1991 Niepoort

[Alex Bridgeman]

A lovely rich colour, a deep red-mahogany; just failing to be opaque at the centre. Strawberries and pear drops on the nose, clearly a high level of VA in the wine. The VA comes through on the palate, just enough to be off-putting. The fruit is sweet redcurrant and baked pear with a nice mouthfeel and texture. The VA does get more off-putting on the late palate, creating a little harshness. Pear drops dominates the aftertaste and brings quite a lot of heat, but the finish is long and pleasant. Pity about the VA, even though I am quite tolerant I found this to be too much. 81/100. Drunk 31-Aug-15. Decanted 3 hours.