Launch tasting of wines from Vesúvio (and Graham 80YO)

[Alex Bridgeman]

The sign outside the tasting room

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On Tuesday 23rd September 2025, Anthony Symington led a tasting of the new release of wines from Quinta do Vesúvio, in the context of some older wines to show how they develop with a little bottle age.

This was accompanied by a tasting of the range of Graham’s aged tawnies - 10, 20, 30, 40 and the extremely special 80YO.

[Alex Bridgeman]

The room prepared

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The wines being poured were the new white wine from the estate, Comboio do Vesúvio Branco from the 2024 harvest, Comboio do Vesúvio Tinto 2022, Pombal do Vesúvio 2022, Pombal do Vesúvio 2020, Quinta do Vesúvio DOC 2022 and Quinta do Vesúvio DOC 2015.

There will be tasting notes for the wines further down the thread when I’ve finished posting.

[Alex Bridgeman]

The wines poured

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Unfortunately the magnum of Quinta do Vesúvio DOC 2020 did not make it through customs.

In the company of a stuffed ostrich (see the next picture!), Anthony spoke about the history of the estate, which used to be called Quinta das Figueiras (Quinta of the fig trees) until the owner was on a grand tour of Europe and was so impressed by the sight of Mount Vesuvius that he promptly came home and renamed his estate, thinking a mountain of fire being very appropriate for a hilly estate in the scorchingly hot Upper Douro. It kept the name when it was later bought by Dona Antonia Ferreira and by the Symingtons in 1989.

Much of the estate has been renovated by the Symington family, with around 80% of the vineyards having been replanted, mostly done over 20 years ago so the vines are not far from qualifying as old vines! There is a winery at Vesúvio, but this is only used to produce the Quinta do Vesúvio Port with table wine grapes being processed at one of the family’s other wineries in the region.

[Alex Bridgeman]

The venue for the tasting was the Mandrake Hotel in Fitzrovia. This is a lovely quirky hotel that holds surprises around every corner.

One of which was a stuffed ostrich that was paying close attention to the wines Anthony was presenting.

The stuffed ostrich

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After the wines were tasted, the team cleared the wine glasses and poured samples of the Graham Tawnies with Age. Side by side in front of us were the 10, 20, 30, 40 and a small sample of 80 year old. Pleasingly, all the Ports were served chilled, which Anthony emphasised to the mostly on-trade audience was the right thing to do.

10YO farthes, 80YO nearest

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[Alex Bridgeman]

The whole event lasted around 90 minutes, so it was only a brief opportunity to get to know the wines. Having the chance to taste the tawnies side by side was something I don't get to do often, and with the added bonus of a sample of the 80 year old was something not to be missed.

Tasting Notes

2024 Comboio do Vesúvio White
Expressive fruit led nose, mineral palate which is delicate and grassy. Long finish, impressively so. Deliciously fresh and easy to drink. 87/100.

2022 Comboio do Vesúvio Red
80% Touriga Nacional with some Franca and Roriz. Sweet strawberry fruit on the nose. Surprisingly dry on the palate, expressive berry fruit dominated by cranberry and with the lavender overtone expected from Touriga Nacional. Tremendous crunchy red berry fruit finish where the tannins which leapt to attention on the fruity palate, slowly fade away on the finish. 86/100.

2022 Pombal do Vesúvio
9 months maturing in 2nd year oak. Made from TN planted in 2000. Cranberry and raspberry fruit on the nose, more refined and expressive than the Comboio. Touriga Nacional is the principal grape. Gently tannic, elegant and poised with a lovely richness to the fruit. Gently acidity gives structure to the wine and delivers a delicious and expressive fruit. Delicious sipping wine. 88/100.

2020 Pombal do Vesúvio, from magnum
A small crop from a warm year - with Touriga Nacional and Tinta Franca unusually ripening at the same time. This allowed the unusual step of co-fermenting these two grapes from this harvest. Deep and rich fruit on the nose, deliciously fragrant. On the palate this has a wonderful smoothness to the fruit, highlighting the fragrance from the Touriga Nacional. Fabulous fruit on the aftertaste, with just the perfect level of tannin to support the fruit. Really lovely. 89/100.

2022 Quinta do Vesúvio
A “miracle year” with 47°C heat being experienced - the hottest year on record, with no rain for the summer - and yet one in which the vines coped with the weather. Glorious nose expressing wonderful dark fruit. Rather tight on the palate with the initial impact coming from the ripe tannins and plentiful acidity. The aftertaste and finish are incredibly generous and long-lasting, dominated by the fruit. While this would be a lovely wine to drink now with food, it will mature and develop into something thoroughly delightful. Matured in barrel for 12-15 months and then aged in bottle for a couple of years before release. 90/100.

2015 Quinta do Vesúvio, library release
Complex on the nose with gentle herbs merging with sweet violet and lavender. The smooth fruit carries a mischievous dose of fine-grained tannins, filling the mouth. Delicious grip on the aftertaste and finish. This is a big wine which still has plenty of life ahead of it with the chunky tannins still so obvious. This needs to be drunk with food, a stew or roast would be perfect. Very impressive; slightly out of balance but this should be fixed with a few more years in bottle. 89/100.

NV Graham Tawny 10YO
Cherry red in colour. Nutty nose, with some lovely dried cherry. Delicious toasted sugar and Scottish butter tablet on the palate, a gentle layer of vanilla and a gorgeous cherry fudge late. A little spice shows on the aftertaste and finish, a finish which is very long. A very satisfying glass of Port. 88/100.

NV Graham Tawny 20YO
Red-amber in colour with a green-nutty nose, that also showing a little dried fig. Excellent balance on the palate with dried fruit, honey and nuts. This delivers a lingering finish of honeyed redcurrant and the occasional flash of cinder toffee. Harmonious Port. 90/100.

NV Graham Tawny 30YO
Explosively expressive on the nose, with dried citrus peel and honey, deliciously lemony. Sweet orange and tangerine on the palate, with lemon and honey shining through. A firework display of an aftertaste, so full of flavour, with a gloriously grainy honey finish which just doesn't stop. Fabulous. 94/100.

NV Graham Tawny 40YO
Pale orange rim, amber core. Stunning nose, wonderfully expressive, showing orange caramel and hazelnut. Honey palate, with orange and marmalade dominant. Full of flavour, with layer after layer of expression. This wine just gets bigger and better as it sits on the palate. A little heat on the aftertaste but the toasted sugar and nuttiness gradually settles in and stays for several minutes. On balance, however, I prefer the freshness of the 30YO over the intensity of the 40YO - but how wonderful to have the chance to compare the two against each other. 93/100.

NV Graham Tawny 80YO (bottled 2025)
Green rim with an olive brown core. Baked ginger on the nose, spiced and immensely complex. Slightly thickened in texture, with intense orange and marmalade on the palate being delivered with the perfect balance. The intensity of flavour and exquisite balance just explodes over the palate on the aftertaste, delivering one phase of flavour after another. There is a lovely lime and lemon marmalade, a sticky Seville orange marmalade and a list of flavours and sensations that goes on for several minutes. Absolutely amazing. 99/100.

[Andy Velebil]

2015 Vesuvio Douro needs a good long decant. I opened a bottle at home a week or so ago that was fabulous and showed much better than this one did.