A lot of 5 bottles was purchased at an advantageous price at auction before Christmas but I forgot to take delivery until this week. Lead capsule rather than plastic capsule. One was starting to seep - level still BN so I suspect an artefact of transport - but that meant swift condemnation to opening.
Popped and decanted and poured.
Orange rim but still a deep red in the glass. 40% opaque.
Nose a little muted but swirling brings spearmint and cranberry.
Palate is ravishingly soft, with Agen prune and Armagnac cream. Strawberries and vanilla custard follow, before we reach a rich orange oil and cinnamon finish.
The labels were tatty, I accept, but I think this was barely fifty quid delivered. Burgundy of equivalent augustness - fully mature, top producer, top vintage - is a substantial multiple of that.
I first drank this port in winter 1990 and I think in all the time since I’ve only had a couple of duffers, across probably four dozen bottles. There have been few things in my life that have offered such reliable value.