucastel, Chateauneuf du Pape for $90.

He checked the bomb shelter for half bottles but only found a 1988 vintage port so we settled on the 1977 Gould Campbell. We asked Craig if he could double-decant the port so we could take it back to our room. He was wary about the sediment but did a fine job of removing the cork and the sediment. He returned the bottle closed with a different cork, the original cork in one piece, a glass with the sediment, and glasses for our room.

I highly recommend the Taos Inn and picking wine off the list with the help of Craig.  The wine list alone is enough reason to dine at the restaurant.

1977 Gould Campbell

2003 Quinta des Roques, Reserva, Dao
This took a few hours to open up. Dusty flavors of leather, oak in this restrained wine. There are flavors of minerals and a light amount of blue fruits. Drying tannins in the finish.  ** Now.

1977 Gould Campbell, Vintage Port
Imported by Grape Expectations. We drank this over three nights. The first night it was expectedly showing restrained fruit and alcoholic power. It improved on the second night and was even better on the third.  Dark red fruit, spices, leather.  **** Now-2027.

DC Old Gems Offline

This past Saturday eight of us gathered on our deck for a casual tasting of 20+ year old wines. Present were Lou F., Joan R., Chris B., Marjorie H., Shane V., Denise V., Jenn, and myself. We drank the whites followed by the reds and wrapped up with the ports. We drank the red wines in vintage order. I didn’t take detailed notes as we were mostly standing around talking. The whites weren’t so hot but the reds and ports were very good. The 1964, 1966, 1970, and 1984 were the favorite reds of the evening. I love knowing that 40-50 year old wines can be rocking.

1983 Dr. H. Thanisch, Braunberger Jusser Sonnenuhr Spatlese, Mosel Saar Ruwer
1990 Louis Latour, Corton-Charlemagne GC
1992 Louis Latour, Corton-Charlemagne GC
We started with the 1983 Thanisch, it had a light petrol nose but was very dry and devoid of most fruit. With swirling you could coax more out of it but seemed stalled after half an hour. The 1990 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne was cloudy with slight signs of seepage and while drinkable, was not good. Sharp nose, harsh up front but suprising smooth finish and aftertaste. And the 1992 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne was crystal clear, assertive, some minerals very brutish slightly tannic but OK.

1964 Louis Martini, Special Selection, Cabernet Sauvignon en magnum

1966 Louis Martini, Special Selection, Cabernet Sauvignon en magnum
So then on to the Martini’s. Both the 1964 and 1966 were drinking really well and never faded off. The 1964 had the stronger nose at first. Lots of cab sauv cedar. The 1964 was softer, more mature, and all around integrated whereas the 1966 had more youthful fruit to it and some tannins. They held on all evening and were clearly well stored. There was 1.5 glasses left of each magnum that we drank the next night, still good but little versions of the night before.

1970 Ch. Pichon Lalande, Pauillac

1978 Ch. Pichon Lalande, Pauillac
The 1970 Pichon Lalande was lovely and in great condition. Clearly a very good wine from a very good vintage. Glorious nose, well rounded in the mouth, lovely and it was a step up over the 1978 which was a mini version. The 60s and 70s were the favorite wines of the evening for us. If you tasted these four blind you’d swear Martini’s were from Bordeaux (which is what I had been told in the past).

1982 Ch. Montelena, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
1984 Ch. Montelena, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
Then a big stylist change to the 1982 Montelena. An initially strong nose, cedar, some dust, earthier and more mature than the 1984. The 1984 Montelena was lovey with dark berries and shoe leather, still on the young side and somewhat primary and developed through the evening. The most potential out of all of the wines.

1990 Ravenswood, Pickberry, Sonoma County
1990 Ridge, Cabernet Sauvignon, York Creek
The 1990 Ravenswood sucked, not a bad bottle, stored in a cold room since release, but not good stuff. Disjointed roasted fruit, tannins, etc. I believe this was the first wine dumped. The 1990 Ridge was austere in comparison but after several hours it showed as a lithe wine with tart red fruit, ample acidity, well made, good mouthfeel almost still young with fine tannic finish. The 1990 was not as good as the 1960s and 1970s so I think it suffered in comparison.

1970 Warre’s vintage port
1970 Dow’s vintage port
And then the ports. 1970 Dow’s showed sweeter, primary fruit and the 1970 Warre’s was more complex, feminine, and interesting. Both lovely bottles of port. Jenn and I absolutely love vintage port and wish we could drink more.

1966/1970/1977 Graham’s/Taylor’s/Warre’s vintage port

This past Saturday we got together at Bell’s to taste vintage port. Present were Lou, Dave, Deniz, Todd, William, David, Dan, Joan, Jenn, and myself. We couldn’t fill the last slot so we left out the 1977 Warre’s.

I double-decanted all of the wines to remove sediment. The 1966s were tasted when they had 5-7 hours of decanting. The rest had 6-8 hours of decanting. The wines were tasted blind but had the vintage written on the paper bag. We each had a glass for each wine and initially tasted them from oldest to youngest.

A few quick comments as I hope the other attendees will chime in. The 1977 Taylor’s was an off bottle but all of the others showed very well. The 1966′s are more tawny in nature than the others which show a more primary nature. The 1977 Graham’s has tremendous potential. All in all, a lovely grouping of port with something for everyone.

The 1966's

Wine #1 – 1966 Taylor’s
This Oporto bottle had a fill level of bottom neck. The lightest of them all. A spiced nose followed by explosive, gritty fruit in the mouth, with some minerals and a bit of heat in the finish. This has nice structure.

Wine #2 – 1966 Graham’s
This UK bottle had a fill level within neck. The darkest of the 1966s. This had the most muted nose of the 1966s. There were soft fruit flavors, some minerals. It didn’t show as well as the Taylor’s and Warre’s.

Wine #3 – 1966 Warre’s
This Oporto bottle had a fill level within neck. This had a youthful nose compared to the other 1966s that was lifted with cedar and spices. Really powerful dark fruit, with some roughness, and minerals that continues to expand from the beginning. There was a sweet, spiced, tobacco aftertaste.

The 1970's

Wine #4 – 1970 Graham’s
This Oporto bottle had a fill level within neck. This sported a young, primary nose, more prune-like mixed with tobacco notes. There is a lot of power up front that makes way for a creamy finish and sweet aftertaste. Some residual sugar is apparent. It does not show the level of herbs/spices that the 1970 Warre’s does.

Wine #5 – 1970 Warre’s
This Corney & Barrow bottle had a fill level within neck. The darkest of the 1970s. A light nose, with a bit more stink, and spices. There is sweet fruit that fades around the midpalate then expands into a mouth filling aftertaste. The fruit is acompanied by lovely spice throughout. The aftertase sports dark fruit and shows more heat than the 1970 Graham’s.

Wine #6 – 1970 Taylor’s
This Grants of St. James’s bottle had a fill level within neck. This is the lightest of the 1970s. There is a powerful nose of brighter and red fruit. In the mouth the redder fruit immediately explodes into the mouth. There is some reisidual sugar and spicyness. The finish shows some heat and the aftertaste is the least complex.

Wine #7 – 1977 Taylor’s
This Oporto bottle had a fill level within neck. Sadly, this bottle was off. The nose was nonexistant. In the mouth the fruit is intialy spiced, nuanced, and perfumed but then the ugliness hit. It got worse with air so I stopped trying.

Wine #8 – 1977 Graham’s
This Oporto bottle had a fill level within neck. A medium nose of perfumed, gritty, blue fruit. Wow, this is huge in the mouth, sporting smooth, creamy blue fruit and sweet cinnamon in the finish. Pwerful and well-balanced, I think it just started to open up after 8 hours which is when I drank my last sip!

Enjoy!

Aaron