2007 Quinta do Noval

[JacobH]

Consumed on 20 May 2009 at The Crusted Pipe in a "bring a bottle to share" and 2007 Horizontal offline.

One of 5 samples of the 2007 Vintage tasted in the mini-offline. The tasting was carried out "double blind" (unusually in the scientific sense, as the test administrator, AHB, did not know what he was administrating to us). Hopefully Derek still has the key of which letters was allocated to which shipper .

The original title of this thread is/was 2007 "E" Vintage Port. Once the shipper is disclosed, it will be renamed.

E was the other sample (in addition to A) which really shinned on the nice and was perfectly drinkable despite being so young. Again very floral on the nose, but with less grappyness than A. Probably the best of the Ports at the moment but I have no idea how it will develop. I wrote that it had "more tannins [than A]" which might be a good sign for its long-term maturity.

[g-man]

Taylor

[DrDirk]

The last of the sample which WS1 brought to Germany.

The nose is not as present as in the other samples but very portlike - just as it has to be.

A fantastic port. This seems like a real port. Very dry in the aftertaste.

Could be Taylors.

Dirk

[uncle tom]

Nose: Elegant, pleasant, the best of the night

Colour: Dark, if not inky

Palate: Heady and approachable, will find favour with those who like to drink young

Conclusion: For immediate gratification, 'A' & 'E' were the clear winners of the night, but I have fewer doubts regarding 'E''s lasting power than I do 'A's

Best guess: A hard call. If I had not had the Niepoort a few weeks ago, I would have put my money in their camp; but this was a very different wine. That said, the first Niepoort sample owed more to grape juice than wine. Maybe it has grown up since then..

Tom

[benread]

To me, this was the darkest colour of the 5 samples tasted at TCP. I noted choclolate and red fruits on the nose, with a very smooth initial taste, before it "hits you"" Not sure I would buy this - I put a ? as my intent! As with "D", I think tis has long term potential.

[Axel P]

Best one of the three I had due to the curtesy of WS1. Guess it is one of the big brands. Taylors?

Axel

[JacobH]

Opps...tried this again, last night, with bottle ‟C” but forgot to post the note:

144+, not a great deal of change compared to the first tasting. Very drinkable. Hugely floral on nose, though over the last few days the grapyness has become more apparent and there’s a bit more stewed fruit than I remembered (no doubt due to being opened too long). Tannins are extremely soft and not obtrusive. A very nice wine for drinking now, though I wonder how long it will last.

[JacobH]

**bumps the thread so readers might see the disclosure of the shipper**

[WS1]

Apologies for the delay in posting my scribblings but after my holiday I had quite a tough week. Of the 5 samples I liked E most;

very dark, black fruits, very balanced, quite long in the finish. Haveing tried it a day later it was even better, really good composition. The only wine which really exhibits some structure and a slightly dry finish. Over the next couple of days this stayed my favourite. As the only Port it had a structure like a Port (based on coulour and density).

Should be one of the big hitters 2007 in my humble opinion. But this coment should be seen relative in contex; I have not tasted that many 2007 cask samples.

[Axel P]

... and just by coincidence, we tasted this against a 1994 Noval, which was turning up to be absolutely brilliant.

Thanks again, Wolfgang

Axel