I think the note below from the discerning palate of Xavier Auerbach sums it up pretty well. It is a bit one-dimensionally raisiny, and one expected a little more from a famous name after 25 years in bottle. It finishes quite short.
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Dark blackish garnet coffee colored - full bodied, a bit of an edge of sweet black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of expresso, cedar and cassis and dark black cherry on the finish. https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2021/04/st-emilion-duo-for-tomahawk-beefsteak.html
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Friday Night Brown Bagger (J&J's): Double blind. Dark youthful color. Aromas of black fruit, blue fruit, chocolate and florals with a hint of raisin in the background. Clearly a port. Kirsch and black fruit dominates the palate. Good structure and fruit. Guessed '94. Lots of life left in this one. Personally I'd hold another 5-10 years, though having said that, it is pretty tasty at the moment. (J&J)
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Double decanted four hours before service. No alcohol heat to speak of. Moderate sweetness with some dryness on the finish, somewhat like Dow. Great fruit on the palate. Very easy to drink. Great with chocolate. These can be held for years still, or easily drunk if handled like I did.
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Decanted about 4 hrs. Which is probably too short. Color is still quite dark compared to many others from the vintage. Semi sweet figs and bramble berries on the nose. The palate is quite dry and full of youthful stone fruit and leather that dominates the mid and back palate. Licorice pops out as this slides toward the back end. Unlike many others from the vintage this still has a lot of youthful dusty tannins and good acidity. While more on the elegant end of the VP spectrum, this is one of the better from 1995. I am quite certain a longer decant and more cellar time will improve this already tasty SQVP. 92+/100.
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Sunday night football with Walter (Seahawks vs. 49'ers). Decanted 4 hours. From 375. Dark in color. Cherry brandy and Chinese spices on the nose. Blackberries and dried cherries in the mouth along with figs and a bit of mocha. Somewhat flamboyant and much better than I had expected.
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Not a blockbuster, but it pleases. I like the breadth of the fruit, which has both ripe and dried characteristics. I also like the complexity of the aromas, which include violets, black tea, and peppery spices. And I like the rather dry and tannic body. Drink now.
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A bit candied fruit on the nose. Full bodied with vibrant red toned fruit, good acidity and firm tannins. Still very youthful and in a very good spot. Great stuff.
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Consistent with earlier tasting notes. Dark coffee color - full bodied, a bit of an edge of sweet black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of expresso, cedar and cassis and dark black cherry on the finish. From a half bottle.
UWS (@ JB): Soft dark blackberry juice in the bouquet. On the palate soft blackberry juice as well, some chocolate, beautiful fresh acidity and soft, round tannin. Nice Port wine and ready now, but of course no hurry.
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Monthly Tasting Group EEE #044; Wine, but slightly different. (@ PV): In the bouquet dark fruits, caramel and some brown spiced bakery. On the palate dark forest fruits, some chocolate, good sweetness and acidity and tannin with still some bite. A bit alcoholic. Overall an ok wine, but not extremely complex.
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Opened to a dark inky coloring; Some hints of raisin but lots of dark fruit, chocolate and a hint of ripe orange. Fully mature, rich with the tannins having dropped to the wayside. Probably around its peak at 20 years.
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Not very expressive on the nose; lively and structured palate, firm and tannic, only off-dry, milk chocolate and some red cherry fruit, there are hints of liquorice and typical Warre-citrus, but overall this is solid rather than exciting.
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Deep red center, red rim with signs of age. Raspberries, blackberries, cherries, wet stone, a little citrus, a little wax. Sweet and smooth, cherries, a little mint, raspberries, dusty, good acidity and tannins still, black olives and a jammy finish. Very good mature port, definitely Warre. Good drinking now.
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Upon initial decanting, the wine showed as pretty one-dimensional. There wasn't much spirit heat and the flavor was very grape jelly-like. 24 hours after the double decant, the wine was showing better. The grape jelly flavor had melded with some acid coming out and producing a decent wine that is good to pair with either chocolate desserts or with Stilton. The alcohol heat appeared a little but not by much, so it's an easy wine to drink. This will never be a great wine, but it's ok for the price. Drink now while waiting for excellent wines to age.
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Deep dark red center, red rim with signs of age. Sweet, crushed blackberries, plums, stones, iron, a touch of violets. Smooth, blackberries and black cherries, a little smokey, good acidity and tannin remaining, perfumed, balanced alcohol, good length of darker red fruit. Drinking okay now, but will improve over the next 3 years.
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Opened during the Haggis offline last weekend. Not decanted. 2nd time I have had this and did not like it as much. More open and less complex than before. Notes of candied plums, coffee and a syrupy sweetness. medium bodied with moderate tannins. No heat or alcohol nuances. 89-90 points.
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Dark color. Notes of licorice, cassis and blue fruit turning grapey as it sits. Full-bodied with flavors of cassis, plum, blueberry, violets and kirsch. Medium finish.
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Consistent with earlier tasting notes. Dark coffee color - full bodied, a bit of an edge of sweet black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of cedar and cassis and black cherry on the finish. From a half bottle.
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PnP. Vigorous colour. Muted nose, fruit, alcohol, dried provençal herbs. Grainy tannins through taste and finish. Somewhat disjointed. Fresh fruit (strawberry) on taste. Will improve with decanting and/or bottle age.
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Very dark red; the edges are still dark red too, but showing signs of age. Popped and poured, cellar temp. Toffee and coffee in nose, but it needs to breathe a while to open. In the mouth, first taste is toffee, then rich, candied fruits. Sweetness shows through nicely, still some grip, but this is soft and round and ready to start drinking. A nice dessert all by itself. Lingering finish is very pleasant. No alcohol awareness in the mouth or finish. After just a few minutes open the flavors and nose are opening up already. Promises to be very nice tonight and tomorrow. Perfect for a night that should be -15 degrees F here in the great white north. Now to find a nice cheese.
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Dark fruit nose with dates, teak, coffee and slight medicinal liquorice. Sweet and fullbodied on the palate with some tannic grip and carrying acidity. Raisiny and figgy fruit with some dried apricot feel, leather and herbs. Long finish. Alcohol well integrated. An intense Port bringing definitely some complexity to enjoy. Nice.
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I found this on a shelf with a special offer for the 1996 vintage at AH. It had this tempting -35% sticker and I paid eur 19,99 for this bottle! It was a great vintage port and a classic pairing with some cheese (Munster, Chaumes, Old Gouda).
Lots of black fruit, chocolate and raisins on the nose. Full bodied and silky-smooth, almost off-dry and lots of ripe fruit. And a long finish. Nicely integrated already, but has the potential to mature for quite some time. Drink now - 2020.
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Unlike most vintage ports I have had with their ripe, raisin-fig tones - this exhibited flavorful forward fruits of red and black berry and currant with subtle accents of mocha, smoke and cassis.
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An excellent bottle of port that to me is on the down slope. I have probably had 8 bottles of this and I would say this was the worst one. It seems to be very muted (even after being open for some time) and much more raisin / prune flavors than I recall. Glad this was my last bottle. This used to be a fantastic bottle and a great value.
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Openned the bottle to have with a chocolate cake. Color was dark red and opaque, not very much light getting through. Initial taste was like sweet raisins and heavy alcohol, but figured this was from a pop and pour tasting. Let the bottle sit for 1-2 hours and poured another glass, shallow on flavor and still a raisin taste wtih a slightly bitter grape stem. Will try another glass after a day of decant and see what happens.
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Very solid ruby port. LOTS of raisins, with some hints of chocolate around the edges. Was a bit hot at first, but it developed and opened up over a few hours. Very enjoyable bottle.
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A very good bottle. Showing the same heat after a short decant time as the other bottles, but this blows off with time. Lovely dense, concentrated nose. Full of plums, chocolate and mint. This is the youngest showing on the palate so far. Fairly tannic and a sensation of crushed grapes, like in very young vintage port. Lots of plums again, some dark cherry and some pepper on the lovely long and warm finish. This port is amazing value.
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popped and poured, will save some for tomorrow. Tight, rich nose; some alcohol. Smooth in the mouth, but a touch of alcohol on the finish. Great flavor profile; long tasty finish. The alcohol will blow off and wehn it warms a bit it should be very good. I give it a tentative 90 pts. this was a great value back in the day. 2 bottles left.
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Opened last Wednesday, it initially showed not quite as good as earlier bottles. Slightly dusty, very accessible and a tad simple. Very nice for drinking, but not the 90 points I've awarded it before. We only drank about 1/3 of the bottle the first night and kept the rest in the fridge. A second try on Saturday was much more gratifying. Much more dense than the first night, dark and with a lovely freshness. Very good port with a bright future that fooled us the first night. It clearly needs more time.
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Yumm. I don't think that's an exccedingly helpful description, but by the time this was opened, I suspect this was my brain's acceptable summary of it. Take for what it's worth. I'm glad I was put well enough together to get the February 27th note down. One bottle left.
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Needs time, even with 8 hours of air. A baby compared to the 92 which drank superbly all along (and that I finished). It's big and brawny and slowly coming around
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No formal notes but this does seem to not be as good as prior bottles. I agree with Zweder in that this may already be mature, and it seems to have lost some of the complexity.
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Soft and friendly. Seems to be mature already. Soft sweet black fruits. You hardly notice the alcohol. So very nice drinking. On the other hand I miss some complexity. Maybe it will come with some more ageing. Have a few bottles left, so we’ll see.
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This wine is beautiful in the way a bonfire is beautiful-the smell, the sparks flying, embers burning, the heat, the atmosphere. This was exuberant, youthful wine that, with air, continued to take on more and more nuances...and became hotter and hotter on the finish. All the fruit is there in spades, with ample sour kirsch, blackberry and some tart boysenberry hanging by threads from a rather flamboyantly acidic and alcoholic structure. I foresee at least a 15+ year window ahead of this wine, and the sediment at the moment is quite fine and insubstantial. What really drove me to this wine was that while it is presently a bit disjointed, it has miraculous moments when the disjointedness is so much so that the wine becomes linear once again. During these brief moments, the wine displayed amazing precision and freshness, the fruits became more red and vibrant, and the finish delivered a more integrated and lush cocao, plum liquor warmth. Quite nice to drink after about two days in the decanter, but I would cellar this at the bare minimum another five years. I might even venture a suggestion to hold this another ten years due to the prominence of alcohol displayed on this occasion and the strength of the fruit and acidity. Thoroughbred SQVP.
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Very fresh and pure glass of port. Lovely, elegantly structured, with flavours of fresh dark fruit, mint and aniseed. Still very young and in need of at least 5 more years of cellaring.
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Tasted at the Dow's Port Lodge in Vila Nova de Gaia - Medium dark color. Still quite young looking. Nice semi-developed nose. Fantastic taste. Decent structure. No cloying chocolate aftertaste (a good thing). 91 points.
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WS top 100 wine of 1998. Tried 1 in Jan 2004. Full bodied with a candylike sweetness. Notes of sweet plum, creme de cassis and blackberry brandy. Not as tight as James Suckling noted in his review and it was drinking well. 92.
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11/28/2022 - Brussels 1049 wrote: 88 Points
I think the note below from the discerning palate of Xavier Auerbach sums it up pretty well. It is a bit one-dimensionally raisiny, and one expected a little more from a famous name after 25 years in bottle. It finishes quite short.
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11/26/2021 - jbaron wrote: 92 Points
Well that’s a good bottle of wine.
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11/14/2021 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com Likes this wine: 91 Points
Good vintage port drinking nicely now.
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8/15/2021 - Vino Me wrote: 87 Points
Opened by Kevin on his Sons 21st birthday. Lower tannins and a little cloying. Notes of prunes and raisins. 87 points.
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4/27/2021 - rmcnees wrote: 89 Points
Dark blackish garnet coffee colored - full bodied, a bit of an edge of sweet black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of expresso, cedar and cassis and dark black cherry on the finish.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2021/04/st-emilion-duo-for-tomahawk-beefsteak.html
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10/16/2020 - AllRed wrote:
Friday Night Brown Bagger (J&J's): Double blind. Dark youthful color. Aromas of black fruit, blue fruit, chocolate and florals with a hint of raisin in the background. Clearly a port. Kirsch and black fruit dominates the palate. Good structure and fruit. Guessed '94. Lots of life left in this one. Personally I'd hold another 5-10 years, though having said that, it is pretty tasty at the moment. (J&J)
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10/16/2020 - Border Boss Likes this wine: 92 Points
Double decanted four hours before service. No alcohol heat to speak of. Moderate sweetness with some dryness on the finish, somewhat like Dow. Great fruit on the palate. Very easy to drink. Great with chocolate. These can be held for years still, or easily drunk if handled like I did.
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8/21/2020 - cofidis2 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted about 4 hrs. Which is probably too short. Color is still quite dark compared to many others from the vintage. Semi sweet figs and bramble berries on the nose. The palate is quite dry and full of youthful stone fruit and leather that dominates the mid and back palate. Licorice pops out as this slides toward the back end. Unlike many others from the vintage this still has a lot of youthful dusty tannins and good acidity. While more on the elegant end of the VP spectrum, this is one of the better from 1995. I am quite certain a longer decant and more cellar time will improve this already tasty SQVP. 92+/100.
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1/31/2020 - jfkwines wrote:
Slightly corked. Will revisit
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12/29/2019 - mhudes Likes this wine: 92 Points
Sunday night football with Walter (Seahawks vs. 49'ers). Decanted 4 hours. From 375. Dark in color. Cherry brandy and Chinese spices on the nose. Blackberries and dried cherries in the mouth along with figs and a bit of mocha. Somewhat flamboyant and much better than I had expected.
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9/15/2019 - Theamaronefan Likes this wine: 91 Points
Cork was slightly flawed or the wine would have received an even higher rating. Elegant wine with sweet dark fruits, tobacco and graphic.
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5/25/2018 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 91 Points
Not a blockbuster, but it pleases. I like the breadth of the fruit, which has both ripe and dried characteristics. I also like the complexity of the aromas, which include violets, black tea, and peppery spices. And I like the rather dry and tannic body. Drink now.
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8/26/2017 - Henman wrote: 91 Points
A bit candied fruit on the nose. Full bodied with vibrant red toned fruit, good acidity and firm tannins. Still very youthful and in a very good spot. Great stuff.
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2/4/2017 - danstrings wrote: 86 Points
Some deep spicy nutty dark fruit but also some brettyness and tightness swirled in and out. Hmmm.
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2/3/2017 - rmcnees wrote: 89 Points
Consistent with earlier tasting notes. Dark coffee color - full bodied, a bit of an edge of sweet black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of expresso, cedar and cassis and dark black cherry on the finish. From a half bottle.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2017/02/after-dinner-trio-el-nido-jumilla-clio.html
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1/4/2016 - Troon wrote:
This bottle was on its way out. The finish was thin and short. Maybe it was a storage issue before I acquired it.
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12/28/2015 - twfwinedude Likes this wine:
A lovely single quinta Port. Very nice fruit, not too sweet.
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11/12/2015 - Zweder wrote: 89 Points
UWS (@ JB): Soft dark blackberry juice in the bouquet. On the palate soft blackberry juice as well, some chocolate, beautiful fresh acidity and soft, round tannin. Nice Port wine and ready now, but of course no hurry.
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11/4/2015 - Zweder wrote: 89 Points
Monthly Tasting Group EEE #044; Wine, but slightly different. (@ PV): In the bouquet dark fruits, caramel and some brown spiced bakery. On the palate dark forest fruits, some chocolate, good sweetness and acidity and tannin with still some bite. A bit alcoholic. Overall an ok wine, but not extremely complex.
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1/18/2015 - vinolovers wrote: 92 Points
Opened to a dark inky coloring; Some hints of raisin but lots of dark fruit, chocolate and a hint of ripe orange. Fully mature, rich with the tannins having dropped to the wayside. Probably around its peak at 20 years.
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11/22/2014 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 89 Points
Not very expressive on the nose; lively and structured palate, firm and tannic, only off-dry, milk chocolate and some red cherry fruit, there are hints of liquorice and typical Warre-citrus, but overall this is solid rather than exciting.
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11/22/2014 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: flawed
Raw and dry notes, cocoa powder, unpleasant, gets really nasty when it sits in the glass for a while. Probably brett.
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2/21/2014 - pdadams66 Likes this wine: 89 Points
Deep red center, red rim with signs of age.
Raspberries, blackberries, cherries, wet stone, a little citrus, a little wax.
Sweet and smooth, cherries, a little mint, raspberries, dusty, good acidity and tannins still, black olives and a jammy finish.
Very good mature port, definitely Warre. Good drinking now.
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1/20/2014 - Border Boss wrote: 87 Points
Upon initial decanting, the wine showed as pretty one-dimensional. There wasn't much spirit heat and the flavor was very grape jelly-like. 24 hours after the double decant, the wine was showing better. The grape jelly flavor had melded with some acid coming out and producing a decent wine that is good to pair with either chocolate desserts or with Stilton. The alcohol heat appeared a little but not by much, so it's an easy wine to drink. This will never be a great wine, but it's ok for the price. Drink now while waiting for excellent wines to age.
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12/21/2013 - pdadams66 Likes this wine: 89 Points
Deep dark red center, red rim with signs of age.
Sweet, crushed blackberries, plums, stones, iron, a touch of violets.
Smooth, blackberries and black cherries, a little smokey, good acidity and tannin remaining, perfumed, balanced alcohol, good length of darker red fruit.
Drinking okay now, but will improve over the next 3 years.
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12/3/2013 - Vino Me wrote: 90 Points
Opened during the Haggis offline last weekend. Not decanted. 2nd time I have had this and did not like it as much. More open and less complex than before. Notes of candied plums, coffee and a syrupy sweetness. medium bodied with moderate tannins. No heat or alcohol nuances. 89-90 points.
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11/30/2013 - AllRed wrote: 90 Points
Dark color. Notes of licorice, cassis and blue fruit turning grapey as it sits. Full-bodied with flavors of cassis, plum, blueberry, violets and kirsch. Medium finish.
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10/12/2013 - rmcnees Likes this wine: 89 Points
Consistent with earlier tasting notes. Dark coffee color - full bodied, a bit of an edge of sweet black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of cedar and cassis and black cherry on the finish. From a half bottle.
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1/11/2013 - rmcnees Likes this wine: 89 Points
Dark coffee color - full bodied, black fruits, layer of smokey creosote with hint of cedar on the black cherry finish.
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1/6/2013 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com Likes this wine: 90 Points
2nd day: better integrated, tannins smoother, but alcohol still sticking out. Better fruit expression merits a slightly higher score.
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1/5/2013 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com wrote: 89 Points
PnP. Vigorous colour. Muted nose, fruit, alcohol, dried provençal herbs. Grainy tannins through taste and finish. Somewhat disjointed. Fresh fruit (strawberry) on taste. Will improve with decanting and/or bottle age.
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12/20/2012 - stevenc.rees@gmail.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very dark red; the edges are still dark red too, but showing signs of age. Popped and poured, cellar temp. Toffee and coffee in nose, but it needs to breathe a while to open.
In the mouth, first taste is toffee, then rich, candied fruits. Sweetness shows through nicely, still some grip, but this is soft and round and ready to start drinking. A nice dessert all by itself. Lingering finish is very pleasant. No alcohol awareness in the mouth or finish.
After just a few minutes open the flavors and nose are opening up already. Promises to be very nice tonight and tomorrow.
Perfect for a night that should be -15 degrees F here in the great white north. Now to find a nice cheese.
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10/21/2012 - gpatramanis Likes this wine: 91 Points
Excellent. Good fruit. A little hot on opening, smooth by day 2. Still great a week later.
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1/16/2012 - avp wrote:
Dark fruit nose with dates, teak, coffee and slight medicinal liquorice.
Sweet and fullbodied on the palate with some tannic grip and carrying acidity. Raisiny and figgy fruit with some dried apricot feel, leather and herbs. Long finish. Alcohol well integrated.
An intense Port bringing definitely some complexity to enjoy. Nice.
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9/17/2011 - bcmatthias wrote: 90 Points
Nice, smooth finish. Ripe.
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7/9/2011 - overhill wrote:
School dinner fundraiser (7/9/2011) (Our house): Not my area of expertise, but this seemed very nice
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5/21/2011 - Henman wrote: 90 Points
Sweet smooth dark fruit,nicely balanced,rather primary.The alcohol is still well hidden.Seems to be in a good phase right now.Very nice.
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12/26/2010 - Jochems wrote: 91 Points
I found this on a shelf with a special offer for the 1996 vintage at AH. It had this tempting -35% sticker and I paid eur 19,99 for this bottle!
It was a great vintage port and a classic pairing with some cheese (Munster, Chaumes, Old Gouda).
Lots of black fruit, chocolate and raisins on the nose. Full bodied and silky-smooth, almost off-dry and lots of ripe fruit. And a long finish. Nicely integrated already, but has the potential to mature for quite some time.
Drink now - 2020.
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11/7/2010 - rmcnees wrote: 90 Points
Unlike most vintage ports I have had with their ripe, raisin-fig tones - this exhibited flavorful forward fruits of red and black berry and currant with subtle accents of mocha, smoke and cassis.
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5/23/2010 - Teamcrev wrote: 88 Points
Decent Port. Still amazingly dark. Make sure to filter and I would suggest laying it down for several more years.
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4/25/2010 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 89 Points
Typical off-dry and cedary Warre-style, juicy fruit, raisins and nuts indicate some evolution, quite tannic, good length.
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3/28/2010 - MWes wrote: 86 Points
An excellent bottle of port that to me is on the down slope. I have probably had 8 bottles of this and I would say this was the worst one. It seems to be very muted (even after being open for some time) and much more raisin / prune flavors than I recall. Glad this was my last bottle. This used to be a fantastic bottle and a great value.
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2/13/2010 - depdoc wrote: 88 Points
Nose of dark fruit, but not as much fruit in the taste. Minimal tannins.
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1/10/2010 - cjsavino wrote: 84 Points
Openned the bottle to have with a chocolate cake. Color was dark red and opaque, not very much light getting through. Initial taste was like sweet raisins and heavy alcohol, but figured this was from a pop and pour tasting. Let the bottle sit for 1-2 hours and poured another glass, shallow on flavor and still a raisin taste wtih a slightly bitter grape stem. Will try another glass after a day of decant and see what happens.
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12/31/2009 - jawlz wrote: 91 Points
Very solid ruby port. LOTS of raisins, with some hints of chocolate around the edges. Was a bit hot at first, but it developed and opened up over a few hours. Very enjoyable bottle.
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11/18/2009 - ronnieroots wrote: 91 Points
A very good bottle. Showing the same heat after a short decant time as the other bottles, but this blows off with time. Lovely dense, concentrated nose. Full of plums, chocolate and mint. This is the youngest showing on the palate so far. Fairly tannic and a sensation of crushed grapes, like in very young vintage port. Lots of plums again, some dark cherry and some pepper on the lovely long and warm finish. This port is amazing value.
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10/20/2009 - stevenc.rees@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
popped and poured, will save some for tomorrow. Tight, rich nose; some alcohol. Smooth in the mouth, but a touch of alcohol on the finish. Great flavor profile; long tasty finish. The alcohol will blow off and wehn it warms a bit it should be very good.
I give it a tentative 90 pts. this was a great value back in the day. 2 bottles left.
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6/13/2009 - ronnieroots wrote: 90 Points
Opened last Wednesday, it initially showed not quite as good as earlier bottles. Slightly dusty, very accessible and a tad simple. Very nice for drinking, but not the 90 points I've awarded it before. We only drank about 1/3 of the bottle the first night and kept the rest in the fridge. A second try on Saturday was much more gratifying. Much more dense than the first night, dark and with a lovely freshness. Very good port with a bright future that fooled us the first night. It clearly needs more time.
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12/26/2008 - jvogel wrote:
Yumm. I don't think that's an exccedingly helpful description, but by the time this was opened, I suspect this was my brain's acceptable summary of it. Take for what it's worth. I'm glad I was put well enough together to get the February 27th note down. One bottle left.
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12/1/2008 - teddemop wrote: 90 Points
Needs time, even with 8 hours of air.
A baby compared to the 92 which drank superbly all along (and that I finished).
It's big and brawny and slowly coming around
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6/14/2008 - MWes wrote: 89 Points
No formal notes but this does seem to not be as good as prior bottles. I agree with Zweder in that this may already be mature, and it seems to have lost some of the complexity.
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5/3/2008 - Zweder wrote: 88 Points
Soft and friendly. Seems to be mature already. Soft sweet black fruits. You hardly notice the alcohol. So very nice drinking. On the other hand I miss some complexity. Maybe it will come with some more ageing. Have a few bottles left, so we’ll see.
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2/27/2008 - jvogel wrote:
This wine is beautiful in the way a bonfire is beautiful-the smell, the sparks flying, embers burning, the heat, the atmosphere. This was exuberant, youthful wine that, with air, continued to take on more and more nuances...and became hotter and hotter on the finish. All the fruit is there in spades, with ample sour kirsch, blackberry and some tart boysenberry hanging by threads from a rather flamboyantly acidic and alcoholic structure. I foresee at least a 15+ year window ahead of this wine, and the sediment at the moment is quite fine and insubstantial. What really drove me to this wine was that while it is presently a bit disjointed, it has miraculous moments when the disjointedness is so much so that the wine becomes linear once again. During these brief moments, the wine displayed amazing precision and freshness, the fruits became more red and vibrant, and the finish delivered a more integrated and lush cocao, plum liquor warmth. Quite nice to drink after about two days in the decanter, but I would cellar this at the bare minimum another five years. I might even venture a suggestion to hold this another ten years due to the prominence of alcohol displayed on this occasion and the strength of the fruit and acidity. Thoroughbred SQVP.
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12/29/2007 - ronnieroots wrote: 90 Points
Very fresh and pure glass of port. Lovely, elegantly structured, with flavours of fresh dark fruit, mint and aniseed. Still very young and in need of at least 5 more years of cellaring.
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10/26/2005 - PortFanatic wrote: 91 Points
Tasted at the Dow's Port Lodge in Vila Nova de Gaia - Medium dark color. Still quite young looking. Nice semi-developed nose. Fantastic taste. Decent structure. No cloying chocolate aftertaste (a good thing). 91 points.
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1/4/2004 - Vino Me wrote: 92 Points
WS top 100 wine of 1998. Tried 1 in Jan 2004. Full bodied with a candylike sweetness. Notes of sweet plum, creme de cassis and blackberry brandy. Not as tight as James Suckling noted in his review and it was drinking well. 92.
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