2003 Quinta do Noval Late Bottled Vintage Port
Posted: Wed Sep 17, 2014 9:44 pm
I bought a 6-pack of these back in late 2008 or early 2009 (basically upon release) with the deliberate intention of seeing how they would age. It's an unfiltered LBV, so in theory it should age well, and I was really enjoying the 2003 Noval VP so I thought this might be similar. My original intent was to wait until at least 2018 to open any of them, and based on this bottle I probably should have waited because it has taken most of a week for it to really soften and open up. This TN is a compilation over 6 days as the Port has evolved in a decanter sitting on the kitchen counter at room temperature.
2003 Quinta do Noval LBV
unfiltered, bottled 2008
Color: Very dark red with purple hints, opaque center
Nose: Bright and vibrant, but with earthy undertones. Faintly minty. Also faintly green.
Palate: For the first few days bright and rather tart. About day 4 it started to soften up. By day 6 it is now pleasant and smooth. It's on the dry side regardless, though now that it has softened some sweet fruitiness shows through. Mostly bright red raspberries, red currant, and tart strawberries during the early part of the week. Now showing some of the tarter side of purple bramble berries and possibly not-quite-ripe blackberries and tart blueberries. Good tannins and acidity all week. Quite a lot of structure - these should easily last 25 years and probably more.
Finish: Initially a space shuttle landing with lots of tannins and grape stem. It has leveled out some now and so could be called medium length, but it still has the grape stem tail. Tannins are strong but not harsh... perhaps firm is the right word.
Score: 93 points. At the moment this isn't really my style - it's much to dry and far too tart without days of decant time. But it's a very impressive LBV with a complex palate and the structure to age for decades. The fact that an 11-year old LBV needs 6 days to mellow out shows its age-worthiness. I started at 91 but it has improved consistently over the week and I think it now deserves the 93. Now I just need to keep my hands off the remaining 5 until at least 2018... then maybe another taste... then wait until 2023. I don't expect these to be fully mature, even for an LBV, until at least then if not 2028.
2003 Quinta do Noval LBV
unfiltered, bottled 2008
Color: Very dark red with purple hints, opaque center
Nose: Bright and vibrant, but with earthy undertones. Faintly minty. Also faintly green.
Palate: For the first few days bright and rather tart. About day 4 it started to soften up. By day 6 it is now pleasant and smooth. It's on the dry side regardless, though now that it has softened some sweet fruitiness shows through. Mostly bright red raspberries, red currant, and tart strawberries during the early part of the week. Now showing some of the tarter side of purple bramble berries and possibly not-quite-ripe blackberries and tart blueberries. Good tannins and acidity all week. Quite a lot of structure - these should easily last 25 years and probably more.
Finish: Initially a space shuttle landing with lots of tannins and grape stem. It has leveled out some now and so could be called medium length, but it still has the grape stem tail. Tannins are strong but not harsh... perhaps firm is the right word.
Score: 93 points. At the moment this isn't really my style - it's much to dry and far too tart without days of decant time. But it's a very impressive LBV with a complex palate and the structure to age for decades. The fact that an 11-year old LBV needs 6 days to mellow out shows its age-worthiness. I started at 91 but it has improved consistently over the week and I think it now deserves the 93. Now I just need to keep my hands off the remaining 5 until at least 2018... then maybe another taste... then wait until 2023. I don't expect these to be fully mature, even for an LBV, until at least then if not 2028.