For The Love Of Port

I opened my "damaged" bottle of this for a tapas party last night. The bottle had clearly leaked during shipping last month and the cork was very slightly pushed. Since the wine was bottled in 2006, my hope was that all of the damage occurred during shipping to me and that it wouldn't have a great effect on the wine.

Regardless, the Port was clearly off. The liquid was cloudy and very viscous. There was a significant amount of VA in the nose that, while not entirely overwhelming, managed to carry into the flavor as well. I put this down to an "off" bottle and not to heat/shock damage from shipping. That shipping damage is probably what caused a fairly sharp "tang" in the aftertaste that I notice a lot in 10-yr old tawnies but which is fairly rare in anything over 20 years old.

All that aside, I still noted hints of honey and almonds along with fairly typical dried apricots and dates. I've now tasted figs for the first time - someone brought a plate of figs and serrano ham - so that particular note will be easier to identify in the future. The finish was short and contained a lot of processed sugar, though there was a very clear note of... well, concord grapes I guess... that emerged long after the main finish was gone. The first time I noticed it I had to think back because someone had brought a bowl of organic "California Table Grapes" and I wasn't sure whether it was the Port or an actual grape that I was tasting, but a little experimentation proved that it was the Port.

Even with the damage it was very drinkable, and proved to be a hit among other attendees. I'll just hope that the case I have left is in better shape!

Don't wait, you'll want to know one way or another. Opening a 2nd bottle in that same condition will be telling. If so, see if you can return the balance of the case, including bottle #11 that you've opened. It is worth doing if it is possible, but you're better off not to wait.

IIRC, this was a single bottle shipment and the rest came from a different source correct? If not, and they all came in the same case, I'd contact the seller and try to get a return. The only bad part is most retailers won't ship in summer unless you agree that if heat damaged they won't be held liable.

Andy Velebil wrote:IIRC, this was a single bottle shipment and the rest came from a different source correct? If not, and they all came in the same case, I'd contact the seller and try to get a return. The only bad part is most retailers won't ship in summer unless you agree that if heat damaged they won't be held liable.

I ended up with a total of 13 bottles from about 5 different stores. This particular bottle came from a 3-bottle order, and did indeed have a heat damage clause. It was my fault - I thought I'd asked for 2-day shipping but evidently forgot because my receipt is clearly marked ground. The other two bottles from that order appear to be undamaged, but of course might have some heat damage anyway and just didn't leak.

If it had been a full case ordered from a single store then I would absolutely take Roy's advice, but sadly that's not an option this time.