1991 Niepoort

[Alex Bridgeman]

Decanted approximately 3 hours before tasting. Substantial amount of sediment in the bottle and it was a pleasure to have bottle glass that could easily be seen through. Short 4cm cork and an odd lip on the inside of the neck meant that my Ah-So was a bit difficult to use, but I managed. Beautiful deep ruby red in colour, very dark with colour holding right into the rim and an opaque centre. Hint of bricking just starting to develop. On the nose on oddly medicinal smell, reminds me of Night Nurse. Thick and sweet into the mouth with a well balanced but very acidic attack. Mid-palate develops delicious flavours of dates and figs. Length also comes in two parts. Short fruity aftertaste followed by a developing chocolately / bitter coffee tail that lasts around a minute. I have a feeling that this will be better with a little more time in the decanter (lucky our guests don't arrive for another 4 hours). A decent and enjoyable wine that doesn't deliver anything exceptional. 88/100. Drunk on 11 Feb 2006.