From 375ml. Cork was completely saturated, but came out intact with a Durand. Translucent light ruby in the glass. Fruit and raisin notes. Paired well with molten lava cake.
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375 ml bottle was at mid shoulder, cork was seriously degraded with obvious leakage. Color is a light orange tawny. The nose is all tertiary, mature cherry, light florals, dried cranberry, walnuts. Would have liked a bit more. On the palate, a beautiful sweetness. Some red fruit still left, but more powerful notes of walnut liqueur, dried prunes, raspberry syrup. A relatively short finish and a bit thin. This was very pleasant, especially given the fill level and half bottle size. A bit over the hill I think, likely better from a 750 ml.
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Deep plum color, clear at the rim. Fruit still kicking. More stewed prunes than I expected from Dow’s, and less of the classic nutty flavors that marks the house for me. For this vintage (from memory), I prefer Warre’s.
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The Columbia Group - Two and a Half Years Later (Our Place): Decanted for an hour and a half with lots of sediment. Red fruits on the nose that carry over on to the palate along with some aguardente, spice and a small amount of black fruit. Almost seems to have hit peak and may now be slowly declining, or was it too much air, or not enough air?? Certainly enjoyable - especially with the Stilton and various forms of dark chocolate - but a bit short of the anticipated mark. May be best to drink up as we near it's 50th.
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From a bottle in fridge opened/capped a month ago. Signs of fading - surprising lacking body. Reminds me almost of a 75 or 83 vintage or aged tawny. Lots of kernel and spice. Drink to 2030, not one to age more. 91pts
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Really great port--opened when we discovered that some seepage was imminently becoming flowage... still, wonderful. Nicely rich and powerful, and thoroughly mellowed by age without feeling like it had completely run out of time
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Magnum purchased in 2016. 2 hour decant. Unusual nose of red fruits, pencil eraser and wet paint, though some of that blew off with more time. Rich palate of blackberry and black fruits with peppery notes and brown sugar. A peppery finish with white pepper and ripe black raspberry playing off the brandy. A very integrated flavor where it's hard to pick out the notes, but wonderful to drink.
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Brick red with first pour, cherries, smooth and mildly spirity. Quickly loses color and fruit, distinctly medicinal. Best if you can PnP or serve from decanter immediately.
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Fantastic port. Purchased on winebid.com and was on excellent condition with near mid neck fill. Decanted for ~ 1 hour. Still dark color with plenty of tannins. I expect this has another 10 years and perhaps more.
Cellared at home since its launch. Signs of ullage with a level at the top of the shoulder, which is hardly surprising given it's 45 years old. Medium, brick-red in colour. Expressive nose with the usual expected notes of black fruits and cedar. Medium-weight on the palate and despite still displaying its spirit base the fruit compensates and is silky smooth on entry. Acidity and fruit is well-balanced with the main notes being that of black cherry. Length is reasonable. I would say this is a wine that is clearly getting towards the end of its window and does need drinking up over the next 2-3 years; assuming this example is typical, nothing will be gained by further cellaring. Most importantly, do not over-decant. 1 hour is plenty. Any more than that and it will begin to fade. A really lovely port though.
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From magnum. Decanted to remove considerable sediment four hours before serving. Heavenly nose. Raspberry, date bars, brandied spice cake, cassia bark and candied orange rind. Shared this 45 year old port around the fire pit with eight friends who came to dinner and over the fence to neighbors on both sides, one of whom was celebrating a 47th wedding anniversary. So appropriate!
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Still dark burgundy at the core; very faint bricking at the edge. The nose is concentrated and syrupy, with notes of dark cherries and ripe bananas. On the palate, the wine is full and rich, but not distinctively port-like; one can almost separate out the added spirits from the underlying port wine. The finish is very warm, with some syrupy fruit that remains on the palate.
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Ruby color with just a hint of age showing. Spice but balanced. Exactly what you expect from vintage port, nothing jumps out. Has a lot of life left. Drank directly after opening. No meaningful change after an hour in air. Cork was about to go, openend just in time.
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Good cork. Bright colour. Some red remaining. No heat. Good weight. Prune on the nose. Clean. Not a lot of complexity. Never sure about the idea that Dow is a "dryer" style of VP. Finishes well with some firmness. Has plenty of life left, just not the most complex.
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Decanted for an hour, consumed over 2 more hours. This bottle still had a youthful element to its appearance, no garnet showing. It might have been expectation of something great. Nothing wrong with it, just no wow factor.
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Last tasted three years ago and this bottle was definitely much lighter. Still excellent, went beautifully with dessert since not as overpowering as before. Certainly in it's drinking window.
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Decanted around 30 minutes and then drunk over the course of an hour or two. Mildly disappointing and seemed a touch over the hill. Gentle, almost delicate; nice balance of sweetness and some pretty red fruit.
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Surprisingly light for such an old port. Probably past it’s prime, but still delicious and a perfect ending to a robust meal with lots of great wine - neither overpowering nor cloying.
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Bit of recent seepage, base neck fill. Crimson-garnet color shaded to cola, fairly deep. With 12 hours in decanter, an initial mustiness disappeared completely, and the initially harsh spirit receded to a tolerable level. A longer decant definitely would not hurt. Appealing and complex nose of mixed blue and red berries, fennel, caramel. Stemmy fruit and Christmas spice linger through the finish. The fine ripe fruit of the 1977 vintage is evident here, but the structure is fading and the flavor profile is showing early signs of maturity. But this is quite nice right now, entering peak drinking for my tastes.
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Tasted blind. Complex and elegant nose of plum, mint, and blood orange. Sweet fruit on the palate, balanced nicely with medium+ acidity and flavors of tart berries and plums. Nice, long finish.
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This wine was best on the 3rd day of being open. In retrospect, the first day this 77 Dow was a bit tight. More air and time reveals a more nuanced wine with a medium body and excellent mature port flavors with a nice long and lingering finish. Very nice wine I very much enjoyed and drinking well now with at least 24 hours of decanting.
Score 92-93 on Day 3
Johnny
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Opened with a few of the boys at Mike's just because. After the 43 year old nose cleaned up a bit this was very enjoyable. Bottle got better and better the longer it was opened. Wasn't that hard for the five of us to finish this off. The wine is right in a sweet spot and this bottle felt like it was only going to get better over the next 10+ years.
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First bottle from case. Decanted for 2 hours. Probably not long enough. Profile still seemingly quite young, although drinking quite well now: dark cherry, liquorice with hints of cedar, chocolate and figs. Seemed to lack a bit of complexity but it may be it just needed more time to open up. Promising ****++
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This was a leaker... not a terrible leaker, but I felt that it should be opened. Lot's of sugary residue under the capsule. Actually has a pretty good cork. Very dark color. Smokey cherries and old mahogany nose. Full bodied. Big fruity entry. Huge mid palate. Very long, juicy finish. It's so smooth now, but ... when you wait... there are still some substantial tannins in the finish. There was no heat what so ever. I think that those tannins are good because they reign in the sweetness. Just an amazing Port entering into its early maturity. Wonderful! 94 points.
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In a Galaxy Far, Far Away - Richebourg ! (Vancouver, BC, Canada): Medium amber with sun dried figs and bergamot on the nose. Balanced alcohol/acid with a powerful silky sweet mélange of stewed Damson plums, candied dried Stella cherries and dark Valrhona chocolate on the palate that explodes out to an impressive resilient delectable finish!
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IWFSC Virtual take out dinner: Decanted for six hours, brilliant color with a cherry shade. Floral, some spice, orange peel, pretty damn good. Share with 2 other couples.
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Dinner with Pinheiro’s (Our house): Drank from a 375ml, signs of seepage, crumbly cork. Double decanted over 3 hours. Nose was a little reticent at first with a faint whiff of chlorine, color was very translucent brown, none of which filled me with hope... but in the mouth this was still a huge wine! Melted raisins, aniseed, cedar wood... lovely.
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The cork broke halfway out but all came out fine. The screen caught a little cork bits and all was good. Very light color almost like a Rosé. It is a half bottle so I had expected it to be more mature. Much lighter than the full bottles opened a couple of years ago. Warm, balanced acid and alcohol. Complex but still fruity. Despite being lighter, the flavor profile isn’t like a tawny that’s some very mature port have tended to taste. Bright but evolved fruit and complex. It isn’t for someone looking for a deep wine. Remember this is a half bottle. Your 750ml bottles will probably be deeper, darker and less evolved. This half bottle is the most evolved 1977 I have tasted.
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4th Saturday group "uptown" tasting (R&D's): Cherry, licorice, currant liqueur and cassis notes. Currant and plum flavors. Medium-bodied with integrated tannins, this shows nice balance and there's plenty of length. Excellent and still improving. 94+ pts.
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A private lunch with friends (at home): Purchased in 2013 at Christie’s in London, from the cellar of the late Paul Fentener van Vlissingen (Utrecht 1941 - Langbroek 2006) at Conholt Park Estate. A stunning bottle, mature but fresh, immaculate flavours, classic Dow, candied fruit and spices, flowers, cedar, wonderful balance and vibrancy, complete and harmonious, delicately sweet with gentle tannic grip, excellent length. A top 1977, drinking beautifully at 42 years of age.
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This bottle has the ”Silver Jubilee” label but as far as I know the wine is the same as in bottles with the regular label. And what a wine! This is simply amazing! Almost translucent ruby with just a hint of orange at the rim. Intense and detailed nose with ripe berries, light tobacco, liquorice, sweet sandalwood and hint of mint. I could go on... On the palate still fresh and very silky. Beautifully combines intensity and elegance. The old ”iron fist in a velvet glove” comes to mind. Perfect balace between acids, fruit, alcohol and sweetness. Very good lenght with more mint and spice, mingling with strawberries and currants. A perfectly mature bottle and my best port so far. Utterly delicious!
Ample and plump, with delicious red fruits. There’s some raisin and chocolate too. It is cut with a clean, savoury spirit and is harmonious and impeccably balanced. Drinking right in the zone.
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Beautiful mature Port. Drank with chocolate brownies and other chocolate treats - a delightful combination. I'm glad that I still have one bottle to go.
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Consumed over 5 days. The colour is still quite a deep ruby, though there is some tawny starting to creep in. The nose is fruit-driven, showing candied cherry and mint. The wine was a little flabby on day one, but by day two had developed a silky midpalate texture that was quite delicious. Relatively little sediment remained in the bottle. Given the deep colour, I feel it will continue to develop for some time.
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Still bright, not apparently over sweet or syrupy, although some caramel apple and candy floss flavours lurk beneath the surface in the back, with a hint of sweet citrus. The most striking flavours are of savoury umami- soya sauce and truffled mushroomy overtones. Quite interesting! A fun and easy to drink +41 year old.
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NobleRottersSydney - top 80s Bordeaux (360 Bar & Dining, Sydney): {cork} [Gordon] Decanted just before dinner. Aged nose; camphor, leather, furniture polish, nuts. A really chewy, savoury port, heady, with a mirror-smooth palate. Medium weight? Didn’t seem especially sweet to me. Is there some oxidation here? A hard one to call for me without much experience here.
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1977 and 1963 Vintage Ports... (Regional Wines and Spirits, Wellington, New Zealand): Tawny in colour, but with some ruby showing in the centre. Sweet and opulent, with plenty of caramel notes, extremely well-modulated. Soft and sew nose, with vanilla, balsam and spice. Tangy palatine refreshing finish, which veers towards drying. Yummy.
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Graham/Barton tasting-cum-lunch (Restaurant Bak, Amsterdam, NL): Magnum. Incredibly fresh and lively, quintessential Dow character, very intense and concentrated, delicately sweet, autumnal, crushed red berries, vanilla, spices, powerful and long. Trumps all single bottles I have tasted so far.
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Light ruby color, and in a wonderful place. All the brawny edges are gone, and a light and elegant wine is what remains. Everything has mellowed, and it is better for it. Still plenty of red fruits along with some mature notes of roasted nuts and earth. Paired beautifully with Stilton & Roquefort, but the Stilton was the perfect match.
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Minor cork seepage. 6 hours after opening: strong alcohol on nose and palate, unpleasant corkish nose (TCA?) 36 hours from opening (bottle decanting): a completely different game. All corkish taste is gone, the aggressive spirity elements have settled down and I can finally appreciate a true fine port. Guess this still has many years ahead, if properly stored. On a different note: may this bottle have a lead based foil ?
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1977 Vintage Ports from MG (P81): Lovely and complex nose that indicates a fully mature wine. There is a touch of sweet plum fruit left but overall it seems a bit to "simple" and not complex enough. It is very sweet and perfectly mature but it didn't really excite me. From MG.
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2017 New York Wine Experience Trip; 10/16/2017-10/25/2017 (New York City, NY): From an "ex-château" bottle provided by Rupert Symington, this medium amber elixer is firing on all cylinders. Red cherries, stewed plums, walnuts, dark chocolate and Provençal herbs jump from the glass, followed by similar flavors on a full-bodied, silky-textured, sweet palate. There is a beautiful fruit/alcohol/sweetness balance here that is hard to resist. The solid middle palate leads to a lengthy finish that has a floral twist. This Port begs to be enjoyed at home, sitting by the holiday fireplace. Drink now-2045.
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Steve & Ivor's 40th birthday dinner. Cork was saturated. Not the best bottle, very little nose, palate was great, sweet fruit, balanced, not too much alcohol, long finish.
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So refined. Beautifully integrated. No burn, nor heat. Really delicious. Something to keep trying to find if you can. Classic Stilton pairing worked out really well. A mild version of the cheese will help the wine. Nice wine!
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Terroir-istes International - Portugal, Port (Groot Constantia): (Tasted Blind): A mid-tawny to garnet colour with an intensely complex nose showcasing ripe red and black fruits and tertiary notes: dried figs, caramelized notes, prunes, black cherries, and herbs with Christmas cake. For me, it has a delightful gentleness to the spirit, whereas others found it more fiery. The palate exhibits a lightness and deftness of touch, accompanied by deep, complex nuances that give a captivating presence lasting long onto the finish. The wine is round, soft, silky, and sublime, with fresh acidity and closing with chocolate, potpourri, prunes, and light toast.
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FTLOP 12th Anniversary; 7/21/2017-7/23/2017 (Seattle, Washington): Transparent dark center. Amber-brown in color. A touch of rubbing alcohol or aguardiente on the nose. Red fruit - strawberries and pomegranate - with some noticeable alcohol on the long finish.
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40th Anniversary Magnum Party; 6/3/2017-6/4/2017 (R&D's): From magnum, leftover from the prior night. Vastly improved since last night. Aromas of cherry, violets and currants with Asian spice undertones. Cherry and macerated red berry fruit on the palate, with currant and spice tones in the finish. Long and balanced; none of the heat or alcohol from the previous evening. Gorgeous.
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40th Anniversary Magnum Party; 6/3/2017-6/4/2017 (R&D's): From magnum. This was decanted off its sediment about five hours before it was served. At that point, there were very pretty cherry and violet notes. A few hours later, only the alcohol was noticeable. Hot and alcoholic, not very pleasurable.
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Dark thick and syrupy, full bodied, essence of cognac laced black currants, stewed prunes, dried fig fruits with tones of expresso, anise and hint of kirsch on a tongue coated finish.
This bottle was far too spirity with a bit of funk that never blew off after 10 hours decanting. Classic 1977 on the palate, but the alcohol on the nose and following was overpowering. Not the typical showing for this wine. Not rated.
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Fully mature, light>medium bodied, with plenty of EtOH rendering this a bit unbalanced. Translucent ruby, well-bricked. No primary notes remain, this is at peak, perhaps even slightly past (this bottle, anyway). Decanted for sediment on Thursday and allowed to breathe in decanter for 5 hours, this was returned to bottle and served on Saturday, non-blind. This bottle was a reminder that Port wines have become a little out of my (alcohol tolerance) league. That said, it was tasty, in a mature, fine way; a moderate glass is plenty (if only I'd followed my own advice. Sigh). Drink now.
Loads of sediment. Loads. Cork and fill in vg cond, held since release.
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pale, translucent ruby w/copper-colored highlights at rim; roasted nuts, subtle licorice nose; mature & elegant on palate, quite refined, delicate & pure; not the most powerful example, but a rewarding conclusion to Christmas supper that stimulated much reminiscent conversation around the table on its vintage. purchased on release, in the early stages of this affliction.
note, edit 12/30/16 : have read of high incidence of tca w/this bottle (as high as 80%). decanted for 3 hours, then consumed over another hour, with no evidence of corkiness. a fine, rewarding bottle.
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Very pale nearly translucent ruby-red with faint brown hues; heady with raisins, dessicated cherry, light burnished notes, super silky, youthful, strong alcohol, medium sweet and, not heavy or gooey at all. Good, but seemed to lack depth, complexity. This was the only house (of the big 5) not represented at our Vintage Port tasting in the Spring so was glad to have tried it. Had this the next night at 71 Above with the chocolate 3 ways dessert and it really shined--nearly perfect with the ganache and the brown pudding thing. Ultra Rare Bordeaux Tasting Class.
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Not the most powerful of 1977 vintage ports, but very elegant and drinkable. Nose of tobacco, dried figs and prunes, and ripe black cherry. Fluid mouthfeel. Moderately sweet.
This was the first port I strained through a paper coffee filter (Chemex, with pre-rinse). Worked perfectly in eliminating fine sediment (far superior to fine-mesh metal strainer).
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Random Tuesday night (Tipsy Tuesday?) (Riverpark): Poured from a magnum for 8 ppl (aka - there were leftovers). This is plum and prune and while it had been decanted for the whole dinner the alcohol was still burning off a bit. Very interesting wine, but as I had things to do after dinner ended up just taking a few sips.
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Tonged open but the cork was in good shape. Decanted for 10 hours before drinking. Didn't take detailed notes but enjoyed thoroughly. This vintage of Dow has always been hot on the nose to me but after the decant I didn't notice it as much. Also saved a glass and had two days later. It declined some but was still great.
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Ok, I like this port, but it is not my favorite. It has lighter red fruit, maybe sweet cherries, but not too sweet and earthiness to it. I do like its complexity and long finish.
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I opened a bottle of this last Friday and drank it over four days. The color is beautiful, like what we used to, in the day, call "burgundy." Remember those "burgundy" colored cars? (I had such a Toyota Camry at one time). So, this is definitely bricking, if not "bricked," and translucent. Palate is amazingly rich, with fig, chocolate (more milk than dark), sweet cherry. It's rather viscous and very lush. Some heat, too, but nicely balanced. Not much in the way of "grip," but there is a "dryness" that someone on the WS boards noted. There is still a long life ahead for this fine Port.
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7th of 12, drunk over 7 days, previous notes mixed with some flawed bottles - deepish dark red, brown on rim; enthralling complex bouquet, cherry, earth, tobacco, touch of mulberry; full, very long and persistent, not a bit too sweet, complex and expansive mouthfeel, nicely integrated now and not too spirity, a wine that has really come good only in the last 2 years and on this showing has years of development to come. These 77s were the much vaunted new vintage in the early days of my wine buying so I bought and tasted widely. They have never lived up to their early promise, whilst having all the right elements, until very recently! Indeed, a weak vintage like 83 was to be preferred for drinking and some wines like Fonseca are still a bit disjointed, but keep the faith! I find it both reassuring and rewarding that the judgements of nearly 40 years ago seem at last to be vindicated.....it repays the effort and expense of building a cellar over many years. Very fine (18.5/20) and possibly more to come.
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A gift to drink on Christmas Eve. Lighter color than I would expect for a vintage Dow, but with a lovely spiritous nose. Fruit has faded a little in the mouth, but there is still excellent balance and the finish just goes on and on.
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Note: This wine was open and decanted 24 hours prior to drinking.
Color: Light to Medium mature ruby red in appearance. Does not look especially deep or thick relative to other ports I have had in the past. Still looks moderately youthful for a 38 year old wine.
Nose: Aromatic in a large Burgundy glass. Not as fragrant in respect to the 1970 Graham I had last year but the but the perfumed port nuances come through nicely but are not particularly strong or overpowering.
Taste after 24 hours: Medium body with a sweet finish. Tannins and fruit are well balanced and this seems ready to go and will likely improve over the next 10+ years. This is a very nice wine and a pleasant drink today but the 77 Fonseca has more elegance and depth of fruit and the 85 Graham has better structure and a more intense middle plate for a relative comparison. I like the purity and sweet finish of this Dow and would rate it very good but falling short of excellent. This is a lighter style of vintage port. Will see how it does tomorrow but right now I would give it 92 points at most.
Taste after 48 hours: Noticeably better today with more body and texture in the middle. This will never be a heavyweight champion but rather a good middle weight with limited depth. The finish has moderate length and complexity. I think for a few more dollars I would rather buy a Taylor, Fonseca or Graham vintage port from a good year. I normally only drink port in the winter at holiday time and I really want something special. This is a fine port but it does not necessarily encourage me to purchase more. Definitely a nice drinker today but in the future I will stick to the blue chips.
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Much better than my last bottle. The cork was well saturated, but the wine did not seem to suffer from it. Medium red in color, with a garnet rim. Plums, black cherry, spices and licorice. Really intense entry with a lingering finish. the tannins are still present, but well integrated. At present the alcohol is a bit prominent on the back end, but this was a pop and pour and I expect this to improve with a few more hours in the decanter. Great precision and cut. Love this bottle. UPDATE: As expected, the alcohol dissapated with more air. Great showing for this wine.
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- Ruby color with slow forming legs. It's balanced and has flavours of blackberry, strawberry and raspberry with a medium/full body. Silky texture with a long finish - Did not like this bottle as much as the 1977 I have tasted in the past and I am not sure why.
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Most of what you might hope for from the 77 Dow except for am off puttingly spiritous finish - a couple of points docked as a result. By the glass at Bonham's new restaurant.
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This bottle showed slight signs of leakage. Decanted for 3 hours. Deep red center with a ruby rim. A slight garnet tint at the very edges. Strawberry fruit, cinnamon spice and a savory, herbal, camphor-like note. Tannins are well resolved. Good, but not really deep or long.
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A business dinner (@ Home): Pristine bottle. Double decanted. Silk and cedar, medium dry, classic Dow style, fresh and elegant, mature but retains its tannic grip, lovely flavours of red fruit and cocoa; hint of eucalyptus on the finish, very good length. It will dry out eventually, but I don't think my six remaining bottles will last that long...
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- Ruby color with fast forming legs. It's in total harmony and has flavours of blackberry, raspberry, black currant and sherry with a medium body. Juicy texture with a medium finish - Delicious port. Very polished and wonderfully balanced. Just perfect m
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Had this over two days. Second day was the best. The wine is integrated but still very primary and just starting to show a wide array of secondaries. I wish I had more to drink over the next 30 years!
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Top of cork under foil showed a little bit of oxidation. With foil intact, however, there were no visible signs of oxidation or seepage. Color was red, but somewhat light; thankfully, not brown. Scents were some light raspberries and caramel. Tastes were light raspberries, caramel and a little nutty. This bottle was not nearly as good as Fonseca of the same vintage.
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A real treat to get a glass of this. Brilliant nose of caramel and nuttiness and a bit of orange peel. The palate was similar to the nose, but there was a bit of spirit and a touch of heat. I agree with the very good but not great comment below. Lacked the concentration to take it to the next level.
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Bordeaux matters, along with Burgundy and Champagne and Port and ... (Ripple Restaurant in Washington D.C.): Coming from half bottle, perhaps this has aged less well than the Taylor Fladgate of the same vintage, with which it was paired over our dinner. I have had this vintage from both half and normal bottles in the past and seemed to have enjoyed it more in previous experiences. It was good, but lacked the depth and energy of the Taylor Fladgate. Having said this, these are impressions from memory, as I stopped taking notes by the end game of this most magnificent dinner experience at Ripple!
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A very good, but not great, vintage port. Cork soaked through and broke on extraction. Some seepage, but not much ullage, so not too worried. Threw lots of sediment, which wasn't surprising, color is lightening to clear ruby. A bit spirity, but otherwise nicely balanced. Enjoyed this, but it didn't move me. A steal at $17, though that was a long time ago! CT note #2,000.
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Low fill with obvious seepage. But wine seemedl unaffected. Best two hours in decanter with red/brick red color, powerful but smooth and viscuous with sweet marinated cherries on palate. Back in bottle and left open 6 hours may have been too long. More mahogany color and sweet sherry-like on palate.
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This was my second bottle of this in as many months. Much better than the first. The cork was in bad condition but it did not affect the wine. A very powerful wine. Started out a bit hot but mellowed out after several hours in the decanter. This wine was everything I would expect out of a good vintage port. I will buy two more bottles today.
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Showing very well. Lively, bright red colour, not even a hint of browning; smoky and cedary nose, slightly dusty, gains markedly in the decanter (leave it for 3-4 hours at least), ripe red fruit (plum, raspberry), roses and spices (cardamom, clove), fresh and clean; the usual, relatively dry style, energetic and powerful, still a good stuffing of plummy fruit, fresh and transparent, well integrated and life-sustaining tannins; good finish, no back-end heat, very good length, hint of menthol. Classic Dow, high quality, long life. Will dry out eventually, but time in hand. Drink now - 2030+.
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Spontaneous decision, so popped and poured. Violet-purple color. Nose of sweet plum, menthol, raspberry, heat. Deep plum flavor with soy and sweetness rounding out each sip. Alcohol noticeable but not too overt. Finish was only moderately long. Decant next time.
Inspired by a comment re: ports on WB, I opened this late tonight, the first Vintage Port I've opened in a number of years. So...on a pop/pour....
The nose is intoxicating. Nice woody port fragrances with a bit of lighter almost floral perfume. I could sniff this all night. On the palate, at least at this early juncture, not quite as alluring. Initially a bit tight/hot. Thankfully, even a short time in the glass serves to smooth this out. Relatively bright and youthful, with an interesting shot of cedar on the mid-palate and relatively long finish, which shows some tannins the longer it's in the glass. There will be plenty of this bottle left for Day 2 and 3 consumption, so I will look forward to checking back in later. I suspect this will improve with more air.
If I had more bottles of this, I would be in no particular rush to open them. As other reviewers have suggested, this has a lot of life left. I'm hopeful that more air will smooth off some youthful rough edges. 92+ for pop/pour current consumption. I think that the upside on this is significant if it settles down with time.
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Quite pale colour but no sign of brown or orange. Nose is beautiful, elegant and fine, floral as opposed to figgy. Not the most weighty Port but lovely balance, a dry 'Dow' edge on the first night, following evening this has rounded out and is now complete. Youthful with no sign of decay, delicious and fine. Moving into that lovely 'liqueur' stage of vintage Port and probably indestructible.
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Nose - raspberries, cream, undertone of spirit, pink bubblegum. Palate - blackcurrants and Ribena; mature forest fruits, cherries and plums; earthy; some spice. Warming and zingy (the latter not totally pleasurable). Longish finish.
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Decanted 6-7 hours. At times it seemed to have a slight note of cork, but so discrete that one could perceive as part of the aromatic complexity of an aged wine. Most of the time it was simply eminently enjoyable with a luxurious dark fruited nose and a complex smooth taste which functioned well with a number of Danish avant-garde cheeses. Mature perfection in a very lively manner after 28 years in my various cellars; will surely keep for at least twenty more years although I don't see it becoming better than it is now.
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NIGHT 1 - Too hot and the alcohol was too obvious. Night 2 - Scents of camp fire and chocolate covered cherries. The alcohol has subdued on the nose and palate now. It's become very pleasent now. Excellent.
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Lia and Shiu 1st Birthday: Still fresh nose with flower and hot fruit. Beautiful, silky smooth palatate - velvet. Some heat on the finish but long, balanced, polished, and refined.
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I was surprised at how youthful this seemed. A somewhat straighforward Port, with a good amount of heat to the finish. Not bad at all, but nothing to blow your socks off.
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35th Birthday dinner for the guys. Unfortunately, I think this had some cork taint. The nose still had a plum/raspberry liquor, with a pine needle undertone. The palate doesn't have cork taint, and is filled with a spicy, slightly tannic palate, filled with plums. Just a little sweetness. The balance is excellent. Long finish.
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Decanted off moderate amount of heavy sediment six hours prior to serving. Pale ruby-pink color with notable thinning in color. Aromas of licorice, cherry, plum, fig, Christmas pudding, and prune. Palate has licorice, fig, cherry, and plum notes with some heat evident on the long finish. With air, this gets more sweet red fruit in the mid-palate. If representative, this bottle is at peak and will have a long graceful decline from here. Drink or hold.
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Sampled 8/2/12. Had the bottle standing upright for days. Needed the strainer to catch a couple tablespoons worth of sediment. Lovely vintage port that just sings with red fruits. Smooth as silk. The alcohol makes the nose very expressive but it is not hot on the palate and extremely well integrated.
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JB @ 28-50 (28-50, London): Very full and slightly spiritual nose. Red fruit, a touch of spice. An initial hit of fruit but there's a medicinal, leafy edge. Green Nd pine sappy, reminds me of classy pine bath salts. Really quite interesting. I'm not a port drinker but this has interest. ****
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Sweet, ripe, red and black cherries, nuts, chocolate covered raisins, spice and a hint of caramel, soft, lush, ripe, spicy and warm, this is drinking well and when paired with Stilton and Cuban cigars, it really hit all the right spots.
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my first properly old port. interesting tawny nose of caramel. in the glass, 4-5mm clear meniscus with a transparent, brick-colored body. on the palate it started off as an interesting blend between tawny and ruby, but shifted toward ruby with air.
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A bit disappointing. It was after a lot of wine, which may have dulled the taster. Good bouquet of leather and raspberry. Good integration, but felt like it was starting to fade which shouldn't have been for a wine of this age. Still enjoyable.
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Classic Port 1977 Dow's. Half-inch of sediment. Decanted. Pale brick/amber color. Classic Port nose (mothballs, flowers, wood); balanced, long stylish refined velvet finish. Life left.
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Lys briljant, purpur farge. Krydder, fatspice, tørket frukt, toffee, men virker ikke veldig utviklet og ikke nevneverdig med sekundæraromaer. Utrolig flott myk og fyldig inngang, fin konsentrert frukt, fyldig midtparti med sjokolade, krydder, mørke syltede bær, litt kirsj/jordbær. Lang ettersmak på ca. 30 sek. Drikkeklar flaske på topp med mange år igjen.
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Nose - very very spirity. A little too hot to be pleasant. Palate - slight vegetal note in amongst the fruit. Very alcoholic - will it ever come round, or does the age suggest it has matured as much as it ever will?
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A bit funky on opening but after about 10 minutes it lived up to my expectations. I can't describe it any better than Richard Jennings did: "Dark garnet red color; rich berry, black cherry, black plum nose; youthful, black cherry, berry, blackberry, tart black fruit, fig, tart berry palate; long finish."
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A bit of an off bottle: While no obvious signs of abuse, this bottle drank quite a bit "older" than all my previous bottles. Not obviously flawed, but clearly past prime.
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Light medium red with brown edges. Sweet earthy, red fruit and brown sugar nose. Not overly sweet but quite rich, with a nice mostly resolved finish. Beautiful Port.
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Fainted red, yellow rim, 3. Paint-like nose. Well balanced elegant taste. Drink 2015 - 2025 I suppose this will open up in a couple of years from now, although it can require longer time......It is certainly made of the right stuff.
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A very nice and well structured port with a very warm spicey finish. It needs about an hour in the decanter before it is ready to drink. This port does nothave the body or concentration of the great Talorr Floodgates and really top notch poorts but it is a wonderful glass full
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Tasted from magnum. Light brick color. Flavors of nuts and raisins, with a smooth finish. Drinking well, but fading. Perfect with the chocolate bourbon pecan pie.
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Rated 95-96. Significant notes of raisin. Lots of tannic structure that will last for years. Still remarkably young. Lots of fruit, and a bit of alcohol. So incredibly smooth. Will only improve with age, and will likely improve, in my mind, to a 97-99.
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Opened with tongs, decanted for 4 hours. Paired with an apple galette. Still a bit hot after 4 hours but showing everything you would want in a VP from a great vintage. Still a bit young but very enjoyable. Caramel, a hint of vanilla, raisins and some sour cherry. Very long consistent finish.
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Sampled 8/6/10. Plenty of sediment as should be expected. No decanting time needed. Bring your strainer. A wonderful ruby color at the rim. No shortage of beautifully lawyered red and black fruits. Not a ton of glycerine and not overly sweet. A wonderful wine with a 30 second finish.
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Decanted 3 hours and consumed over two nights, stored at cellar temp between tasting. The 2nd night, the wine had completely integrated and was easily the best 77 Dow I've had. With Fonseca/Taylor costing $$$, this is almost as good and $80. Great QPR and hard to beat!
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A Providence, Rhode Island Offline (Blue Grotto, Cigar Master's): the 1977 Dow’s, Vintage Port showed serious class and breed with cherry, spice, caramel and burnt sugar on its nose. The palate showed cherry cough syrup, roasted dark espresso beans and dark, dry cocoa, but remained juicy and smooth. The finish went on and on with sour cherry and espresso notes.
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I thought this was an excellent port, smooth as silk with complex flavors throughout, full bodied with a great finish, flavors that i picked up were vanilla, butterscotch, milk chocolate, nut. -S
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Fantastic as before. Decanted about 7 hours and consumed over 1-2 hours. Nice berry nose. Very smooth on the palate with wonderfully soft tannins. Probably at its drinking peak.
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I found this Port a bit thin. Decanted for about 5 hours. Very smooth and integrated but flavors were all in the background. Decided on this bottle instead of the Grahams 1977 based on reviews that said the Grahams 1977 needed 8-10 hours in the decanter and I didn't have that much time. I found this Port enjoyable but nothing special.
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Drank with colleagues after a night of celebration. Lighter than I remember other '77s but still brilliant. The long cork was wet all the way to the top but once the initial musty smell cleared the flavors and nose came through loud and clear. Probably not getting any better but will be this good for a decade. Yvan (whose hotel room we were in) commented that six hours later his room smelled like a portuguse brothel. Not sure how he knows.
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In a beautiful place right now with a lively, floral spirit and loads of raisins, blood plum, chocolate and nougat traits. It has good volume, balance and it particularly long in the mouth. As well as it drinks today it is youthful and should still continue to develop.
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Birthday Dinner for Hannah (Boulette's Larder, San Francisco): From magnum. Color looked like a 20 year old Port, but the aromas and flavors were moderately sweet but very backward, stalky, and unintegrated. Not all that complex for a 30+ year old port. I would have guessed an early '90s vintage if I had tasted it blind.
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Ok, so I'm an idiot. I obviously need to learn how to prep a bottle of Port. When I opened this up initially, I thought it was flawed, maybe lightly corked. The cork was soaked through and leaking. Not as much depth or complexity as I'd expect on the midpalate. Heat and wood on a relatively short finish. Fast forward 3.5 hours later after sitting in the decanter. Yes, there's still a bit of heat and wood on the finish, but in general the wine has gained depth and integration. Also significantly more character on the nose. Still not the richest port I've ever had. It'll be interesting to revisit it tomorrow. Even better 6 days later.
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Color: Almost looked to be a tawny to me. Nice caramel color. Nose: Loaded with butterscotch, nuts, white raisin and vanilla. Taste: Flavors of vanilla, caramel and raisin. Very nice port but the finish was certainly hotter than I expected. Only decanted 1 hr. and the heat remained throughout the tasting. Finish was shorter and not as complex as I expected. Still a good port, just not a good QPR.
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Decanted 4 hours and consumed over 2. Easily, the best 1977 Dow's I had. Wonderful crushed berry nose. Big on the papale with more berry and a long finish. Soft tannins. Wonderful wine.
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Double decanted, cork was in perfect shape.Color was great, cherry on nose, good finish. Not a blow you away style of Port but a great ending to a great meal.
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Another leaking bottle. Fill is just below neck. Medium ruby color. Definitely showing some age. Much lighter color than it would be from perfect bottles. Showed fine on opening.. but after a few hours in the decanter, it now appears that it corked. It's mildly corked. It doesn't come through much on the palate, but in the nose it is definitely corked.
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Bottle leaking. mid shoulder fill. Still good color. Lots of fruit. Surpringly still alive. Good strong entry. Some alcohol in the finish.. but not as much as I expected. More advanced than perfect bottles (no surprise). But still very good.
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Decanted about 6 hours and consume over 1-2. Incredible nose of cherry and spice. Full and round on the palate with chocolate and cherry. Sweet finish. Love it.
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Decanted 4 hours and consumed over the course of three days, putting under gas and in the refrigerator each night. Nice dusty cherry nose with subtle flowers each night. The first night it tasted almost exactly like cough syrup, which I find somewhat disappointing. The second and third nights, it seemed much more integrated with more secondary notes (flowers, spice, clove).
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I had this in the traditional British port tasting situation, paired with Stilton and sitting by a fire. First the color was a brick-ish red with slight hints garnet. A tiny bit of alcohol up front and strawberry coated caramel at the mid palate. The finish was a bit short but added a strong note of vanilla and burnt caramel. It seemed as though the aging was a bit accelerated (most likely due to the 375 ml size) so I'm not sure this particular bottle lived up to it's potential. Perhaps I opened it too late (shame on me if so!) but I did expect much more out of such a solid vintage. Still it's difficult to dislike a vintage port paired with Stilton and a roaring fire on a day where the thermometer didn't break 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Purple-red. Sweet nose of mildly stewed red fruits along with some alcohol. Smooth mouth feel, but not quite velvety. Strawberries and heat in the mouth.
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My father gave it to me for this Christmas so I decided to drink it. Cork was in amazing condition only soaked at the very bottom so obviously this was going to be in great condition. Decanted through a strainer funnel to catch sediment, hardly any sediment which surpised me. Medium ruby color. Nose was all dark berries and woody. Dark plum and more wood flavor on the palate. This was truly remarkable and one of the best ports I have ever tasted. I am not a regular port drinker however.
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Port at Roy's: Light to medium red color. Soft well integrated tannin. Didn't detect alcohol on the nose but it's hot on the palate. Medium body, fine grain tannin. Low acid and bright red fruit with some baking chocolate on the finish.
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Big spice component day one. Nicely softened, good balance including the alcohol and acids. Not as sweet as expected. Gassed for day two. Spice faded out day two, but flavors and strucure remained strong.
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Portugalia. Double decanted about 7 hours earlier. Not at all spirity, only modest sweetness in the Dow style. All secondary flavors of spice and dark fruits. Drinking well, and will for some years.
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It must be getting cold as I opened this bottle and drank over the next two weeks. Great color and nose. Not much bite. Raisiney and prunish. I will want to stand some of these bottles up for a while as I want the sediment to collect in the bottle. Several bottles left and will drink in the future.
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Decided to open this up and enjoy with some friends last night. Cork was soaked through and somewhat moldy at the top under the foil. Decanted through a strainer funnel to catch sediment. Medium ruby color with minimal signs of bricking along the edges. Nose was all dark berries and wood, not necessarily oaky but just woody. Dark plum and more wood flavor on the palate. Not as sweet as I expected it to be. So smooth, no detectable alcohol which is an issue with most ports. Still lots of life left although plenty enjoyable now. Possibly should have been opened longer before drinking. Not blown away by the effort considering my expectations going into it and the price but a very good port.
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Drank to celebrate my 30th birthday and was quite underwhelmed. Didn't seem notably better than most Reserve ports. Just not very complex. Not a good value. Quite disappointing.
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I was prepared to be blown away, but wasn't. Still a lot of heat. I'm no expert on ports, but I think it needs more age. Flavors just didn't quite integrate.
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Ottawa Offline: DoctaP and the MWP (Restaurant Bocado's): Popped and poured. HHmmm.. This was an oddity. Some enjoyed it and others not. I was in the camp of those who didn't enjoy it. Deep ruby, clear edges. Very hot nose (Maybe VA?) Medicinal palate whit a hot finish.
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Dennis brought 2 bottles to a our Portugal wine tasting. One bottle was much hotter than the other. The second bottle was more balanced and still fruity. Nice easy finish.
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IWFSC Governors Lunch (Custom House): Drinking surprisingly well compared to the last time, perhaps it has just entered the front end of the drinking window? Nice round smooth with just a touch more raw elements than the 63, but still showing very well.
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Outstanding: from a Mangum decanted about 1 hour and consumed over 2 hours. Wonderful dusty cherry, prune/plum, and raisin aromas. A bit more fruit and less carmel than the first bottle, but really good.
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Outstanding: from a Mangum decanted about 2 hours and consumed over 1 hour. Wonderful dusty cherry, prune/plum, and raisin aromas. Generous on the palate with more fruit and subtle, tawny-like carmel. Long finish.
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Cork broke on opening - extracted balance of cork without any residue in bottle. This was a good bottle of port but woody taste overtones on the finish were too strong to make it great. Our last bottle - previous bottles have not had the same strong woody finish. Ready to drink.
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Rich & Dana graciously opened a bottle after dinner following the December Blind Drunks tasting. Aromas of dark fruit and berries. Blackberry and dark fruit flavors on the palate. Nicely integrated, and just beginning to come into its drinking window.
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'Steve Stines' 30th Birthday Dinner. Decanted at 7pm, consumed around midnight. Cork was a mess. There was clear signs of seepage (which is why I picked out this bottle) and cork broke near the end. Had to decant it through a sieve to get the pieces out. Sediment was a purple sludge. When first poured it looked garnet but actually darkened in the glass. Nose was very complex and intense, figs, prunes, fruitcake, spices, red fruits especially raspberry and walnuts. Off-dry, this was incredibly balanced, with barely noticeable alcohol. Colour me impressed.
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Medium garnet with amber rim. Nose is slightly minty, with red-current fruit, toffee, spices. Sweet and long with a slight mushroom impression on the back palate. Finishes with slightly bitter tannins. Probably can age for another 20 years.
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Almost impeccably balanced--showed a touch too much alcohol in the beginning, but settled down and was beautiful for the rest of the evening: round mouthfeel, but with nice acidity and plenty of heady fruit. Medium body, long finish. Excellent with foie gras, duck and, of course, Stilton. Decanted and consumed over 6-7 hours. Amazingly young for its age. Goodness knows how much longer it could last.
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Medium body with strong scent of figs. This 30 year old port has intense layers of nuanced flavors, excellent balance and a long finish.It is not as heavy as some ports but had lots of intensity and subtle flaovrs without being overpowering. It was ready to drink but will last a long time in the cellar. My wife and I had this with a nice piece of Stilton and it was thoroughly enjoyable. I had the same wine about year ago and was far less impreessed and I don't know why since the wine was ready to drink then as well.
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Color is light/medium garnet. Nose shows candied plum, fig, touch of char, and a significant volatile element. On the palate, redfruit is at the fore with a hint of spice, but there is indeed a noticable heat still present. Needs more time to integrate.
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Establishment's Second Birthday (Establishment Restaurant, Manchester): The Dow had a very figgy nose with blackberries and a blast of spirit. Very much in the Dow style, which, with every bottle of Dow's I try, I increasingly think is not for me. The 1977 still felt quite young on the attack. Very deep, chocolatey fruit, but also a lot of spirit. Good length. Could have done with being opened and more aggresively decanted rather earlier than it was (around 4-5 hours earlier). Very Good+
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This was fantastic. I couldn't believe how well it has aged. I woudl say that it still has at least another 10 years left in in (if not more). Classic Dow's.
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Decanted several hours but a little disappointed in that previous '77 vintage ports were much heavier and had better flovor and taste. Nevertheless, it provided a lovely New Year's Eve finish to a wonderful dinner albeit a somewhat lighter vintage port than previously expioerienced.
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A wonderful wine. Decanted 10 hours per Roy's advice, the wine gained weight and complexity until it showed a rich nose of cherry, blueberry, and chocolate with an intense, flavorful fruitiness in the mouth. Sweet, fruity, full and rich, it was the star of the tasting. It has many years to go (probably another 25). Very good acidity, and just a lovely wine. Purchased in 1980 for the astronomical price of $19.50 at the time, this wine makes me want more VP in the cellar. Jim's rating: Major Yum!
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After searching the Internet and reading Roy H's advice, decanted this for 8 hours before drinking, tasting every 1-2 hours. It was amazing how the wine opened up! At first, it tasted light, sweet, and grapey, not much else going on. But as time passed, the aromatics blossomed and the wine put on weight, became much richer. I have trouble describing the nose - lots of complexity, floral, mineral notes? The pallette is deep and rich with a long finish.
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Group #11, My #11 - Medium crimson with a hint of garnet. Forward aroma of red fruit and alcohol with hints of secondary tea. Fiarly hot with respberry liquier. 4/05
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Drunk outside Strawbery Fare whilst waiting for a table on my birthday. Not ready but elegant and tasty none the less. Super fruit - nice spirit integration - long supple finish. A bit of an (attractive) stalky flavour. Great bottle for a great surreal scene.
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2/18/2024 - Fugu Me Likes this wine:
From 375ml. Cork was completely saturated, but came out intact with a Durand. Translucent light ruby in the glass. Fruit and raisin notes. Paired well with molten lava cake.
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2/11/2024 - Burgundy Al wrote: 89 Points
Good Wine with an Exciting Super Bowl (The Krengels - Bannockburn IL): Walkaround tasting. Softened sweetness, good brightness, surprisingly lighter than expected. Always going to have bottle variation at this age, but this didn't quite meet expectations.
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1/12/2024 - JLCFan wrote: 94 Points
Cherry liquor, earth, liquorice and sarsaparilla root. Still quite structured but retains its vanillan sweetness. A joy.
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12/28/2023 - Bubblesearcher23 Likes this wine: 90 Points
375 ml bottle was at mid shoulder, cork was seriously degraded with obvious leakage. Color is a light orange tawny. The nose is all tertiary, mature cherry, light florals, dried cranberry, walnuts. Would have liked a bit more. On the palate, a beautiful sweetness. Some red fruit still left, but more powerful notes of walnut liqueur, dried prunes, raspberry syrup. A relatively short finish and a bit thin. This was very pleasant, especially given the fill level and half bottle size. A bit over the hill I think, likely better from a 750 ml.
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12/25/2023 - M.Batard wrote: 92 Points
Deep plum color, clear at the rim. Fruit still kicking. More stewed prunes than I expected from Dow’s, and less of the classic nutty flavors that marks the house for me. For this vintage (from memory), I prefer Warre’s.
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12/9/2023 - VlgJeff wrote: 91 Points
The Columbia Group - Two and a Half Years Later (Our Place): Decanted for an hour and a half with lots of sediment. Red fruits on the nose that carry over on to the palate along with some aguardente, spice and a small amount of black fruit. Almost seems to have hit peak and may now be slowly declining, or was it too much air, or not enough air?? Certainly enjoyable - especially with the Stilton and various forms of dark chocolate - but a bit short of the anticipated mark. May be best to drink up as we near it's 50th.
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8/24/2023 - JulianSkeels wrote: 91 Points
From a bottle in fridge opened/capped a month ago. Signs of fading - surprising lacking body. Reminds me almost of a 75 or 83 vintage or aged tawny. Lots of kernel and spice. Drink to 2030, not one to age more. 91pts
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8/13/2023 - fclarity wrote: flawed
Corked
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5/7/2023 - MAkita Likes this wine: 94 Points
Really great port--opened when we discovered that some seepage was imminently becoming flowage... still, wonderful. Nicely rich and powerful, and thoroughly mellowed by age without feeling like it had completely run out of time
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5/6/2023 - VAGenius wrote: 95 Points
Magnum purchased in 2016. 2 hour decant. Unusual nose of red fruits, pencil eraser and wet paint, though some of that blew off with more time. Rich palate of blackberry and black fruits with peppery notes and brown sugar. A peppery finish with white pepper and ripe black raspberry playing off the brandy. A very integrated flavor where it's hard to pick out the notes, but wonderful to drink.
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3/18/2023 - ArtF Likes this wine: 93 Points
Brick red with first pour, cherries, smooth and mildly spirity. Quickly loses color and fruit, distinctly medicinal. Best if you can PnP or serve from decanter immediately.
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12/24/2022 - Rwhfly Likes this wine: 94 Points
Fantastic port. Purchased on winebid.com and was on excellent condition with near mid neck fill. Decanted for ~ 1 hour. Still dark color with plenty of tannins. I expect this has another 10 years and perhaps more.
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10/20/2022 - nskelsey wrote: 91 Points
Cellared at home since its launch. Signs of ullage with a level at the top of the shoulder, which is hardly surprising given it's 45 years old. Medium, brick-red in colour. Expressive nose with the usual expected notes of black fruits and cedar. Medium-weight on the palate and despite still displaying its spirit base the fruit compensates and is silky smooth on entry. Acidity and fruit is well-balanced with the main notes being that of black cherry. Length is reasonable. I would say this is a wine that is clearly getting towards the end of its window and does need drinking up over the next 2-3 years; assuming this example is typical, nothing will be gained by further cellaring. Most importantly, do not over-decant. 1 hour is plenty. Any more than that and it will begin to fade. A really lovely port though.
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9/6/2022 - Neecies Likes this wine:
From magnum. Decanted to remove considerable sediment four hours before serving. Heavenly nose. Raspberry, date bars, brandied spice cake, cassia bark and candied orange rind. Shared this 45 year old port around the fire pit with eight friends who came to dinner and over the fence to neighbors on both sides, one of whom was celebrating a 47th wedding anniversary. So appropriate!
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8/19/2022 - ashaley Likes this wine: 94 Points
Still dark burgundy at the core; very faint bricking at the edge. The nose is concentrated and syrupy, with notes of dark cherries and ripe bananas. On the palate, the wine is full and rich, but not distinctively port-like; one can almost separate out the added spirits from the underlying port wine. The finish is very warm, with some syrupy fruit that remains on the palate.
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6/11/2022 - imsilver78 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Ruby color with just a hint of age showing. Spice but balanced. Exactly what you expect from vintage port, nothing jumps out. Has a lot of life left. Drank directly after opening. No meaningful change after an hour in air. Cork was about to go, openend just in time.
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6/9/2022 - rwpalmer wrote: 91 Points
Good cork. Bright colour. Some red remaining. No heat. Good weight. Prune on the nose. Clean. Not a lot of complexity. Never sure about the idea that Dow is a "dryer" style of VP. Finishes well with some firmness. Has plenty of life left, just not the most complex.
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5/8/2022 - Deegie wrote:
Drinks beautifully right now. Decanted for an hour prior to drinking. Shows its age but still has some life. Less bite and more complexity.
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12/28/2021 - VinnieVeritas wrote: 90 Points
Decanted for an hour, consumed over 2 more hours. This bottle still had a youthful element to its appearance, no garnet showing. It might have been expectation of something great. Nothing wrong with it, just no wow factor.
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12/25/2021 - RayOB wrote: 93 Points
Drank in Ireland
Full rich and lovely
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12/20/2021 - Skovbrynet wrote:
Skal have 2 timers luft
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12/13/2021 - SimonG wrote: flawed
Christmas Claret: Well and truly corked.
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11/26/2021 - jafny Likes this wine: 90 Points
Last tasted three years ago and this bottle was definitely much lighter. Still excellent, went beautifully with dessert since not as overpowering as before. Certainly in it's drinking window.
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9/18/2021 - NickA Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted around 30 minutes and then drunk over the course of an hour or two. Mildly disappointing and seemed a touch over the hill. Gentle, almost delicate; nice balance of sweetness and some pretty red fruit.
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9/17/2021 - grub94 wrote: 89 Points
For a 77 this was disappointing. Balanced but not the depth of flavors/aromas that I expect from this vintage. Drink up.
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6/26/2021 - TeamNorton Likes this wine: 91 Points
Surprisingly light for such an old port. Probably past it’s prime, but still delicious and a perfect ending to a robust meal with lots of great wine - neither overpowering nor cloying.
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4/10/2021 - petitblanc wrote: 93 Points
Bit of recent seepage, base neck fill. Crimson-garnet color shaded to cola, fairly deep. With 12 hours in decanter, an initial mustiness disappeared completely, and the initially harsh spirit receded to a tolerable level. A longer decant definitely would not hurt. Appealing and complex nose of mixed blue and red berries, fennel, caramel. Stemmy fruit and Christmas spice linger through the finish. The fine ripe fruit of the 1977 vintage is evident here, but the structure is fading and the flavor profile is showing early signs of maturity. But this is quite nice right now, entering peak drinking for my tastes.
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1/3/2021 - olalar wrote: 93 Points
Great balance and complexity.
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12/21/2020 - glou.sf Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted blind. Complex and elegant nose of plum, mint, and blood orange. Sweet fruit on the palate, balanced nicely with medium+ acidity and flavors of tart berries and plums. Nice, long finish.
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12/20/2020 - Johnnybegood Likes this wine: 92 Points
This wine was best on the 3rd day of being open. In retrospect, the first day this 77 Dow was a bit tight. More air and time reveals a more nuanced wine with a medium body and excellent mature port flavors with a nice long and lingering finish. Very nice wine I very much enjoyed and drinking well now with at least 24 hours of decanting.
Score 92-93 on Day 3
Johnny
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12/11/2020 - golf and wine wrote: 97 Points
Opened with a few of the boys at Mike's just because. After the 43 year old nose cleaned up a bit this was very enjoyable. Bottle got better and better the longer it was opened. Wasn't that hard for the five of us to finish this off. The wine is right in a sweet spot and this bottle felt like it was only going to get better over the next 10+ years.
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10/26/2020 - MAOC wrote:
First bottle from case. Decanted for 2 hours. Probably not long enough. Profile still seemingly quite young, although drinking quite well now: dark cherry, liquorice with hints of cedar, chocolate and figs. Seemed to lack a bit of complexity but it may be it just needed more time to open up. Promising ****++
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10/4/2020 - PortFanatic wrote: 94 Points
This was a leaker... not a terrible leaker, but I felt that it should be opened. Lot's of sugary residue under the capsule. Actually has a pretty good cork. Very dark color. Smokey cherries and old mahogany nose. Full bodied. Big fruity entry. Huge mid palate. Very long, juicy finish. It's so smooth now, but ... when you wait... there are still some substantial tannins in the finish. There was no heat what so ever. I think that those tannins are good because they reign in the sweetness. Just an amazing Port entering into its early maturity. Wonderful! 94 points.
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7/23/2020 - ricardito Likes this wine: 94 Points
In a Galaxy Far, Far Away - Richebourg ! (Vancouver, BC, Canada): Medium amber with sun dried figs and bergamot on the nose. Balanced alcohol/acid with a powerful silky sweet mélange of stewed Damson plums, candied dried Stella cherries and dark Valrhona chocolate on the palate that explodes out to an impressive resilient delectable finish!
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4/21/2020 - jlgnml Likes this wine: 94 Points
IWFSC Virtual take out dinner: Decanted for six hours, brilliant color with a cherry shade. Floral, some spice, orange peel, pretty damn good. Share with 2 other couples.
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3/14/2020 - portman63 wrote: flawed
Corked. Rare in a port for me.
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2/22/2020 - mp6283 wrote:
Dinner with Pinheiro’s (Our house): Drank from a 375ml, signs of seepage, crumbly cork. Double decanted over 3 hours. Nose was a little reticent at first with a faint whiff of chlorine, color was very translucent brown, none of which filled me with hope... but in the mouth this was still a huge wine! Melted raisins, aniseed, cedar wood... lovely.
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2/7/2020 - Wineteacher Likes this wine: 90 Points
The cork broke halfway out but all came out fine. The screen caught a little cork bits and all was good. Very light color almost like a Rosé. It is a half bottle so I had expected it to be more mature. Much lighter than the full bottles opened a couple of years ago. Warm, balanced acid and alcohol. Complex but still fruity. Despite being lighter, the flavor profile isn’t like a tawny that’s some very mature port have tended to taste. Bright but evolved fruit and complex. It isn’t for someone looking for a deep wine. Remember this is a half bottle. Your 750ml bottles will probably be deeper, darker and less evolved. This half bottle is the most evolved 1977 I have tasted.
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1/4/2020 - BradA Likes this wine: 92 Points
Just lovely. Mature but with plenty of balance and stuffing. A long finish that really jams! Drink now thru 2025.
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12/20/2019 - rocknroller wrote: 92 Points
Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party (I Nonni, St. Paul, MN): Very tiny taste. Delicious, balanced, in a good spot.
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12/7/2019 - WinoRick wrote: 92 Points
Fairly light in color and it has lost some weight/fruit over time. Nice but not as good as some of the prior reviews IHO.
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10/26/2019 - AllRed wrote: 94 Points
4th Saturday group "uptown" tasting (R&D's): Cherry, licorice, currant liqueur and cassis notes. Currant and plum flavors. Medium-bodied with integrated tannins, this shows nice balance and there's plenty of length. Excellent and still improving. 94+ pts.
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10/5/2019 - Puteljen! Likes this wine: 96 Points
3rd Annual Gentlemens Dinner (Villa Ekenhov): Almost as fantastic as last bottle. Fruit just a tad fainter. See previous note.
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8/24/2019 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 94 Points
A private lunch with friends (at home): Purchased in 2013 at Christie’s in London, from the cellar of the late Paul Fentener van Vlissingen (Utrecht 1941 - Langbroek 2006) at Conholt Park Estate. A stunning bottle, mature but fresh, immaculate flavours, classic Dow, candied fruit and spices, flowers, cedar, wonderful balance and vibrancy, complete and harmonious, delicately sweet with gentle tannic grip, excellent length. A top 1977, drinking beautifully at 42 years of age.
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8/20/2019 - jimcopland wrote: 93 Points
very vibrant at 42... juicier than Fonseca from the same vintage, more integrated than Warre... hard to put down
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8/14/2019 - Puteljen! Likes this wine: 97 Points
This bottle has the ”Silver Jubilee” label but as far as I know the wine is the same as in bottles with the regular label. And what a wine! This is simply amazing! Almost translucent ruby with just a hint of orange at the rim. Intense and detailed nose with ripe berries, light tobacco, liquorice, sweet sandalwood and hint of mint. I could go on... On the palate still fresh and very silky. Beautifully combines intensity and elegance. The old ”iron fist in a velvet glove” comes to mind. Perfect balace between acids, fruit, alcohol and sweetness. Very good lenght with more mint and spice, mingling with strawberries and currants. A perfectly mature bottle and my best port so far. Utterly delicious!
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6/22/2019 - tziemer Likes this wine: 96 Points
Great example of a mature vintage Port, very traditional, extremely long after taste, lots lots of sediments!
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5/26/2019 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:
Ample and plump, with delicious red fruits. There’s some raisin and chocolate too. It is cut with a clean, savoury spirit and is harmonious and impeccably balanced. Drinking right in the zone.
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4/25/2019 - W&FS Cellar Chair wrote: 94 Points
Beautiful mature Port. Drank with chocolate brownies and other chocolate treats - a delightful combination. I'm glad that I still have one bottle to go.
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3/29/2019 - Poussin Likes this wine: 93 Points
Consumed over 5 days. The colour is still quite a deep ruby, though there is some tawny starting to creep in. The nose is fruit-driven, showing candied cherry and mint. The wine was a little flabby on day one, but by day two had developed a silky midpalate texture that was quite delicious. Relatively little sediment remained in the bottle. Given the deep colour, I feel it will continue to develop for some time.
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2/10/2019 - Slammin Sammie Likes this wine: 97 Points
An absolutely spectacular port from a vintage year. As with all ports, enjoyed with a group of friends.
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12/25/2018 - Jayloop wrote: 93 Points
Still bright, not apparently over sweet or syrupy, although some caramel apple and candy floss flavours lurk beneath the surface in the back, with a hint of sweet citrus.
The most striking flavours are of savoury umami- soya sauce and truffled mushroomy overtones. Quite interesting!
A fun and easy to drink +41 year old.
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8/6/2018 - graemeg wrote:
NobleRottersSydney - top 80s Bordeaux (360 Bar & Dining, Sydney): {cork} [Gordon] Decanted just before dinner. Aged nose; camphor, leather, furniture polish, nuts. A really chewy, savoury port, heady, with a mirror-smooth palate. Medium weight? Didn’t seem especially sweet to me. Is there some oxidation here? A hard one to call for me without much experience here.
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5/24/2018 - Marc wrote: 93 Points
1977 and 1963 Vintage Ports... (Regional Wines and Spirits, Wellington, New Zealand): Tawny in colour, but with some ruby showing in the centre. Sweet and opulent, with plenty of caramel notes, extremely well-modulated. Soft and sew nose, with vanilla, balsam and spice. Tangy palatine refreshing finish, which veers towards drying. Yummy.
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2/20/2018 - F_&_M Likes this wine: 93 Points
Killer Port. Totally fresh. Lots of life left. Great balance of sweetness, acid, tannins, etc.
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1/13/2018 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 94 Points
Graham/Barton tasting-cum-lunch (Restaurant Bak, Amsterdam, NL): Magnum. Incredibly fresh and lively, quintessential Dow character, very intense and concentrated, delicately sweet, autumnal, crushed red berries, vanilla, spices, powerful and long. Trumps all single bottles I have tasted so far.
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12/25/2017 - MrOctoberfest Likes this wine:
Light ruby color, and in a wonderful place. All the brawny edges are gone, and a light and elegant wine is what remains. Everything has mellowed, and it is better for it. Still plenty of red fruits along with some mature notes of roasted nuts and earth. Paired beautifully with Stilton & Roquefort, but the Stilton was the perfect match.
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10/28/2017 - Luca 87 wrote:
Minor cork seepage. 6 hours after opening: strong alcohol on nose and palate, unpleasant corkish nose (TCA?) 36 hours from opening (bottle decanting): a completely different game. All corkish taste is gone, the aggressive spirity elements have settled down and I can finally appreciate a true fine port. Guess this still has many years ahead, if properly stored.
On a different note: may this bottle have a lead based foil ?
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10/26/2017 - canan wrote: 92 Points
1977 Vintage Ports from MG (P81): Lovely and complex nose that indicates a fully mature wine.
There is a touch of sweet plum fruit left but overall it seems a bit to "simple" and not complex enough.
It is very sweet and perfectly mature but it didn't really excite me.
From MG.
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10/20/2017 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 96 Points
2017 New York Wine Experience Trip; 10/16/2017-10/25/2017 (New York City, NY): From an "ex-château" bottle provided by Rupert Symington, this medium amber elixer is firing on all cylinders. Red cherries, stewed plums, walnuts, dark chocolate and Provençal herbs jump from the glass, followed by similar flavors on a full-bodied, silky-textured, sweet palate. There is a beautiful fruit/alcohol/sweetness balance here that is hard to resist. The solid middle palate leads to a lengthy finish that has a floral twist. This Port begs to be enjoyed at home, sitting by the holiday fireplace. Drink now-2045.
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9/30/2017 - Machiavelli wrote:
Steve & Ivor's 40th birthday dinner. Cork was saturated. Not the best bottle, very little nose, palate was great, sweet fruit, balanced, not too much alcohol, long finish.
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9/6/2017 - TXRhoneRanger wrote: 96 Points
So refined. Beautifully integrated. No burn, nor heat. Really delicious. Something to keep trying to find if you can. Classic Stilton pairing worked out really well. A mild version of the cheese will help the wine. Nice wine!
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8/21/2017 - Lord Rodney wrote: 94 Points
Fine mature port
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8/7/2017 - rikipedia Likes this wine: 95 Points
Terroir-istes International - Portugal, Port (Groot Constantia): (Tasted Blind): A mid-tawny to garnet colour with an intensely complex nose showcasing ripe red and black fruits and tertiary notes: dried figs, caramelized notes, prunes, black cherries, and herbs with Christmas cake. For me, it has a delightful gentleness to the spirit, whereas others found it more fiery.
The palate exhibits a lightness and deftness of touch, accompanied by deep, complex nuances that give a
captivating presence lasting long onto the finish. The wine is round, soft, silky, and sublime, with fresh acidity and closing with chocolate, potpourri, prunes, and light toast.
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7/23/2017 - theportguy wrote: 93 Points
FTLOP 12th Anniversary; 7/21/2017-7/23/2017 (Seattle, Washington): Transparent dark center. Amber-brown in color. A touch of rubbing alcohol or aguardiente on the nose. Red fruit - strawberries and pomegranate - with some noticeable alcohol on the long finish.
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6/4/2017 - AllRed wrote: 94 Points
40th Anniversary Magnum Party; 6/3/2017-6/4/2017 (R&D's): From magnum, leftover from the prior night. Vastly improved since last night. Aromas of cherry, violets and currants with Asian spice undertones. Cherry and macerated red berry fruit on the palate, with currant and spice tones in the finish. Long and balanced; none of the heat or alcohol from the previous evening. Gorgeous.
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6/3/2017 - AllRed wrote:
40th Anniversary Magnum Party; 6/3/2017-6/4/2017 (R&D's): From magnum. This was decanted off its sediment about five hours before it was served. At that point, there were very pretty cherry and violet notes. A few hours later, only the alcohol was noticeable. Hot and alcoholic, not very pleasurable.
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3/16/2017 - straight outta iowa Likes this wine: 94 Points
Double decanted a few hours prior to serving and poured from mag at a friend's 50th birthday party, the 1977 Dow vintage port was delicious.
Plummy and spicy. Very long, it just lingered on the tongue seemingly for minutes.
Fully integrated but still young, it made both the oenophiles and novices around the table smile.
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3/6/2017 - rmcnees wrote: 92 Points
Tasted at OTBN 2017.
Dark thick and syrupy, full bodied, essence of cognac laced black currants, stewed prunes, dried fig fruits with tones of expresso, anise and hint of kirsch on a tongue coated finish.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2017/03/otbn-2017.html
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1/31/2017 - RKatzDO Does not like this wine:
This bottle was far too spirity with a bit of funk that never blew off after 10 hours decanting. Classic 1977 on the palate, but the alcohol on the nose and following was overpowering. Not the typical showing for this wine. Not rated.
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1/21/2017 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:
Fully mature, light>medium bodied, with plenty of EtOH rendering this a bit unbalanced. Translucent ruby, well-bricked. No primary notes remain, this is at peak, perhaps even slightly past (this bottle, anyway). Decanted for sediment on Thursday and allowed to breathe in decanter for 5 hours, this was returned to bottle and served on Saturday, non-blind. This bottle was a reminder that Port wines have become a little out of my (alcohol tolerance) league. That said, it was tasty, in a mature, fine way; a moderate glass is plenty (if only I'd followed my own advice. Sigh). Drink now.
Loads of sediment. Loads. Cork and fill in vg cond, held since release.
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12/25/2016 - pigdaddy wrote: 92 Points
pale, translucent ruby w/copper-colored highlights at rim; roasted nuts, subtle licorice nose; mature & elegant on palate, quite refined, delicate & pure; not the most powerful example, but a rewarding conclusion to Christmas supper that stimulated much reminiscent conversation around the table on its vintage. purchased on release, in the early stages of this affliction.
note, edit 12/30/16 : have read of high incidence of tca w/this bottle (as high as 80%). decanted for 3 hours, then consumed over another hour, with no evidence of corkiness. a fine, rewarding bottle.
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11/19/2016 - peternelson wrote: 91 Points
Very pale nearly translucent ruby-red with faint brown hues; heady with raisins, dessicated cherry, light burnished notes, super silky, youthful, strong alcohol, medium sweet and, not heavy or gooey at all. Good, but seemed to lack depth, complexity. This was the only house (of the big 5) not represented at our Vintage Port tasting in the Spring so was glad to have tried it.
Had this the next night at 71 Above with the chocolate 3 ways dessert and it really shined--nearly perfect with the ganache and the brown pudding thing.
Ultra Rare Bordeaux Tasting Class.
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11/13/2016 - acidqueen wrote: 93 Points
Walnut, licorice, chestnut. Very very good.
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11/5/2016 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 91 Points
Not the most powerful of 1977 vintage ports, but very elegant and drinkable. Nose of tobacco, dried figs and prunes, and ripe black cherry. Fluid mouthfeel. Moderately sweet.
This was the first port I strained through a paper coffee filter (Chemex, with pre-rinse). Worked perfectly in eliminating fine sediment (far superior to fine-mesh metal strainer).
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10/1/2016 - CES911 wrote:
what a port should taste like. rich, long finish, wonderful balance, and lingers on the palate. Decanted and served. Star of the evening.
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9/27/2016 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Random Tuesday night (Tipsy Tuesday?) (Riverpark): Poured from a magnum for 8 ppl (aka - there were leftovers). This is plum and prune and while it had been decanted for the whole dinner the alcohol was still burning off a bit. Very interesting wine, but as I had things to do after dinner ended up just taking a few sips.
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9/8/2016 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 89 Points
Chocolate-covered cherry, fig, shaved wood, light leather, and mint. Rich and tasty but somewhat dull.
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5/20/2016 - floydtp wrote: 93 Points
Tonged open but the cork was in good shape. Decanted for 10 hours before drinking. Didn't take detailed notes but enjoyed thoroughly. This vintage of Dow has always been hot on the nose to me but after the decant I didn't notice it as much. Also saved a glass and had two days later. It declined some but was still great.
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2/20/2016 - JM_MadTown Likes this wine: 91 Points
Ok, I like this port, but it is not my favorite. It has lighter red fruit, maybe sweet cherries, but not too sweet and earthiness to it. I do like its complexity and long finish.
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2/15/2016 - Haggis Likes this wine: 93 Points
I opened a bottle of this last Friday and drank it over four days. The color is beautiful, like what we used to, in the day, call "burgundy." Remember those "burgundy" colored cars? (I had such a Toyota Camry at one time). So, this is definitely bricking, if not "bricked," and translucent. Palate is amazingly rich, with fig, chocolate (more milk than dark), sweet cherry. It's rather viscous and very lush. Some heat, too, but nicely balanced. Not much in the way of "grip," but there is a "dryness" that someone on the WS boards noted. There is still a long life ahead for this fine Port.
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1/1/2016 - JM_MadTown Likes this wine: 91 Points
On the nose, this port exhibited some mustiness. However, it was very good on the palate with dark red, sweet fruit. It was not too sweet. Very nice.
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12/25/2015 - liber Likes this wine: 95 Points
7th of 12, drunk over 7 days, previous notes mixed with some flawed bottles - deepish dark red, brown on rim; enthralling complex bouquet, cherry, earth, tobacco, touch of mulberry; full, very long and persistent, not a bit too sweet, complex and expansive mouthfeel, nicely integrated now and not too spirity, a wine that has really come good only in the last 2 years and on this showing has years of development to come. These 77s were the much vaunted new vintage in the early days of my wine buying so I bought and tasted widely. They have never lived up to their early promise, whilst having all the right elements, until very recently! Indeed, a weak vintage like 83 was to be preferred for drinking and some wines like Fonseca are still a bit disjointed, but keep the faith! I find it both reassuring and rewarding that the judgements of nearly 40 years ago seem at last to be vindicated.....it repays the effort and expense of building a cellar over many years. Very fine (18.5/20) and possibly more to come.
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12/24/2015 - Whidah Likes this wine: 90 Points
A gift to drink on Christmas Eve. Lighter color than I would expect for a vintage Dow, but with a lovely spiritous nose. Fruit has faded a little in the mouth, but there is still excellent balance and the finish just goes on and on.
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11/27/2015 - Johnnybegood Likes this wine: 92 Points
Note: This wine was open and decanted 24 hours prior to drinking.
Color: Light to Medium mature ruby red in appearance. Does not look especially deep or thick relative to other ports I have had in the past. Still looks moderately youthful for a 38 year old wine.
Nose: Aromatic in a large Burgundy glass. Not as fragrant in respect to the 1970 Graham I had last year but the but the perfumed port nuances come through nicely but are not particularly strong or overpowering.
Taste after 24 hours: Medium body with a sweet finish. Tannins and fruit are well balanced and this seems ready to go and will likely improve over the next 10+ years. This is a very nice wine and a pleasant drink today but the 77 Fonseca has more elegance and depth of fruit and the 85 Graham has better structure and a more intense middle plate for a relative comparison. I like the purity and sweet finish of this Dow and would rate it very good but falling short of excellent. This is a lighter style of vintage port. Will see how it does tomorrow but right now I would give it 92 points at most.
Taste after 48 hours: Noticeably better today with more body and texture in the middle. This will never be a heavyweight champion but rather a good middle weight with limited depth. The finish has moderate length and complexity. I think for a few more dollars I would rather buy a Taylor, Fonseca or Graham vintage port from a good year. I normally only drink port in the winter at holiday time and I really want something special. This is a fine port but it does not necessarily encourage me to purchase more. Definitely a nice drinker today but in the future I will stick to the blue chips.
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10/12/2015 - keith102 wrote: 100 Points
Smooth.......smooth.......fantastic
The wine looks ruby colored. The legs are slow. There is heavy sediment in the bottle.
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10/1/2015 - KVM wrote:
This glass of wine didn't get my attention, as it probably deserved. My recollection is of its balance and youthfulness.
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4/19/2015 - mdefreitas wrote: 94 Points
Much better than my last bottle. The cork was well saturated, but the wine did not seem to suffer from it. Medium red in color, with a garnet rim. Plums, black cherry, spices and licorice. Really intense entry with a lingering finish. the tannins are still present, but well integrated. At present the alcohol is a bit prominent on the back end, but this was a pop and pour and I expect this to improve with a few more hours in the decanter. Great precision and cut. Love this bottle. UPDATE: As expected, the alcohol dissapated with more air. Great showing for this wine.
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2/8/2015 - Marc S wrote: 90 Points
- Ruby color with slow forming legs. It's balanced and has flavours of blackberry, strawberry and raspberry with a medium/full body. Silky texture with a long finish - Did not like this bottle as much as the 1977 I have tasted in the past and I am not sure why.
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2/8/2015 - finewinebuff57 wrote: 88 Points
Most of what you might hope for from the 77 Dow except for am off puttingly spiritous finish - a couple of points docked as a result. By the glass at Bonham's new restaurant.
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12/25/2014 - djarcara Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dry for a port. Ready to drink, but not faded. Complex fruit, cherry, raspberry, fig, cedar, cinnamon, and vanilla flavors.
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12/19/2014 - SeanFoley44 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Amazing port. Had with with 83 Graham's. Drier style, fully mellowed tannins.
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12/17/2014 - mdefreitas wrote: 91 Points
This bottle showed slight signs of leakage. Decanted for 3 hours. Deep red center with a ruby rim. A slight garnet tint at the very edges. Strawberry fruit, cinnamon spice and a savory, herbal, camphor-like note. Tannins are well resolved. Good, but not really deep or long.
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12/4/2014 - liber wrote: flawed
2nd bottle slightly corked, again lovely underneath and seems more a point than very backward Fonseca drunk week earlier.
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10/29/2014 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 93 Points
A business dinner (@ Home): Pristine bottle. Double decanted. Silk and cedar, medium dry, classic Dow style, fresh and elegant, mature but retains its tannic grip, lovely flavours of red fruit and cocoa; hint of eucalyptus on the finish, very good length. It will dry out eventually, but I don't think my six remaining bottles will last that long...
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9/27/2014 - DK Amateur wrote:
Two bottles drunk on this occasion, identical notes. Gentle and raisiny, not very sweet, long. Very fine.
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9/21/2014 - Marc S wrote: 94 Points
- Ruby color with fast forming legs. It's in total harmony and has flavours of blackberry, raspberry, black currant and sherry with a medium body. Juicy texture with a medium finish - Delicious port. Very polished and wonderfully balanced. Just perfect m
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7/20/2014 - bonedocnine Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drinking great right now!
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6/28/2014 - Sixchips600 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Had this over two days. Second day was the best. The wine is integrated but still very primary and just starting to show a wide array of secondaries. I wish I had more to drink over the next 30 years!
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6/14/2014 - dougie Likes this wine: 94 Points
Blew everyone away. Perfect finish to retirement party.
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5/21/2014 - Ralph_ wrote: flawed
what a pity
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4/20/2014 - dase13 wrote: 88 Points
Top of cork under foil showed a little bit of oxidation. With foil intact, however, there were no visible signs of oxidation or seepage. Color was red, but somewhat light; thankfully, not brown. Scents were some light raspberries and caramel. Tastes were light raspberries, caramel and a little nutty. This bottle was not nearly as good as Fonseca of the same vintage.
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3/1/2014 - tate491 Does not like this wine:
A real treat to get a glass of this. Brilliant nose of caramel and nuttiness and a bit of orange peel. The palate was similar to the nose, but there was a bit of spirit and a touch of heat. I agree with the very good but not great comment below. Lacked the concentration to take it to the next level.
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2/22/2014 - AllRed wrote: flawed
4th Saturday Brown Bagger (Rich & Dana's): Just slightly corked. :(
A real shame because there was still some nice fruit coming through.
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1/9/2014 - PanosKakaviatos Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bordeaux matters, along with Burgundy and Champagne and Port and ... (Ripple Restaurant in Washington D.C.): Coming from half bottle, perhaps this has aged less well than the Taylor Fladgate of the same vintage, with which it was paired over our dinner. I have had this vintage from both half and normal bottles in the past and seemed to have enjoyed it more in previous experiences. It was good, but lacked the depth and energy of the Taylor Fladgate. Having said this, these are impressions from memory, as I stopped taking notes by the end game of this most magnificent dinner experience at Ripple!
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12/30/2013 - xwine wrote:
A very good, but not great, vintage port. Cork soaked through and broke on extraction. Some seepage, but not much ullage, so not too worried. Threw lots of sediment, which wasn't surprising, color is lightening to clear ruby. A bit spirity, but otherwise nicely balanced. Enjoyed this, but it didn't move me. A steal at $17, though that was a long time ago! CT note #2,000.
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12/22/2013 - ecnemergut wrote: 98 Points
Fantastic, as usual.
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11/28/2013 - ArtF Likes this wine: 92 Points
Low fill with obvious seepage. But wine seemedl unaffected. Best two hours in decanter with red/brick red color, powerful but smooth and viscuous with sweet marinated cherries on palate. Back in bottle and left open 6 hours may have been too long. More mahogany color and sweet sherry-like on palate.
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11/14/2013 - liber wrote: flawed
First from case - CORKED, shame as lovely underneath and seemingly balanced and not too sweet.
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10/9/2013 - spatchmo2 Likes this wine: 95 Points
This was my second bottle of this in as many months. Much better than the first. The cork was in bad condition but it did not affect the wine. A very powerful wine. Started out a bit hot but mellowed out after several hours in the decanter. This wine was everything I would expect out of a good vintage port. I will buy two more bottles today.
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8/30/2013 - spatchmo2 wrote: 90 Points
Seemed to be past it's prime. Not much nose or much of anything. Could have been a bad bottle or storage problem.
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6/29/2013 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 93 Points
Showing very well. Lively, bright red colour, not even a hint of browning; smoky and cedary nose, slightly dusty, gains markedly in the decanter (leave it for 3-4 hours at least), ripe red fruit (plum, raspberry), roses and spices (cardamom, clove), fresh and clean; the usual, relatively dry style, energetic and powerful, still a good stuffing of plummy fruit, fresh and transparent, well integrated and life-sustaining tannins; good finish, no back-end heat, very good length, hint of menthol. Classic Dow, high quality, long life. Will dry out eventually, but time in hand. Drink now - 2030+.
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6/10/2013 - DougLee wrote: 91 Points
Spontaneous decision, so popped and poured. Violet-purple color. Nose of sweet plum, menthol, raspberry, heat. Deep plum flavor with soy and sweetness rounding out each sip. Alcohol noticeable but not too overt. Finish was only moderately long. Decant next time.
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5/31/2013 - wineberg wrote: flawed
Very flawed unfortunately...
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4/12/2013 - vanpe003 wrote: 92 Points
Inspired by a comment re: ports on WB, I opened this late tonight, the first Vintage Port I've opened in a number of years. So...on a pop/pour....
The nose is intoxicating. Nice woody port fragrances with a bit of lighter almost floral perfume. I could sniff this all night. On the palate, at least at this early juncture, not quite as alluring. Initially a bit tight/hot. Thankfully, even a short time in the glass serves to smooth this out. Relatively bright and youthful, with an interesting shot of cedar on the mid-palate and relatively long finish, which shows some tannins the longer it's in the glass. There will be plenty of this bottle left for Day 2 and 3 consumption, so I will look forward to checking back in later. I suspect this will improve with more air.
If I had more bottles of this, I would be in no particular rush to open them. As other reviewers have suggested, this has a lot of life left. I'm hopeful that more air will smooth off some youthful rough edges. 92+ for pop/pour current consumption. I think that the upside on this is significant if it settles down with time.
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1/15/2013 - gigmoney wrote: 93 Points
Both bottles showed well.
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12/25/2012 - Chimer Likes this wine: 92 Points
Quite pale colour but no sign of brown or orange. Nose is beautiful, elegant and fine, floral as opposed to figgy. Not the most weighty Port but lovely balance, a dry 'Dow' edge on the first night, following evening this has rounded out and is now complete. Youthful with no sign of decay, delicious and fine. Moving into that lovely 'liqueur' stage of vintage Port and probably indestructible.
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12/25/2012 - bmagic wrote: 90 Points
Nose - raspberries, cream, undertone of spirit, pink bubblegum. Palate - blackcurrants and Ribena; mature forest fruits, cherries and plums; earthy; some spice. Warming and zingy (the latter not totally pleasurable). Longish finish.
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12/22/2012 - DK Amateur Likes this wine:
Decanted 6-7 hours. At times it seemed to have a slight note of cork, but so discrete that one could perceive as part of the aromatic complexity of an aged wine. Most of the time it was simply eminently enjoyable with a luxurious dark fruited nose and a complex smooth taste which functioned well with a number of Danish avant-garde cheeses. Mature perfection in a very lively manner after 28 years in my various cellars; will surely keep for at least twenty more years although I don't see it becoming better than it is now.
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11/19/2012 - Kirk Grant wrote:
NIGHT 1 - Too hot and the alcohol was too obvious.
Night 2 - Scents of camp fire and chocolate covered cherries. The alcohol has subdued on the nose and palate now. It's become very pleasent now. Excellent.
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10/20/2012 - OmiyaDrinker Likes this wine: 93 Points
Lia and Shiu 1st Birthday: Still fresh nose with flower and hot fruit. Beautiful, silky smooth palatate - velvet. Some heat on the finish but long, balanced, polished, and refined.
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10/19/2012 - wineberg Likes this wine: 90 Points
Friday Night Wine Night 10/19: Tons of sediment, use a strainer!
I was surprised at how youthful this seemed. A somewhat straighforward Port, with a good amount of heat to the finish. Not bad at all, but nothing to blow your socks off.
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10/14/2012 - cweiss wrote:
Nice showing from 375. Opened about 10 hours before and decanted about 3 hours before.
Spice and dark fruits, esp plum. Alcohol in balance.
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10/7/2012 - Machiavelli wrote: flawed
35th Birthday dinner for the guys. Unfortunately, I think this had some cork taint. The nose still had a plum/raspberry liquor, with a pine needle undertone. The palate doesn't have cork taint, and is filled with a spicy, slightly tannic palate, filled with plums. Just a little sweetness. The balance is excellent. Long finish.
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9/9/2012 - pmk wrote: 90 Points
Not comparable to the great vintage ports of other winemakers such as Taylor Fladgate or Fonseca, but quite wonderful nonetheless. Drink now/
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9/2/2012 - fredb Likes this wine:
Decanted off moderate amount of heavy sediment six hours prior to serving. Pale ruby-pink color with notable thinning in color. Aromas of licorice, cherry, plum, fig, Christmas pudding, and prune. Palate has licorice, fig, cherry, and plum notes with some heat evident on the long finish. With air, this gets more sweet red fruit in the mid-palate. If representative, this bottle is at peak and will have a long graceful decline from here. Drink or hold.
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8/3/2012 - mxpbuy wrote: 93 Points
Sampled 8/2/12. Had the bottle standing upright for days. Needed the strainer to catch a couple tablespoons worth of sediment. Lovely vintage port that just sings with red fruits. Smooth as silk. The alcohol makes the nose very expressive but it is not hot on the palate and extremely well integrated.
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6/19/2012 - SimonG wrote: 92 Points
JB @ 28-50 (28-50, London): Very full and slightly spiritual nose. Red fruit, a touch of spice. An initial hit of fruit but there's a medicinal, leafy edge. Green Nd pine sappy, reminds me of classy pine bath salts. Really quite interesting. I'm not a port drinker but this has interest. ****
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5/23/2012 - Jeff Leve wrote: 93 Points
Sweet, ripe, red and black cherries, nuts, chocolate covered raisins, spice and a hint of caramel, soft, lush, ripe, spicy and warm, this is drinking well and when paired with Stilton and Cuban cigars, it really hit all the right spots.
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4/21/2012 - Michaeladamsmith wrote: 94 Points
Delicious port. Intense sweetness of berries and currants. Perfect color and nose.
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3/29/2012 - mtaczak wrote: 92 Points
my first properly old port. interesting tawny nose of caramel. in the glass, 4-5mm clear meniscus with a transparent, brick-colored body. on the palate it started off as an interesting blend between tawny and ruby, but shifted toward ruby with air.
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3/27/2012 - Winevestor wrote: 89 Points
A bit disappointing. It was after a lot of wine, which may have dulled the taster. Good bouquet of leather and raspberry. Good integration, but felt like it was starting to fade which shouldn't have been for a wine of this age. Still enjoyable.
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2/26/2012 - ecnemergut wrote:
Port party 2012
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2/20/2012 - sdwineguru wrote: 94 Points
Classic Port 1977 Dow's. Half-inch of sediment. Decanted. Pale brick/amber color. Classic Port nose (mothballs, flowers, wood); balanced, long stylish refined velvet finish. Life left.
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2/8/2012 - jfpwine wrote:
I believe this was corked... The nose was completely gone, even after a two hours decant.
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1/27/2012 - Henda wrote:
Lys briljant, purpur farge. Krydder, fatspice, tørket frukt, toffee, men virker ikke veldig utviklet og ikke nevneverdig med sekundæraromaer. Utrolig flott myk og fyldig inngang, fin konsentrert frukt, fyldig midtparti med sjokolade, krydder, mørke syltede bær, litt kirsj/jordbær. Lang ettersmak på ca. 30 sek. Drikkeklar flaske på topp med mange år igjen.
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1/7/2012 - RussK wrote: 92 Points
RUSSK At Peter's Hlwd Wine Society 2001 CA Cab Tasting. Milk Choc, hot
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12/28/2011 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
As before...
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12/28/2011 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
As before.
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12/27/2011 - matro wrote: flawed
Cork was wet and oozy. The wine was pretty much dead.
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12/4/2011 - winoma wrote: 90 Points
Nice port but was expecting more complexity. Maybe just a victim to so many great wines before it!
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12/1/2011 - bmagic wrote:
Nose - very very spirity. A little too hot to be pleasant. Palate - slight vegetal note in amongst the fruit. Very alcoholic - will it ever come round, or does the age suggest it has matured as much as it ever will?
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11/24/2011 - Two Winos wrote: 95 Points
A bit funky on opening but after about 10 minutes it lived up to my expectations. I can't describe it any better than Richard Jennings did: "Dark garnet red color; rich berry, black cherry, black plum nose; youthful, black cherry, berry, blackberry, tart black fruit, fig, tart berry palate; long finish."
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9/7/2011 - Hanover wrote: 95 Points
.375 bottle, decanted; big on the palate with a long spicy finish; a really great port that should continue to hold its structure.
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6/28/2011 - ecnemergut wrote: 85 Points
A bit of an off bottle: While no obvious signs of abuse, this bottle drank quite a bit "older" than all my previous bottles. Not obviously flawed, but clearly past prime.
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5/21/2011 - johnnyo wrote: 95 Points
This was the best port I've ever tasted! Amazing stuff!
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5/21/2011 - David J Cooper wrote:
Light medium red with brown edges. Sweet earthy, red fruit and brown sugar nose. Not overly sweet but quite rich, with a nice mostly resolved finish. Beautiful Port.
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3/19/2011 - mdefreitas wrote: 91 Points
Dow Vintage Port Vertical (Harry's Steak House, NYC): A bit thin when first samples, but this added body while it sat in the glass. Juicy; good vein of dried cherry fruit. Very good.
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3/2/2011 - asgerG wrote: 94 Points
Fainted red, yellow rim, 3. Paint-like nose. Well balanced elegant taste. Drink 2015 - 2025 I suppose this will open up in a couple of years from now, although it can require longer time......It is certainly made of the right stuff.
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2/26/2011 - EducatedDrunk wrote: 92 Points
Any Port in a storm (Chris Lipperts): Preferred this to the 1970. Sweet and nutty, smooth and delicious. Very well integrated and drinking nicely.
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1/23/2011 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
Similar to previous notes. Great chocolate and berry. The best QPR in old vintage port!
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12/25/2010 - pmk wrote: 91 Points
A very nice and well structured port with a very warm spicey finish. It needs about an hour in the decanter before it is ready to drink. This port does nothave the body or concentration of the great Talorr Floodgates and really top notch poorts but it is a wonderful glass full
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12/24/2010 - dmalcolm wrote: 92 Points
A deep amber colour. Rich and oily with sweet figs, caramel and toffee. Looks and tastes like a fine tawny.
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12/19/2010 - KeithSurg wrote: 91 Points
Tasted from magnum. Light brick color. Flavors of nuts and raisins, with a smooth finish. Drinking well, but fading. Perfect with the chocolate bourbon pecan pie.
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12/4/2010 - ckinv368 wrote: 95 Points
Rated 95-96. Significant notes of raisin. Lots of tannic structure that will last for years. Still remarkably young. Lots of fruit, and a bit of alcohol. So incredibly smooth. Will only improve with age, and will likely improve, in my mind, to a 97-99.
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12/4/2010 - floydtp wrote: 93 Points
Opened with tongs, decanted for 4 hours. Paired with an apple galette. Still a bit hot after 4 hours but showing everything you would want in a VP from a great vintage. Still a bit young but very enjoyable. Caramel, a hint of vanilla, raisins and some sour cherry. Very long consistent finish.
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12/4/2010 - AleksanderDye Likes this wine: 91 Points
lang ettersmak myk og god fylde med masse tørket frukt.
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11/23/2010 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
Fantastic as usual.
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10/9/2010 - ecnemergut wrote: 88 Points
Not nearly as good previous bottles. A bit thin.
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10/8/2010 - BradE wrote:
Lumber in the Mountains Update - Days 1 and 2. (Day 3 in progress).; 10/7/2010-10/8/2010 (Beaver Creek): Lovely. Drinking beautifully.
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8/26/2010 - mxpbuy wrote: 93 Points
Sampled 8/6/10. Plenty of sediment as should be expected. No decanting time needed. Bring your strainer. A wonderful ruby color at the rim. No shortage of beautifully lawyered red and black fruits. Not a ton of glycerine and not overly sweet. A wonderful wine with a 30 second finish.
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6/20/2010 - ecnemergut wrote: 96 Points
Decanted 3 hours and consumed over two nights, stored at cellar temp between tasting. The 2nd night, the wine had completely integrated and was easily the best 77 Dow I've had. With Fonseca/Taylor costing $$$, this is almost as good and $80. Great QPR and hard to beat!
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6/18/2010 - Grenik wrote: flawed
So sad that I missed out on potential greatness. Purchased aged, but price was refunded.
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5/1/2010 - Eric Guido wrote: 94 Points
A Providence, Rhode Island Offline (Blue Grotto, Cigar Master's): the 1977 Dow’s, Vintage Port showed serious class and breed with cherry, spice, caramel and burnt sugar on its nose. The palate showed cherry cough syrup, roasted dark espresso beans and dark, dry cocoa, but remained juicy and smooth. The finish went on and on with sour cherry and espresso notes.
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3/24/2010 - sasvino wrote: 93 Points
I thought this was an excellent port, smooth as silk with complex flavors throughout, full bodied with a great finish, flavors that i picked up were vanilla, butterscotch, milk chocolate, nut. -S
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1/10/2010 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
AS before...
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1/10/2010 - ecnemergut wrote: 95 Points
Fantastic as before. Decanted about 7 hours and consumed over 1-2 hours. Nice berry nose. Very smooth on the palate with wonderfully soft tannins. Probably at its drinking peak.
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12/26/2009 - 309VEB wrote: 89 Points
I found this Port a bit thin. Decanted for about 5 hours. Very smooth and integrated but flavors were all in the background. Decided on this bottle instead of the Grahams 1977 based on reviews that said the Grahams 1977 needed 8-10 hours in the decanter and I didn't have that much time. I found this Port enjoyable but nothing special.
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11/26/2009 - ydris wrote: 94 Points
Drank with colleagues after a night of celebration. Lighter than I remember other '77s but still brilliant. The long cork was wet all the way to the top but once the initial musty smell cleared the flavors and nose came through loud and clear. Probably not getting any better but will be this good for a decade. Yvan (whose hotel room we were in) commented that six hours later his room smelled like a portuguse brothel. Not sure how he knows.
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11/25/2009 - BradA wrote: 91 Points
And the 2009 Holiday Season is officially off and running at our house!
Scents of medicine, deep rich nose and a spicy hot/finish. Just cries out for apple pie or ginger snaps...
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11/3/2009 - JohnnyBark wrote: 93 Points
Delicious, I would say this is at it's peak but balanced with fruit and spice and tannin.
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10/10/2009 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:
In a beautiful place right now with a lively, floral spirit and loads of raisins, blood plum, chocolate and nougat traits. It has good volume, balance and it particularly long in the mouth. As well as it drinks today it is youthful and should still continue to develop.
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8/26/2009 - drwine2001 wrote:
Birthday Dinner for Hannah (Boulette's Larder, San Francisco): From magnum. Color looked like a 20 year old Port, but the aromas and flavors were moderately sweet but very backward, stalky, and unintegrated. Not all that complex for a 30+ year old port. I would have guessed an early '90s vintage if I had tasted it blind.
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7/15/2009 - johnwine wrote: 95 Points
Parker nailed this one it is near perfect port.
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7/11/2009 - JulienGraves wrote: 95 Points
Incredible, wonderful nose, no mustiness, full round palet
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7/6/2009 - JulienGraves wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for six hours -- which was too long; nose wonderful but had lost too much since first opening. Remains a deep luxurious port.
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6/26/2009 - vanpe003 wrote: 92 Points
Ok, so I'm an idiot. I obviously need to learn how to prep a bottle of Port. When I opened this up initially, I thought it was flawed, maybe lightly corked. The cork was soaked through and leaking. Not as much depth or complexity as I'd expect on the midpalate. Heat and wood on a relatively short finish. Fast forward 3.5 hours later after sitting in the decanter. Yes, there's still a bit of heat and wood on the finish, but in general the wine has gained depth and integration. Also significantly more character on the nose. Still not the richest port I've ever had. It'll be interesting to revisit it tomorrow. Even better 6 days later.
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5/18/2009 - RDHudak wrote: 91 Points
Color: Almost looked to be a tawny to me. Nice caramel color. Nose: Loaded with butterscotch, nuts, white raisin and vanilla. Taste: Flavors of vanilla, caramel and raisin. Very nice port but the finish was certainly hotter than I expected. Only decanted 1 hr. and the heat remained throughout the tasting. Finish was shorter and not as complex as I expected. Still a good port, just not a good QPR.
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5/3/2009 - ecnemergut wrote: 95 Points
Decanted 4 hours and consumed over 2. Easily, the best 1977 Dow's I had. Wonderful crushed berry nose. Big on the papale with more berry and a long finish. Soft tannins. Wonderful wine.
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3/26/2009 - tommydiesel wrote: 92 Points
Double decanted, cork was in perfect shape.Color was great, cherry on nose, good finish. Not a blow you away style of Port but a great ending to a great meal.
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3/22/2009 - PortFanatic wrote: flawed
Another leaking bottle. Fill is just below neck. Medium ruby color. Definitely showing some age. Much lighter color than it would be from perfect bottles. Showed fine on opening.. but after a few hours in the decanter, it now appears that it corked. It's mildly corked. It doesn't come through much on the palate, but in the nose it is definitely corked.
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3/22/2009 - PortFanatic wrote: 91 Points
Bottle leaking. mid shoulder fill. Still good color. Lots of fruit. Surpringly still alive. Good strong entry. Some alcohol in the finish.. but not as much as I expected. More advanced than perfect bottles (no surprise). But still very good.
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3/21/2009 - waibeans wrote: 93 Points
num num
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2/21/2009 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
As before...
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2/21/2009 - ecnemergut wrote: 95 Points
Decanted about 6 hours and consume over 1-2. Incredible nose of cherry and spice. Full and round on the palate with chocolate and cherry. Sweet finish. Love it.
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2/5/2009 - ecnemergut wrote: 90 Points
Decanted 4 hours and consumed over the course of three days, putting under gas and in the refrigerator each night. Nice dusty cherry nose with subtle flowers each night. The first night it tasted almost exactly like cough syrup, which I find somewhat disappointing. The second and third nights, it seemed much more integrated with more secondary notes (flowers, spice, clove).
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1/1/2009 - Daniel R. wrote:
Ainda muito jovem. Rico e intenso. A beber outras garrafas a prazo.
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1/1/2009 - CladMadder wrote: 89 Points
I had this in the traditional British port tasting situation, paired with Stilton and sitting by a fire. First the color was a brick-ish red with slight hints garnet. A tiny bit of alcohol up front and strawberry coated caramel at the mid palate. The finish was a bit short but added a strong note of vanilla and burnt caramel. It seemed as though the aging was a bit accelerated (most likely due to the 375 ml size) so I'm not sure this particular bottle lived up to it's potential. Perhaps I opened it too late (shame on me if so!) but I did expect much more out of such a solid vintage. Still it's difficult to dislike a vintage port paired with Stilton and a roaring fire on a day where the thermometer didn't break 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
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12/27/2008 - gelliott wrote:
Purple-red. Sweet nose of mildly stewed red fruits along with some alcohol. Smooth mouth feel, but not quite velvety. Strawberries and heat in the mouth.
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12/27/2008 - mariolanza wrote: 92 Points
My father gave it to me for this Christmas so I decided to drink it. Cork was in amazing condition only soaked at the very bottom so obviously this was going to be in great condition. Decanted through a strainer funnel to catch sediment, hardly any sediment which surpised me. Medium ruby color. Nose was all dark berries and woody. Dark plum and more wood flavor on the palate. This was truly remarkable and one of the best ports I have ever tasted. I am not a regular port drinker however.
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12/26/2008 - kris.h wrote:
Port at Roy's: Light to medium red color. Soft well integrated tannin. Didn't detect alcohol on the nose but it's hot on the palate. Medium body, fine grain tannin. Low acid and bright red fruit with some baking chocolate on the finish.
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11/27/2008 - Phin wrote: 93 Points
Big spice component day one. Nicely softened, good balance including the alcohol and acids. Not as sweet as expected. Gassed for day two. Spice faded out day two, but flavors and strucure remained strong.
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11/13/2008 - cweiss wrote:
Portugalia. Double decanted about 7 hours earlier. Not at all spirity, only modest sweetness in the Dow style. All secondary flavors of spice and dark fruits. Drinking well, and will for some years.
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11/10/2008 - jlgnml wrote: 91 Points
It must be getting cold as I opened this bottle and drank over the next two weeks. Great color and nose. Not much bite. Raisiney and prunish. I will want to stand some of these bottles up for a while as I want the sediment to collect in the bottle. Several bottles left and will drink in the future.
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11/1/2008 - Rich S wrote: 91 Points
Decided to open this up and enjoy with some friends last night. Cork was soaked through and somewhat moldy at the top under the foil. Decanted through a strainer funnel to catch sediment. Medium ruby color with minimal signs of bricking along the edges. Nose was all dark berries and wood, not necessarily oaky but just woody. Dark plum and more wood flavor on the palate. Not as sweet as I expected it to be. So smooth, no detectable alcohol which is an issue with most ports. Still lots of life left although plenty enjoyable now. Possibly should have been opened longer before drinking. Not blown away by the effort considering my expectations going into it and the price but a very good port.
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8/24/2008 - bon vivant wrote: flawed
corked
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8/12/2008 - Sijan wrote: 84 Points
Drank to celebrate my 30th birthday and was quite underwhelmed. Didn't seem notably better than most Reserve ports. Just not very complex. Not a good value. Quite disappointing.
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6/15/2008 - markmontgo wrote: 89 Points
I was prepared to be blown away, but wasn't. Still a lot of heat. I'm no expert on ports, but I think it needs more age. Flavors just didn't quite integrate.
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3/29/2008 - vinaigre wrote: 82 Points
Ottawa Offline: DoctaP and the MWP (Restaurant Bocado's): Popped and poured.
HHmmm.. This was an oddity. Some enjoyed it and others not. I was in the camp of those who didn't enjoy it. Deep ruby, clear edges. Very hot nose (Maybe VA?) Medicinal palate whit a hot finish.
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2/27/2008 - egroves wrote: 90 Points
Dennis brought 2 bottles to a our Portugal wine tasting. One bottle was much hotter than the other. The second bottle was more balanced and still fruity. Nice easy finish.
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2/20/2008 - winefool wrote: 93 Points
IWFSC Governors Lunch (Custom House): Drinking surprisingly well compared to the last time, perhaps it has just entered the front end of the drinking window? Nice round smooth with just a touch more raw elements than the 63, but still showing very well.
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1/20/2008 - ecnemergut wrote: 94 Points
Outstanding: from a Mangum decanted about 1 hour and consumed over 2 hours. Wonderful dusty cherry, prune/plum, and raisin aromas. A bit more fruit and less carmel than the first bottle, but really good.
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1/20/2008 - ecnemergut wrote: 95 Points
Outstanding: from a Mangum decanted about 2 hours and consumed over 1 hour. Wonderful dusty cherry, prune/plum, and raisin aromas. Generous on the palate with more fruit and subtle, tawny-like carmel. Long finish.
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1/1/2008 - dougie wrote: 92 Points
Seemed a bit simple and alcoholic after a 4 hour decant. Then, it become fruitier and most of the alcohol blew off. Strange, but a success at the end.
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12/26/2007 - agbailey wrote: 90 Points
Very nice, beautifully aged port. Lovely aromas. A bit lighter than I prefer, but good nevertheless. Nice medium-long finish.
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12/23/2007 - Vine wrote:
Cork broke on opening - extracted balance of cork without any residue in bottle. This was a good bottle of port but woody taste overtones on the finish were too strong to make it great. Our last bottle - previous bottles have not had the same strong woody finish. Ready to drink.
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12/16/2007 - AllRed wrote: 93 Points
Rich & Dana graciously opened a bottle after dinner following the December Blind Drunks tasting. Aromas of dark fruit and berries. Blackberry and dark fruit flavors on the palate. Nicely integrated, and just beginning to come into its drinking window.
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12/7/2007 - fhmesq wrote: flawed
Corked
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12/1/2007 - honest bob wrote: 88 Points
Pale brick colour, agreeable spirity scent, moderately sweet but with heavy spirit alcohol edge, little grip or substance. 88P
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9/21/2007 - Machiavelli wrote:
'Steve Stines' 30th Birthday Dinner. Decanted at 7pm, consumed around midnight. Cork was a mess. There was clear signs of seepage (which is why I picked out this bottle) and cork broke near the end. Had to decant it through a sieve to get the pieces out. Sediment was a purple sludge. When first poured it looked garnet but actually darkened in the glass. Nose was very complex and intense, figs, prunes, fruitcake, spices, red fruits especially raspberry and walnuts. Off-dry, this was incredibly balanced, with barely noticeable alcohol. Colour me impressed.
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8/23/2007 - antiwood wrote: flawed
Corked
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4/13/2007 - la turque wrote: 95 Points
Still needs time to fully blend and balance. But an incredible drink nonetheless.
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4/7/2007 - la turque wrote: 95 Points
Delicious, opulent, with amazing vibrant fruit and good structure. This wine is at its peak.
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3/23/2007 - KPB wrote: 92 Points
Medium garnet with amber rim. Nose is slightly minty, with red-current fruit, toffee, spices. Sweet and long with a slight mushroom impression on the back palate. Finishes with slightly bitter tannins. Probably can age for another 20 years.
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2/25/2007 - antiwood wrote: flawed
Corked
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1/20/2007 - cfwine wrote:
Almost impeccably balanced--showed a touch too much alcohol in the beginning, but settled down and was beautiful for the rest of the evening: round mouthfeel, but with nice acidity and plenty of heady fruit. Medium body, long finish. Excellent with foie gras, duck and, of course, Stilton. Decanted and consumed over 6-7 hours. Amazingly young for its age. Goodness knows how much longer it could last.
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12/24/2006 - eharris wrote: 94 Points
Medium body with strong scent of figs. This 30 year old port has intense layers of nuanced flavors, excellent balance and a long finish.It is not as heavy as some ports but had lots of intensity and subtle flaovrs without being overpowering. It was ready to drink but will last a long time in the cellar. My wife and I had this with a nice piece of Stilton and it was thoroughly enjoyable. I had the same wine about year ago and was far less impreessed and I don't know why since the wine was ready to drink then as well.
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12/22/2006 - HamishR wrote: 88 Points
Not too well integrated. seems to need some more time.
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11/22/2006 - dougie wrote: 94 Points
amazing! Very rich and flavorful, but nothing over powering. licorice, cherry, rasberry and bark. Age has done it well- can still go many, many years.
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10/27/2006 - Thilo wrote: 90 Points
Color is light/medium garnet. Nose shows candied plum, fig, touch of char, and a significant volatile element. On the palate, redfruit is at the fore with a hint of spice, but there is indeed a noticable heat still present. Needs more time to integrate.
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5/11/2006 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: 88 Points
Establishment's Second Birthday (Establishment Restaurant, Manchester): The Dow had a very figgy nose with blackberries and a blast of spirit. Very much in the Dow style, which, with every bottle of Dow's I try, I increasingly think is not for me. The 1977 still felt quite young on the attack. Very deep, chocolatey fruit, but also a lot of spirit. Good length. Could have done with being opened and more aggresively decanted rather earlier than it was (around 4-5 hours earlier). Very Good+
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2/26/2006 - MWes wrote: 95 Points
This was fantastic. I couldn't believe how well it has aged. I woudl say that it still has at least another 10 years left in in (if not more). Classic Dow's.
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2/11/2006 - gorm wrote: 89 Points
Lots of sediment. Appears aged. Prunes and raisins. Very alcoholic and a bit watery. Tasted blind. Burgundy tasting 11/02/2006.
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12/31/2005 - Capewineguy wrote: 90 Points
Decanted several hours but a little disappointed in that previous '77 vintage ports were much heavier and had better flovor and taste. Nevertheless, it provided a lovely New Year's Eve finish to a wonderful dinner albeit a somewhat lighter vintage port than previously expioerienced.
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6/25/2005 - JimVan wrote: 95 Points
A wonderful wine. Decanted 10 hours per Roy's advice, the wine gained weight and complexity until it showed a rich nose of cherry, blueberry, and chocolate with an intense, flavorful fruitiness in the mouth. Sweet, fruity, full and rich, it was the star of the tasting. It has many years to go (probably another 25). Very good acidity, and just a lovely wine. Purchased in 1980 for the astronomical price of $19.50 at the time, this wine makes me want more VP in the cellar. Jim's rating: Major Yum!
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5/24/2005 - jwwinec wrote: 92 Points
After searching the Internet and reading Roy H's advice, decanted this for 8 hours before drinking, tasting every 1-2 hours. It was amazing how the wine opened up! At first, it tasted light, sweet, and grapey, not much else going on. But as time passed, the aromatics blossomed and the wine put on weight, became much richer. I have trouble describing the nose - lots of complexity, floral, mineral notes? The pallette is deep and rich with a long finish.
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4/1/2005 - winefool wrote: 90 Points
Group #11, My #11 - Medium crimson with a hint of garnet. Forward aroma of red fruit and alcohol with hints of secondary tea. Fiarly hot with respberry liquier. 4/05
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5/30/2004 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 93 Points
Lovely, mature, gentle, elegant, dry and cedary Dow-style, seems at peak, what is the potential? I say: drink up.
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3/30/2002 - VAGenius Likes this wine:
Good color. Jammy plum flavor and an excellent port, though the nose was not as as intense as expected. 11/15.
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6/20/1999 - JeffJo wrote: 92 Points
Very smooth and intense. Still young and fruity, but appears to have more to release.
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5/21/1999 - THaas wrote: 94 Points
Nose of crushed berries and candied cherry. Mouth-coating thickness, heavy, with cherry dominating. A knockout.
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3/15/1999 - vinole wrote: 93 Points
Less sweet than expected, good complexity with almond notes and a long finish.
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3/27/1993 - Marc wrote:
Drunk outside Strawbery Fare whilst waiting for a table on my birthday. Not ready but elegant and tasty none the less. Super fruit - nice spirit integration - long supple finish. A bit of an (attractive) stalky flavour. Great bottle for a great surreal scene.
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2/1/1989 - sdr wrote: flawed
No score. Ruby red, less purple than the ‘85. Overwhelmed by spirit and alcohol. Very hard to taste. Something not right with this bottle.
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