2004 Niepoort LBV Port

[Andy Velebil]

This has been open for about 36 hours and it has made some significant improvement over that time. Initially was quite restrained on the nose and palate. While it showed some moderate fruit, it was disjointed and had some heat to it. That is no longer the case. Very silky fruit on the front end that glides across the palate and then this wall of tannins comes out of nowhere and smacks you in the face. Nicely structured and well balanced this will age well for 10+ years, yet is fully drinkable now with some decanting. 89 points
08/23/09

[Roy Hersh]

I am looking forward to trying this one soon!

Thanks for your evaluation Andy.

[David Spriggs]

I've seen some pretty poor notes on this wine on release. Nice to hear that it has improved in bottle.
-Dave-

[Andy Velebil]

Dave,

I was a little worried at first, given the heat and being disjointed when I first tasted it. But I've often found that when Niepoort Ports are young they sometimes can come off as being very disjointed. That was why I made sure to leave some for the following day. As I've often found Niepoort Ports can significantly change during that time. While the 2004 isn't up to the level the 2003 LBV, it is still a very good value for an LBV that has some aging potential.