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I found this at my local grocery store and thought I'd give it a try despite the relatively high price ($27 for a 750 ml bottle).

2001 Warre LBV
bottled in 2005, unfiltered

Color: Very deep, very rich red with some purple overtones. Very dense, and opaque in the center.
Nose: Fruity, rich, and almost thick. It smells like it's going to be chewy in the mouth. Lots of purple brambles and a hint of dried meat (beef jerky?). Almost no alcohol, but it can be found if you try hard enough.
Palate: Medium dry overall, but the entry is medium sweet. Full and almost heavy. Very good tannins and good acidity. This could use another 10 years of aging - the structure is that good. The bramble berries taste a little more red than they smell, but are still very present. There's also a slight bitter note that changes to green and stem-like in the finish.
Finish: Grippy and bitter to start, but that mellows. Dry mouth feel as is typical of a Warre or Dow. A few purple brambles, but they're nearly overpowered by the green stem-like note that lingers. I think this Port is just too young, or requires more than just a couple of hours of decanting.

Score: 89 points. It opened up a bit after a couple of hours in the glass and should continue to improve through 24 hours, but the improvement hasn't been enough to warrant changing the score. It's on par with my standard reference point, the 1999 Quinta de Roriz Vintage Port, which is pretty good for an LBV.

Glenn E. wrote:I think this Port is just too young, or requires more than just a couple of hours of decanting.

I recently had a bottle of the 1995 and thought the same thing. AHB reliably informs me that the Warre LBVs from the 1980s are drinking perfectly now, which suggests that they need 25-30 years in the bottle to reach their peak.

Makes you wonder what proportion will ever be drunk at their peak...?

RAYC wrote:Makes you wonder what proportion will ever be drunk at their peak...?

The same is probably true for most bottle aged ports in modern times. I do wonder how much old vintage port our modern, impatient world of instant gratification will leave for future generations to enjoy in the way that we do now.

DRT wrote:

RAYC wrote:Makes you wonder what proportion will ever be drunk at their peak...?

The same is probably true for most bottle aged ports in modern times. I do wonder how much old vintage port our modern, impatient world of instant gratification will leave for future generations to enjoy in the way that we do now.

I don't think there'll be too much of a problem at least for the next generation. The shippers often hold stocks for commercial release at a later date - Taylor Fladgate released a parcel of 1985 Fonseca last year, for example. In addition to that, much of the vintage port is still sold through wine merchants and to a market that understands and appreciates that vintage port matures and improves in the bottle for many years after release. I would bet that the majority of vintage port sold through merchants is tucked away in long term storage to be drunk in 20+ years. The only vintage ports that I would anticipate are bought and drunk immediately are those sold through supermarkets (or the equivalent) or bought to be drunk very young (like Skeffington '09 ).

It's the generation after my children that I would worry about. Will my children ever develop the patience to buy port or any wine and then leave it for 20 years? I'm not sure. But perhaps with age comes a greater appreciation of mature wine and also the patience to go along with the appreciation. Who knows? All I can be certain of is that it will be down to them as I will be past worrying.