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2007 Graham Vintage Port

Posted: 00:11 Sat 06 Feb 2010
by Glenn E.
Tasted 2/1/2010 through 2/4/2010 in a flight of 3.

2007 Graham Vintage Port
2007 Vesuvio Vintage Port
2007 Martinez Vintage Port

Opened for contrast:
1986 Smith Woodhouse Colheita

2007 Graham Vintage Port

Day 1

Color: As expected, dark purple with a deep red tint to it.
Nose: Faintly tanky and richly sweet. Blueberries and blackberries, with some slight alcohol later.
Palate: Tart on entry, mostly raspberries and a hint of blueberry. Good tannins and good acidity, but only medium sweet which seems odd for a Graham. Medium full body though and a good finish.

Initial score: 93

Day 2

Color: no change
Nose: Sweet black fruits, some dust, and some alcohol. Mainly blackberry and blueberry, though something mildly tart also.
Palate: Very rich, very sweet, and completely full bodied (for a Vintage Port). Good tannins and acidity. Bold. Round. Grabs your attention. Definitely more presence today, which makes it a very nice Port.
Finish: Long and luscious, but a little rougher than the Vesuvio's.

Score for the day: 94

Day 3

Color: Essentially no change, but the red overtones are a little more on the garnet side now.
Nose: Also essentially no change except for a new floral note that resembles a darker version of honeysuckle.
Palate: Still rich, still full bodied, and still sweet. Slightly more tart than before and a bit more red to the fruits. Tannins slightly rougher.
Finish: Somewhat shorter, but still reasonably long and nice.

Score for the day: 93

Day 4

Color: no change
Nose: Tart and grapey with some dark berries. Still faintly dusty just preceding very mild alcohol. Very faint impression of beef jerky.
Palate: Rich, sweet, but only medium full bodied today. Slightly tart. The tannins and acidity also seem to have receded a bit, but are still decent to good.
Finish: Tart fruits, then a bit of bite. Mold tannins, some grape skin, and then an even fade. Decent length, so again shorter than before.

Score for the day: 93

Final score: 93 points. Day 4 felt like the bottle had been open just a little bit too long. This is a very nice Port, but I just don't see what's getting it scores that are 5 points higher from high-profile Port critics. I feel very comfortable in the 93-94 range, and can't really imagine how much better a bottle would have to be to deserve 98.