2007 Sandeman Vintage Port

[Ray Barnes]

This is my third attempt to post some comments here since I was too inebriated after polishing off a half bottle of this stuff to be able to type.

There are some very interesting comments by the forum owner and I wholeheartedly agree with his sentiments. Let me just try to add a few impressions. The wine has received excellent feedback from the mainstream wine media - including a prestigious award from Decanter in 2010 for what it judged to be the best vintage port. As a neophyte relative to many of the members, I had some misgivings about trying this wine, given this producer's lack of prestige by comparison to some other producers (say Quinta do Noval or Taylor), combined with not being at all impressed with Sandeman's basic ruby port offering, which I consider to be not much better than Harvey's Bristol Cream. Even with the WS notes and very high score for this wine published in my local liquor store, I was still balking at buying this wine, choosing instead to buy more expensive alternatives from "safer" producers, fortified or not. However, this Sandemans offering was recently discounted locally, and that was enough to go ahead and splurge on a bottle or two.

I split a bottle of this stuff with a friend of many years' standing who likes good wine as much as I do. Neither of us claim to be experts on this. From his perspective, it was the best vintage port he ever tasted and probably among the top two or three wines he has ever had, fortified or not. It impressed him so much he ordered 2 cases - although it took some searching around for them. It was very high up on my personal list too, even for me surpassing the outstanding Taylor 2003, such that I am getting another case as well. On the nose and in the mouth, it is loaded with blackcurrant - so much so that he could smell it from 6 feet away while I was decanting. Its length, finish and overall weight is (for my taste) impressive. On my first long sip, I felt some gum soreness in the bottom of my mouth - something I have not felt for a long time, if ever. Suffice to say, this wine has some serious structure. This sensation, oddly, was not in the least unpleasant, but oddly reassuring of the wine's quality. This wine also stained my teeth, glass, and decanter more than any other wine in recent memory. My friend noticed this phenomenon too. The only other red wine monster I can compare this to, from personal experience, is Chateau Leoville-Las Cases, which was less concentrated than this. I should expect Chateau Latour might have something in common with this Sandemans.

This style may not appeal to everyone, especially with its go for the jugular attack on the palette. Personally I couldn't get enough of it, draining the final drops of the decanter twice just to be sure. It is being offered for I believe around $70 a bottle in the USA and a little less (while it lasts) in Metro Vancouver. I think, if one likes this style, it is a stunning bargain, and a very strong early candidate for 2012 wine of the year in terms of value for money. The winemaker claims this vintage to be worthy of mentioning alongside its 1945 and 1963. I hope someday to try those too, since I now feel that Sandeman at its best deserves the same kind of respect as any of the other great ports.

Last night I picked up a copy of the latest edition of the Wine Spectator, declaring the 2009 Les Forts de Latour to be great value at $345 US a bottle. Rather than complain about the high price of fine vintage Bordeaux (and I like it as much as the next person), I feel happy to enjoy some wonderful and affordable port. After this, I sure as you-know-where am not going to touch the Sandemans Ruby Port again.

Oh yes - this was almost as dark as ink in the glass. At the rim, the brightening of color tone, relatively speaking, was minimal. Apart from the huge bouquet, I noticed this color almost immediately. This was a very promising sign.

This wine promises to outlive me - and perhaps also my 14 year-old daughter. In any event, I will try to delay enjoying this over the next (hopefully) 20+ years and watch its maturation.

[Andy Velebil]

I first had this when it was still a cask sample and I was very impressed by it. The few times I've had it after that I was still very impressed by it. Sandeman has finally gotten back on top with this 2007 VP, one of my favorites of the vintage. I only hope they can continue to keep this same quality level in upcoming VP's.

I'm glad you took the chance, bought this bottle, and tried it. As you found out it's a killer VP.

[Ray Barnes]

Thanks Andy. I neglected to mention this stuff is 21% alcohol, and you hardly notice any of it, until it's too late to do anything about it.

[Glenn E.]

I think your note is spot-on, especially regarding the structure. Like Andy, I first tasted this Port as a cask sample and it was so massive that I simply couldn't process it. I rated it lower for that reason - I rate based on my impressions at the time and not for any future potential.

It's a huge, huge wine. Give it 20-30 years and I might be able to give it a fair shake.

Glad you liked it, and more importantly I'm glad you could find it for a reasonable price! That doesn't happen very often up there in Canada.