2003 Quinta do Noval LBV (unfiltered)

[Alex Bridgeman]

Unfiltered. Deep red, with a touch of violet on the rim. Young strawberries on the nose. Youthful sweetness and fiercely tannic in the mouth with simple and straightforward fruit. The aftertaste is dominated by the tannins, very dry but showing the alcohol. Serviceable port. 86/100. Drunk 26 June 2009.

[Michael M.]

Alex,

thanks for the note!

86 for the unfiltered and 90 for the filtered version, that's remarbable. First of all Roy's evaluation on the unfiltered version came as a contrast to my mind. If I remember correctly he found 2003 Noval LBV on the level of the 1994 Noval LBV which he rated constantly 93. I do know, you aren't Roy and there are maybe different preferences. But what big difference in evaluation. I would be interested in your opinion on the potential.

Michael

[Alex Bridgeman]

This particular port was served blind, I had absolutely no idea what it was and so I assessed it with no context. Now that I know what it is, I wonder if it is slightly closed down and therefore not showing the sort of complexity that I would normally expect to see from an unfiltered LBV. Don't write it off yet - I am a great fan of Noval's unfiltered LBVs and would happily buy the 2003 vintage even though I wasn't greatly impressed this time.

[Andy Velebil]

The filtered version of this I had double blind recently I gave it 92 points. But noted it is far too young and in a place that isn't great for drinking yet. It needs many more years of cellaring to mellow. It was more like a young upper end mid-tier VP at this point than an enjoyable LBV.

The unfiltered version, also double blind, I gave 93 points and noted the same youthfullness.

[Michael M.]

Alex and Andy,

thank’s fort the additional information. I was a big fan of 1997 Quinta do Noval LBV (unfiltered version). Unfortunately they are all gone. Too much greediness and insufficient buying strategy. One has to learn. Within the next few days I will load up 2003 Noval LBV (unfiltered version). About 2 years ago I had the filtered version of 1994 Noval LBV from a reliable source. Form my taste the wine has had ist days. So I will rely on the unfiltered version for the long haul.

Michael