Is this VA?

[Monique Heinemans.]

I opened a bottle of 1997 Niepoort vintage port this weekend. The cork came out in one piece and was almost 3/4 soaked with wine. I decanted the bottle and poured a little bit in a glass to try. The nose was very chemical and sour. I left it alone, but after a few hours it smelled the same. When I tried the wine it tasted a bit chemical and mostly like sour cherries. After two days in the decanter it aprove a bit, but not that much. I can taste some lovely thick sweet fruit underneath, but unfortunately the acidity and sourness still dominates.
I've never experienced this before, is this what you call VA?

[Moses Botbol]

Sounds more like TCA with the sourness. I have a similar taste in my '85 Niepoort's, but have only had one bottle.

[Monique Heinemans.]

And TCA is...?

[Moses Botbol]

And TCA is...?

Thinking about it, it could actually be VA... TCA is flaw from corks that seems to "like" port.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cork_taint

[Eric Menchen]

TCA = 2,4,6-Trichloroanisole. It is a chemical produced from a combination of chlorine and phenols. Interesting wikipedia reading here:

The odor of TCA is not directly perceived. Instead, the molecule distorts the perception of smell by suppressing olfactory signal transduction. ... It causes unpleasant earthy, musty and moldy aromas.

VA = Volatile Acidity. I thought it was phenolic and had the characteristic of higher alcohols, but am a bit misguided it seems. Here's a better explanation at UC Davis.

Dirk admits that they had corking problems with the 1997. This could allow for infection, which could cause TCA or VA. You describe a sour character, which would be consistent with acetic and lactic acids, which fall under VA. I'm not sure about the chemical odor. That could be some of the other acids that fall under VA, TCA, or something else entirely (for which I'd need to dig up some notes to find possibilities).

[Monique Heinemans.]

Thank you for your support, I hope my other three bottles will show better...

[Andy Velebil]

Dirk has admitted many times that Niepoort VP's from 1985 to 1997 have issues with VA. It doesn't appear in every single bottle, but a significant amount. Most who drink Port regularly have run across it more often than not. I suspect, from you're description, your bottle also suffered from VA and that is what caused the high toned experience.

Nothing in your description would lead me to believe it was TCA.

[Roy Hersh]

Andy is spot on here.

Thanks to Glenn for the linked resources!

[Peter W. Meek]

For me, VA frequently smells like nail-polish remover (acetone).

[Monique Heinemans.]

I couldn't resist opening another bottle....
Underneath the capsule it showed a little bit leakage and the cork was totally saturated, so I feared the worsed.
But this bottle shows wonderful, a really big, smooth VP. So wether it was VA or TCA, now I at least know how a good Niepoort 1997 VP tasts!

Thanks for your help.