Bottle #1: 2007 Croft Vintage Port (Cast Sample)
Bottle #2: 2007 Martinez Vintage Port (Cask Sample)
Bottle #3: 2007 Quinta do Vale Meão Vintage Port (Cask Sample)
Day 1
Color: inky dark, with purple and lavender tones, fading evenly to pink near the rim.
Nose: alcohol, followed by thin fruits. Really not terribly pleasant, but also not strictly bad. It just seems slightly disjointed, but a hearty swirl in the glass helps. Raspberry is the only identifiable fruit for me, and it's tough to find.
Palate: red fruit, mild heat, and good grip. The heat in the mouth isn't as bad as I expected based on the nose. Flavor doesn't stand up well against Bottle #2 or Bottle #3, and it's easily the driest of the three bottles.
Finish: heat, red fruit, tannins, and then a vague attempt at milk chocolate in that order.
Initial score: 82-85 points.
Day 2
Color: no change
Nose: alcohol much milder, fruits showing better. No longer seems disjointed, so much improved. Some green stalk now present as well.
Palate: something savory/beefy during the initial taste. Still quite dry. Marionberry coulis.
New score: 83-87 points.
Day 3
I didn't taste on Day 3, but thought I should make a note it so that the timeline is correct.
Day 4 My initial post refered to this as Day 3.
Color: very slightly more red than before
Nose: faint beef jerky note, fruits that are more purple than before, very light alcohol. Some black raspberry and black plums. I noted that the change in color (more red) and change in fruits (more purple/black) seemed to be going in opposite directions.
Palate: Welch's grape juice (concord grapes), gritty tannins, blueberries, and later boysenberries.
Finish: purple fruits, good tannins, something faintly beefy again, and finally... mocha?
Final comments: Still the driest of the three. Vastly improved from day one. My score started out in the 82-85 range, climbed slightly on day 2 into the 83-87 range, but has now climbed significantly on day 3. I've come up to around 15-20 years to reach maturity, and my impression of how good that peak will be has increased over the three days.
Final score: 88-91 points.
Anticipated peak maturity: 2024-2029.
Reveal: Roy asked me not to reveal this bottle just yet, so you'll just have to wait. There's a good reason for it.
