Should I buy this 1945 Taylor's?

[TDTD]

The description from the seller:


Here are the photographs of my 3 bottles of Taylor 1945. The levels of the 2 on the left are excellent whilst the one on the right is mid shoulder. I bought these ports off a wine merchant in the north of England who bought them off a customer who inherited them. I can’t tell you any more about them.

[flash_uk]

Kind of depends on the price

[TDTD]

Haha what I mean is, I have no real knowledge of how to assess whether it's likely to be ok inside - it will be drunk straight away, not kept.

Price is about £600 per bottle

[Glenn E.]

Haha what I mean is, I have no real knowledge of how to assess whether it's likely to be ok inside - it will be drunk straight away, not kept.

From the photos, I'd say your chances are as good as any. With bottles that old it is extremely difficult to assess the quality of the contents.

Price is about £600 per bottle

That seems high at first glance, but is actually pretty much in line with prices I've researched for 1945 Graham. I suspect that the end of WWII has more to do with the high prices than anything about the vintage itself. Those bottles are likely very rare, so priced accordingly.

[flash_uk]

Sadly I have not had the chance to buy/open anything pre 1950s, but others here will no doubt offer some wisdom from experience. As a start, the damage to the wax seal on the third bottle is likely to be a factor in the greater degree of ullage in that bottle, some port having potentially leaked out at some point, which is not a good sign.

If the wax seals are the original seals then the first two look in good shape. Although I have no idea whether grey wax was used by Taylor, so maybe they have been re-waxed at some point. The labels are actually in fairly decent shape albeit with some staining, which may or may not have come from juice in these bottles.

Personally, setting the price aside, in a situation like this I would not buy the third bottle, and would only buy one of the other two at a time even if I wanted both, only buying the second if the first turned out well. That of course requires that the first be opened...but it sounds like that is your plan.

[TDTD]

I assume if the port is off when I open it that's tough, no refund etc?!

[djewesbury]

If it's a private sale, then yes. Buying from a wine merchant usually gives you greater comeback.

[TDTD]

Well it would be from mwhwine.co.uk but it seems quite small-time / home-based

[djewesbury]

I think they're pretty reputable. Would probably be willing to entertain a refund if the bottle was genuinely bad. But worth asking. No offence will arise from the question.

[TDTD]

No refunds, buyer beware :'(

[DRT]

I think they're pretty reputable. Would probably be willing to entertain a refund if the bottle was genuinely bad. But worth asking. No offence will arise from the question.

I don't think any wine merchant would offer a refund on a bottle that old.

[idj123]

£600 is certainly a pretty penny to pay and that would be enough to put me off but having had T45 on my wedding a couple of years ago, I can confirm it to be fantastic juice, amongst the best I have ever tasted. It was also quite hardy having not beeen stored ideally by my father-in-law (who kindly donated it to me) and even been carried pillion earlier in its life. Therefore, if the £600 doesn't put you off I'd concur with Mike's approach ie buy one of the good bottles initially. It might also be woth asking if the ullaged bottle can be thrown in for a song.