1991 is not a year with which I am terribly familiar. I possess but a half dozen in the cellar and can recall consuming until recently only a fetching Quinta de la Rosa produced at supper in Porto by Mr. Bridgeman. The Bridgeman bottle, and this 1991 Gould Campbell ingested on 04 December 2020 after a seven-hour decant, are together suggestive of a year worthy of further exploration by those keen on agreeable, after-work-hours imbibing. Or indeed at work, should decanting arrangements present themselves in chambers.
The appearance of the wine was consistent with its age: maroon in the main, with a purple core, and largely opaque. The nose pointed likewise to a port resting comfortably at the sweet spot - for port and for the human condition - betwixt youth and the ravages of time. Rich fruits – blackberries and cherries, most especially – as well as dusting of cocoa were readily detected, as was a touch of minerality. Indeed, it took me some time to get my beak out of the glass, so pleasant was the bouquet. At the mouth, the wine did not match the promise of the nose, though it was certainly pleasant. The blackberries and cherries, coupled perhaps with a sprinkling of mulberry, were evident on the fore-palate. The fruit gave way, in turn, to dried ginger and the gentlest of spices, along with the aforementioned minerality, which ran together to the back. Whilst not overly complex on the palate, one did find that each glass differed from that before, to the extent that the dominant notes would take it in turns to transcend one another. The finish was of medium length and warming, albeit perfectly bereft of heat.
The wine was well balanced and of medium sweetness, with its weight falling a touch below the median; the residual tannins suggested a vintage port roughly a decade from its peak.
-90+ points