Have you ever seen or do you own ...

[Roy Hersh]

any Vintage Port from the year 1972?

[Glenn E.]

I've never seen one in person, but they're allegedly out there.

winesearcher.com lists the following as vintage Ports for 1972:

Robertson's Rebello Valente (in Germany)
Offley (in the UK at Underwood Wine Warehouse)
J.W. Hart (in France, very possibly a Colheita and not actually a VP)
Taylor Fladgate (at Aabalat Fine Wines in California, which is usually pretty precise)
Taylor's Vargellas (in London at VintageWineGifts, which is also usually precise)
Sandeman (in Portugal at VinoVinho)

Dow also released a Colheita, which has multiple listings. And there are a lot of listings for Aussie stickies masquerading as Ports.

[Derek T.]

any Vintage Port from the year 1972?

Is the real question: have you ever tasted port made with industrial alcohol?

If so, yes, more than once

[Eric Menchen]

And how was it Derek?

[Roy Hersh]

Glenn thanks for the list. I do own one (Offley) but other VPs are few and far between from this crazy year for Port. Derek knew the underlying reason for my question, but like Eric, i am curious as to which Derek (and/or others) has tried and what they were like.

[Andy Velebil]

I would have to check my older notebooks and pictures, but I'm sure I've at least seen one in a cellar somewhere....maybe

I remember being told a story a few years ago about when the industry found out they had bought bad juice they literally dumped the Port down the gutters in Gaia. I was told it was like a river of Port and people were litterally in the streets down-river (if you'll call it that) and trying to scoop it up in containers. Don't know how true that is, but I'm sure there has to be a little truth to it as they are all but impossible to find now.

Hopefully someone from the trade can chime in and give a more accurate account about what happened to all of the Port, once the discovery was made.

[Derek T.]

The TN database contains notes from Al B. of the Taylor Vargellas and Fonseca Guimaraens 1972s. I was with him at both of the tastings where these appeared but did not take my own notes.

I have had the Taylor about 3 times, courtesy of Tom Archer, over the past 5 or 6 years.

My recollection of all of them is that they were harsh and hot, but I cannot say how much my memory is being influenced by what I know is in them

Al B. and others tasted the Dow 1972 a few weeks ago in a Dow vertical so perhaps he will post a note on that soon.

Derek

[Roy Hersh]

Well when we have a good number of 'ers in one place, maybe Jan. 29th ... I'll open this bottle of OFFLEY for purely scientific purposes.

[Al B.]

1972 doesn't seem to be that unusual on this side of the Pond. I own or have owned 1972 vintage from Dow (not bad), Fonseca Guimaraens, Offley Boa Vista and Vargellas. Dow was the best and was quite respectable, but none were great. I do recall at a tasting that Adrian Bridge had said that the artificial alcohol scandal had not affected the Guimaraens, but I still thought it a very light port.

[Rob C.]

I'd probably be more generous with the Dow - rather good i thought (though no 1970 to be sure)

I had less luck with the Offley and the Guimaraens (Guimaraens was a bad bottle but, as AHB says, Adrian Bridge thought it had escaped the industrial alcohol).

[Bradley Bogdan]

I would love to hear the whole story behind all of this.