NV Edward Sheldon Ruby

Tasting notes for individual Ports, with an index sorted by vintage and alphabetically.
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Tasting notes for individual Ports, with an index sorted by vintage and alphabetically.
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Alex Bridgeman
Graham’s 1948
Posts: 14880
Joined: 13:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
Location: Berkshire, UK

NV Edward Sheldon Ruby

Post by Alex Bridgeman »

Edward Sheldon is a wine merchant based in Shipston-on-Stour, established in 1842 and still trading today. The shop sits above a warren of old vaulted cellars which not only holds case after case of wine but also little bit of vinous history - like a boot and flogger machine. What I particularly like about Edward Sheldon Ltd is that the current owners don't sell online - if you want to buy wine from them, you have to visit the shop. And I strongly recommend you do, Their selection of wine is superb, prices are consistently within a few pounds of Wine-Searcher Pro UK low, the owners are very welcoming and you can wander round the cellars (or join one of their organised cellar tours). When I visited I was like a kid in a sweet shop so they made me a cup of coffee to sip while I wandered round choosing what to buy. One purchase was this bottle, I was curious to see how the current version performed of the historic brand "Edward Sheldon Hunting Port". Purchased for £12.75.

A standard ruby Port bottled specially for Edward Sheldon Ltd by Quinta & Vineyard Bottlers Lda. It is a soft red colour, having lost the youthful purple but with no signs of bricking so by eye I judge the wine to be a blend with an age of 8-10 years; opaque at the centre with a medium rim. The nose brings a lovely and generous violet and raspberry, perfume and sweet red fruit. The balance on the palate is wonderful. The fruit sits within a perfect basket of soft and ripe tannin on a cushion of gentle acidity. The tannins are so well balanced with the fruit that even as the fruit builds up on the mid-palate, so the tannins develop to match. The palate is mid-weight, the fruit elegant and very nicely mixing black and red. The aftertaste is all about a mouthful of fruit slowly fading to leave a very, very long liquorice root and blackcurrant which lasts longer than it takes to write this tasting note. This is wonderful value for money; I shall be buying more when I next visit! 90/100. Drunk 10-May-22. Decanted 2 hours.
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.

2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
Justin K
Niepoort LBV
Posts: 251
Joined: 19:19 Mon 15 Dec 2008

Re: NV Edward Sheldon Ruby

Post by Justin K »

I bought a bottle of their Ruby Port years ago and thought it was also very good value. Do they pay a little more for their blend than the supermarkets I wonder? I haven’t bought their own label champagne but I have had it at a Christmas bash a few years back (the year you came down to us) and the other party goers swore by it. Maybe because they don’t sell online these are well kept secrets which you may just have blown😂
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