2007 Quinta do Vesuvio

Tasting notes for individual Ports, with an index sorted by vintage and alphabetically.
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Tasting notes for individual Ports, with an index sorted by vintage and alphabetically.
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Glenn E.
Graham’s 1977
Posts: 4163
Joined: 22:27 Wed 09 Jul 2008
Location: Seattle, WA, USA

2007 Quinta do Vesuvio

Post by Glenn E. »

Tasted 2/1/2010 through 2/4/2010 in a flight of 3. This bottle was the reason for the tasting - I didn't get the chance to taste the standard Vesuvio this summer, so wanted to get a bottle of it quickly before it had too much of a chance to mature in bottle (vs the cask samples over the summer).

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

Opened for contrast:
1986 Smith Woodhouse Colheita

2007 Vesuvio Vintage Port

Day 1

Color: "Looks like a young VP." Dark purple with garnet overtones, especially near the edge. Brilliantly clear.
Nose: Dusty and fruity, primarily blackberries. Some light minerals behind the dust. Very light alcohol.
Palate: A light, sweet impression on entry, which resolves out to something neutral or medium sweet. Faintly floral. Mixed blueberries. Good tannins and acidity. Medium body weight.
Finish: Nice. Long. But the taste is too good to get a good impression of the finish.

Initial score: 94

Day 2

Color: Red overtone has faded somewhat leaving the Port pretty much spot-on dark purple in the glass.
Nose: Ripe purple fruits, blackberry, some late blueberry, very slight dust and low-toned alcohol. Somewhat tangy.
Palate: Juicy and warm. A little bit tangy and has a very faint, very slight bite. Good tannins and acidity. Medium body weight and neutral sweet/dry.
Finish: Very long and pleasant. Warm and yummy.

Score for the day: 94

Day 3

Color: Another change... it's now more of a dark garnet with purple overtones.
Nose: Black raspberry, red raspberry, and a nice tartness.
Palate: Lighter body weight - significantly so. Good, firm tannins and good acidity. Tart grape and red raspberry.
Finish: Tart fruits, tannins, and the later grape skin.

Score for the day: 93

Day 4

Color: no change
Nose: Deeper, but closing up. Black raspberry or maybe a blueberry/red raspberry hybrid. Very faint sensation something like butter. Dark toned dust/minerals.
Palate: Very rich, medium sweet, and back to a medium full body. Yesterday's lighter body was very strange. Slightly tangy. Good tannins and acidity. Warm, but not hot. Pleasant, but feels like it's getting close to being open too long. It's not quite there yet, though.
Finish: Fruit and tannins, nice warmth, and with a good length.

Score for the day: 94

Overall score: 94 points. My overall winner (by a hair over the Martinez) over the 4 days, in part because it was the most consistent.

I can't really compare it straight up to the Vesuvio Capella, though, because the Capella was a cask sample while this is a finished bottle. To me, though, they're of similar quality so the only reason I can see to buy the Capella is to have something that is more rare. My checkbook says to get a 6-pack of this instead of a 3-pack that the Capella comes in.
Glenn Elliott
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