NV Dow Midnight Port

[Alex Bridgeman]

From a bottle estimated to be between 5 and 10 years old. Bottle maturation produced a modest amount of fine sediment sludge that was left behind in the bottle.

Deep red in colour, opaque and showing a slight hint of bricking on the rim. Brambles and spearmint on the nose. In the mouth this is full of dry cherry juice. There is a birch-wood undertone; tannins are soft and acidity is gentle. The alcohol shows with a vengeance on the aftertaste, but does eventually fade to allow a lingering finish of chocolate and cherry. Overall, this is a very enjoyable ruby port with moderate body and decent depth. I'm not sure how this compares to a newly bottled version, but I would happily open another 10 year old bottle of this port if I came across one. 85/100. Drunk 24 December 2010 after 48 hours decanting.