Review 2017-082 «Specifics» Late bottled vintage • Vintage 2009 • 20% Alcohol • Dow’s (owned by Symington Family Estates) • Vila Nova de Gaia • Portugal • Widely available • Price ±€16 (37.5cl bottle)
STORY. Late bottled vintage means that it is a mixture of different ports from the same year, which subsequently mature for 4-6 years before bottling. As stated on their website, the vintage is “from two of the best vineyards in the Douro Valley that also produce Dow’s Vintage Ports: Quinta do Bomfim, old vines on stone-walled terraces. Quinta Senhora da Ribeira, remote mountain vineyards in the Upper Douro”.
TASTING NOTES
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APPEARANCE. Port bottles always posses a certain amount of class. I don’t know what it is, but they have it. Colour of the liquid is adorable, at least for me. Brownish, red colour, and only a bit of purple. Reasonably light colour in fact.
NOSE. Shy, mild, round. Kind of a port-light. Notes of raspberries, some strawberries, a few other berries. They were scarce with putting the fruit into this one. Diluted berry sauce. No intenseness in the nose. Still a nice nose though.
TASTE. It starts with some tannins, but those fade away quickly. Diluted raspberry juice, and I think somebody accidentally dropped a tiny piece of strawberry in it. Goes down very easily. Crisp, light, fresh.
VERDICT. This is one for the summer, and perfectly fit for high temperatures and lazy afternoons. So are you craving for raspberry laziness? You should take this easy laid-back port.
Recommended for a lazy summer afternoon.
A bottle of this was purchased from Gall & Gall!
«What others say»
- Robert Parker @thewineadvocate: “it is still big and burly with some tannic pop on the finish” Score: 90/100
- @Drinkhacker: “It’s lacking the brooding depth of a vintage port, but that’s kind of the point, isn’t it? A terrific value” Score: A-