- Alex B. brought Kopke 1985;
- jdaw1 brought Warre 1985 and Warre 1977;
- g-man+♀ (Stephanie) brought Sandeman 1977 and Rebello Valente 1977;
- Bob Heckart brought Graham 1985.
1977 Rebello Valente
1977 Rebello Valente
The presence of Alex B. in New York triggered a tasting (arranged via this thread, and discussed in this review) to which:
RV77
Cloudy brown-red, and nosing of bottle-stink. Initially widely hated. Some said mint, others grass.
Then the bottle-stink faded, helped by a larger glass, and so found more favour. Later: very floral.
Then the bottle-stink faded, helped by a larger glass, and so found more favour. Later: very floral.
My second fav wine.
I thought it initially tasted like York peppermint patties.
the finish started a bit short ...
but as the wine opened up it went a 30+ sec finish ..
it was the lightest wine of the bunch. Cloudy brown-red.
for me this was like drinking a light milk chocolate covered red berries.
I also agree with a floral component to this wine.
I thought it initially tasted like York peppermint patties.
the finish started a bit short ...
but as the wine opened up it went a 30+ sec finish ..
it was the lightest wine of the bunch. Cloudy brown-red.
for me this was like drinking a light milk chocolate covered red berries.
I also agree with a floral component to this wine.
- Alex Bridgeman
- Graham’s 1948
- Posts: 14902
- Joined: 13:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
1977 Rebello Valente
Double decanted for 7 hours before being tasted. Light centre, pale rim, weak / watery looking orange rim. Chocolate and cocoa powder on the nose, with some odd cabbaginess. Sweet and full bodied entry but with a dirty and earthy mid-palate. The bottle stink on this wine blew off after an hour or two in the glass and revealed a lovely and delicate wine that was drinking very nicely but unlikely to improve with further bottle age. 6-6 or 90/100.
This wine suffered significantly from bottle stink (which I learned a few weeks ago comes from a combination of high sulphur content and insufficient oxygen working its way through a bottle seal/cork) and this bottle stink was persistent and got in the way of appreciating this wine for what it could really offer. After a small remnant of my first pour had sat in my glass for a couple of hours this wine was really elegant and floral. Sadly when I had drunk and loved that pour and topped my glass back up, the bottle stink was back with a vengeance and we did not have enough time to allow it to blow off again. However, I did love this wine without the taint.
This wine suffered significantly from bottle stink (which I learned a few weeks ago comes from a combination of high sulphur content and insufficient oxygen working its way through a bottle seal/cork) and this bottle stink was persistent and got in the way of appreciating this wine for what it could really offer. After a small remnant of my first pour had sat in my glass for a couple of hours this wine was really elegant and floral. Sadly when I had drunk and loved that pour and topped my glass back up, the bottle stink was back with a vengeance and we did not have enough time to allow it to blow off again. However, I did love this wine without the taint.
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.
2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.