ThePortForum.com

AHB: Deep red in colour, 80% opaque and standing out like a sore thumb from the rest of the ports in this tasting. Slightly hot on the nose, with a touch of antiseptic and full of sweet mulberries. Mildly bitter entry, then spicy and peppery. Big and thick in texture, lots of dark fruit and black Li...

Deep colour, dark red, 60% opaque. Lovely on the nose, full of warm fruitcake and black licorice. Balanced, gorgeous impact. Perfect acidity, a very slight hint of tannin and masses of fruit. A great aftertaste, big and mouthfilling with lots of deep, dark orange flavours on the finish. My wine of t...

Deep tone of light red, 40% opaque. Lovely rich nose of gentle Christmas cake - very attractive. Mild entry, slightly flabby and fat; lacking a little acidity and therefore focus. Behind this lack of focus is a pleasant mandarin flavour. The aftertaste is full of concentrated mandarin juice and a lo...

More red than most of the other '55s shown at this tasting; 40% opaque. Nosing of dirty rhubarb and sweet quince. Sweet and caressing entry, silky mouthfeel and with a lovely peppery core to the sweet fruit. Air helps the sweet fruit to come through, but there is still a dry edge from the faint tann...

Mid red colour, a dark orange, 30% opaque. Slightly herbaceous on the nose, attractive although muted. Spicy, ginger biscuits and redcurrants on the palate. Delightfully elegant with a wonderful florality. Long aftertaste, light but tasty. Really rather a nice and elegant wine. 90/100.

A mature shade of mid-red, 40% opaque. Slightly corked on the nose. Dry and woody on the palate, full of dried cranberries and nut skins. Tasty layering and development, but always the ghost of TCA. Hot on the aftertaste, with a bit of an acidic burn but a big, dry and bitter espresso finish. Still ...

Dark organge in colour, little pigmentation, perhaps 30% opaque. Marmalade - that sweet and bitter intense orange - showing on the nose. Rather light entry, but nice development on the palate, full of rich and buttery orange. Deep aftertaste and a very big finish with full bitter-sweet orange flavou...

Good colour, mature red/brown, 50% opaque. Mildly corked on the nose, over what would have been a pleasant fruitiness. Flattened in the mout, showing the mild corkiness; good body and structure and a surprising amount of fruit given the obvious TCA. Bitter and woody on the aftertaste. Not rated.

Unknown shipper, cork simply branded Adam's 1955. Deep red with a hint of burnt brown, 60% opaque. Warm and spicy nose, really attractive. Delightful mouth feel, great palate presence with a fabulous combination of burnt sugar and rhubarb. Big aftertaste, coating the mouth with brown sugar flavours ...

Unfortunately, I have a prior family commitment that means that I will not be able to make it along on the 8th. Is anyone else who is able to definitely be there able to take over the organising of Oscar's evening?

I had a terrific night and it was a real pleasure to see a few folks I've not seen for a fair while. My thanks go to Christian for a lovely bottle of red wine; Dirk Niepoort for providing a bottle of the 1955 vintage that was impossible to find; to Axel for helping with the venue arrangements; to Ju...

To find a claret that was able to stand up for itself after 8 impressive ports was a real surprise.

This was a delight to drink and a wonderful accompaniment to a delicious steak & kidney pudding.

What a great list. I have to make do with the 1955 horizontal tonight. 1955 wines from Adam, the Factory House, Fonseca, Ferreira, Noval, Martinez, Gonzalez Byass, Taylor, Graham, Dow, Sandeman, Niepoort, Offley, Mackenzie and two others I can't remember. Life's tough, but someone's got to do it...

The Niepoort bottle is -as usual- a beauty and ready for airtravel. Alex, if you may allow I would like to approach the scene earlier to deliver and then be gone. Axel I won't be arriving at the venue until close to 18:00, but there should be competent persons there from around 16:00 who would be c...

And I've just stood up the Buckingham Palace blend, the Fonseca and the Martinez.

Warre 1958 - not sure who the bottler was. Perhaps Derek can identify the bottler.

Rich red colour, 90% opaque. Floral tones on the nose, over a warm mulberry and fig; very slightly off-putting. Lovely entry, sweet and with lots of sweet cherry. Big layering of flavours; lots of sweet fruit; big palate with multiple layers of flavour. A real delight to chew on - even a slight hint...

Corked - and how! Yuck! Not rated. Opened 25 September 2010.

Pale barley-sugar orange with a watery rim, only 10% opaque. Sweet licorice and nutmeg on the nose - really very nice. Sweet entry, full of honey. Huge heat from the acidity, full of grapefruit and lime, showing just a hint of rosemary from its age. A hot aftertaste, then a lingering grapefruit and ...

Ex-cellars from VNdG but stored for a summer in the cellars at Vesuvio. Deep red, dark and opaque. A floral nose, clean and attractive, full of fruit. Strongly acidic entry. Gentle tannins and lots of spice. The fruit is dominant, mostly primary but with a bit of secondary softness. A lovely afterta...

Butterscotch orange in colour; 30% opaque. Smelling of figs and quince and caramel. Nice balance on the palate of sweet citrus, burnt sugar and cleansing acidity. Generous depth, which reveals more and more orange. The butterscotch dominates the aftertaste, and slowly changes to a more burnt sugar f...

A half bottle; from a quinta recently purchased by the Symington family as part of the Cockburn deal. Murky and cloudy in appearance, very brown in colour and totally opaque from the sediment despite being filtered through unbleached coffee filter paper. Very rich smelling on the nose, full of Chris...

Almost as dark in colour as the Gould Campbell 1970 drunk alongside. 60% opaque. Hot on the nose, some VA giving a slightly varnishy tone. Sweet and thick entry; but with a harshness that unbalances and dominates. Eventually the harshness fades and allows the mature fruit to the fore, showing as lot...

Brick red and looking mature; 40% opaque. Red licorice on the nose, bright and vibrant, with lots of white pepper. Acidic and peppery initial impact, with the fierce acidity bringing lots of juniper and cranberry. Strangely dusty. A hot aftertaste, medium length finish of bitter chocolate. With more...

Deep purple and opaque. An elegant and floral nose, full of blueberries. Sweet and juicy fruit on the palate - massively fruity - with a lovely spicy and peppery core. Hot aftertaste, dominated by sour blackcurrants. The finish is spicy and full of dark chocolate and blackcurrants. Lovely and elegan...