An impromptu visit to The Crusting Pipe

[Alex Bridgeman]

At very short notice, Uncle Tom and I met at The Crusting Pipe on 30th November and opened a couple of bottles of oddities that we had. That evening we drank our way through a bottle of what was labelled as "Almedia 1966 Ruby Port, bottled in 1977". This appears to be a Buyer's Own Brand colheita port produced for the French market. It was quite plesant, but very sweet and lacked the acidity to balance the sweetness.

The other bottle - and the only one which was finished on the night, was a bottle of "El Vino late bottled Vintage Character" port which I would guess was bottled in the early '80s. This was a pleasant surprise and, while a little harsh from slightly unbalanced acidity, was very drinkable and could be compared to a light-vintage vintage port - I suggested 1978 and Tom suggested 1984.

And then Tom produced a sample of port, which was deeply coloured and smelt of that perfect balance of mature port - redcurrants, junipers and rich roasted meat. It was thick in texture and incredibly rich in flavour, with a slight heat on the aftertaste but a long, long length. I guessed it was a Taylor '55 - it was, to my astonishment, a sample from a wonderful bottle of Taylor '27. Thank you Tom!

Incidentally, the menu at TCP has changed. There is still a pre-theatre menu for Sunday to Wednesdays, but only rump steak is included in the fixed price option. However, rib-eye and sirloin steaks are also available for a £5 supplement.