1976 Krohn Colheita Port

[Glenn E.]

One of the bottles that I got from Premier Cru when they were having their flash (read: crash) sales. Generally speaking I haven't felt that these have been quite as good as earlier bottlings, but they're still outstanding. Even more so considering the price.

1976 Krohn Colheita
bottled 2015

Color: Medium tawny. Slight - very slight - greenish tint at the rim, but mostly yellowing. These generally look a little light in color to me, but this one doesn't.

Nose: Rich nose covering (mostly) some fairly prominent alcohol. Lots of caramel, vanilla, and citrus (tending faintly toward lime). Some grains - possibly oats. Very expressive.

Palate: Silky smooth with a medium to medium full body. Very rich. Caramel, dried apricot, sweet lemon-lime cream pie. Some toffee and brown sugar as well. Very well integrated and balanced acidity - you almost don't notice that it's there until you realize that it must be in order to keep the sugar in check. Very sweet, but as noted it's in balance. Very slight bitter edge to the mid-late palate which then carries over into the finish.

Finish: Starts off with a bitter echo from the palate, but smooths out and is very long.

Score: 95 points. I might have gone higher, but that faint bitter edge held me back. It's hard to predict what more years in cask will do, but I'm guessing that Taylor's is going to have a real treat on its hands for the 50th anniversary in 2026. Assuming there's any left in cask, of course.