2005 Niepoort

[RonnieRoots]

I was eager to taste this again. I tasted it as a barrel sample back in March and was a bit disappointed by it. In the meantime I've heard so many positive reviews, that I wanted to find out if I've judged it wrongly back then.

Tasted from half bottle. First notes are directly after decanting.

Pitch black colour, quite modest on the nose: mineral, very floral and fresh cherries. Fruity taste, elegant and medium bodied, with a very dry, tannic finish. Although the flavours are nice, there seems to be a sort of hollowness on the midpalate. Definitely not a blockbuster like the '03. Let's see how this develops with some air.

+3 hours
Hardly any change on the nose, perhaps slightly more alcoholic. LadyR are also notices some green (vegetable) notes that she finds typical for young Niepoort. It's a bit more full-bodied in the mouth, more spicy and peppery. Darker too, with some dark chocolate and coffee, still very noticeable, coarse and dry tannins. It's developing in the right direction. A very good glass of port at this point, although not a classis Niepoort. 88-89 points.

+24 hours
Warm and fruity nose with some asian spice. A well-knit and compact glass of port, that hasn't changed much from the day before. Maybe it's become a bit more supple. I'll stick with my initial score, but LadyR is a bit more harsh and gives it 87.

This tasting is pretty much in line with my experience in March. I will not buy any of these, with the 2003 and 2000 in stores for similar prices.

[Axel P]

Thanks a lot, Ronnie.

I have just been offered this wine from the official german importer for 60 EUR (without VAT) - and these are prices for re-sellers. So I guess Niepoort will have problems selling this wine for this price.

I've had this wine at the Niepoort-lodge this autumn. Though I gave it better ratings, to me this price is almost ridiculous as you could buy e.g. a Grahams 94 for this price.

Axel