ThePortForum.com

Please post links to your TNs here and use this thread to talk as much drivel as you normally would at a non-virtual off-line.

Tasting Notes

• Qunita do Vesuvio 1994: DRT;
• Martinz 1985: ARK;
• Warre's Bottle Matured LBV 1995: AP;
• Martinez 1997: JDAW;
• Taylor 1963: JDAW;
• Martinez 1985: AHB;
• Taylor 2002 LBV: BMHR;
• Taylor Vargellas 1988 in half: JES.

Note: Admins feel free to add to the above list as and when people create their TN threads.

This thread is for rambling from both sides of the pond.

jdaw1 wrote:This thread is for rambling from both sides of the pond.

Please don't make me ramble on and post some quotes from earlier this year

To start the rambling, I'll share a small problem that I have with the offline.

I'M STUCK IN BLOODY FRANCE AND MY PORT IS IN ENGLAND!!!

When and if I make it back, it looks like it might be a short or emergency decant of the Martinez 1985 that Brother Derek gave me a couple of weeks ago.

Alex

Both the Martinez 1994 and Cheap Ruby have been given a first taste and assessment. TN's will follow later.

It's likely that our attendance will be limited to the UK early evening, due to the fact that it's 3 hours later here and both LadyR and I have to get up at 6AM.

First impressions:

- cockburn fine ruby: YUCK!
- martinez 1994: CLOSED!

If the Martinez is anything like the 1985 or 1983 it will take a long time to open up - about a day or so. Good start.

AHB wrote:When and if I make it back, it looks like it might be a short or emergency decant of the Martinez 1985 that Brother Derek gave me a couple of weeks ago.

Use a decanter with a close-fitting stopper. Decant. Leave off the close-fitting stopper. Wait half an hour. Put on close-fitting stopper, hold it on firmly, and shake vigorously to mix in fresh air. Stand decanter further, again stopper-less. Good luck.

I have reached my off-line location with just less than half a bottle of Vesuvio 94 (the other half being in the fridge since decanting to be consumed later), an ISO glass and a very attractive tasting mat.

All I have to do now is get through dinner and chit-chat with the family and wait until they all go off to do other things so that I can join the tasting at around 10:00 this evening.

Good luck Brother AHB, we share your pain. But as we all have the advantage of having port to drink while feeling the pain that probably doesn't mean much to you at this point.

Derek

We enjoyed a nice dinner with friends to celebrate this happy occasion. The cheap ruby showed remarkably consistent after a couple more hours, the Martinez is now starting to show something of its future potential. A beauty of a port. Just a pity that none of the decanter will see tomorrow.

T63 might be past its prime: a little drier than ideal.

Just printed my fine-looking placemats (which are less redundant than most). Next task: rinse glasses.

I just had dinner with son, parents and sister & b.i.l - we had chinese, which will not help the V94

2 hrs chit-chat and watching footie then I should be swigging port alone

DRT wrote:I just had dinner with son, parents and sister & b.i.l - we had chinese, which will not help the V94

2 hrs chit-chat and watching footie then I should be swigging port alone

But will your focus be TPF or Facebook tonight? Pimping or Port?!

DRT wrote:I just had dinner with son, parents and sister & b.i.l - we had chinese, which will not help the V94

2 hrs chit-chat and watching footie then I should be swigging port alone

If they don't get to the bottle first

But will your focus be TPF or Facebook tonight? Pimping or Port?!

DRT is a professional...he will be doing both at the same time

AHB wrote: I'M STUCK IN BLOODY FRANCE AND MY PORT IS IN ENGLAND!!!

Bummer

But congrats on the anniversary guys!

Should I open the Taylors LBV of my status or the Fonseca LBV (unfiltered) that I acquired in expectation of still being of the previous standing? The latter does of course appeal more.

In which case I would need to seek authority from the powers that be!

I'm home!!

I'm decanted!!

And now I'm cooking tea for the family - cheese omlette and chips.

All is looking good for an extended taste of the Martinez 1985, with pictures, starting at about 2 hours of decanting time.

Initial impressions after 20 minutes in the decanter (which will be transferred across to a TN thread when I am sitting down) are as follow:

Crystal clear, mid-red colour holding into the rim, transparent centre. Beautiful smell of strwberry syrup rising out of the glass but with a bit of a dirty / hot tone when you put your nose into the glass. Very poised and elegant in the mouth, some lovely restraint. Lots of fruit, lots of tannins, huge acidity but plenty going on to keep me interested in the way this is going to develop. A bit harsh when you swallow, with the acidity and the alcohol fighting to see which can burn the back of your throat the most, but a great, lingering, chocolate and cherry aftertaste when the fight has finished.

Yummm!

benread wrote:Should I open the Taylors LBV of my status or the Fonseca LBV (unfiltered) that I acquired in expectation of still being of the previous standing? The latter does of course appeal more.

In which case I would need to seek authority from the powers that be!

My suggestion is that you need to open both so that you can decide whether or not you need help from the powers that be.

AHB wrote:... but a great, lingering, chocolate and cherry aftertaste when the fight has finished...

Did I say lingering?

Make that really, impressively long.

Hurray for Alex being home. Hurray for Ben being about to drink as much as the New Yorkers. Hurray for the glasses being rinsed, and my leaving in a little under two hours for the ’cross-the-water side of the party.

jdaw1 wrote: Hurray for Ben being about to drink as much as the New Yorkers.

Just worried about getting up for 8am rugby between England and New Zealand - in the pub!

Two bottles should last you till then. If you manage to delete three in eleven hours we'd be really impressed. Don’t eat though: food makes you sleepy. All calories from port — that’s the dieter’s motto.

[Drink your current rank: that’ll be enough.]

lets not forget that sushi needs to finish the port and still wake up at 5:30am to drive up to neverland.

I'm still eyeing the warres in my bag and it's tempting to pop it open and take a swig.

jdaw1 wrote:Two bottles should last you till then. If you manage to delete three in eleven hours we'd be really impressed. Don’t eat though: food makes you sleepy. All calories from port — that’s the dieter’s motto.

[Drink your current rank: that’ll be enough.]

You are too kind! Have started on the Taylors LBV - 2002 (Bottled in 2007)

benread wrote:You are too kind! Have started on the Taylors LBV - 2002 (Bottled in 2007)

Tell me about the Fonseca LBV and a fresh two-glass placemat can appear.

[url=http://www.theportforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=15651#15651]Here[/url] benread wrote:

jdaw1 wrote:

benread wrote:Taylors LBV

Any particular year?

How remiss of me! 2001 - I just checked the supplies!

[url=http://www.theportforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=15885#15885]Here[/url] benread wrote:Have started on the Taylors LBV - 2002 (Bottled in 2007)

2001 or 2002?

jdaw1 wrote:

benread wrote:You are too kind! Have started on the Taylors LBV - 2002 (Bottled in 2007)

Tell me about the Fonseca LBV and a fresh two-glass placemat can appear.

Will follow a little later - I promise!

benread wrote:Will follow a little later - I promise!

Hmmm: “a little later† I shall be in La Sirène, 558½ Broome Street, NY 10013-1508, wherein there is not access to Adobe Distiller, enjoying some port with other residents of the former New Amsterdam.

Is anyone having difficulty logging in to FlikR at the moment? I loaded some photos there a few minutes ago and now can't get at them!

Can anyone tell me why this isn't working:



Thanks,

Alex

AHB wrote:Can anyone tell me why this isn't working:



Thanks,

Alex

Take away the bits after .jpg and it works.

AHB wrote:Can anyone tell me why this isn't working:



Thanks,

Alex

It's now working

Now I'm just exceedingly confused.

Do images not show up on a preview or something?

Delete the “?v=0†.

Done. Thanks all. My tasting note is now being illustrated.

Is the official birthday at 10:21?

My bottle looks almost exactly the same as Alex's.

Annoyingly, I got my dates mixed up and meant to open this on the 19th - oops. I blame Al B - see here

AHB wrote:All those participating try to be online at the time of the first post (22:15 BST on Saturday, June 20).

This means that the Martinez 1985 is not up to the optimum decanter time that we all know and love. It's still a little thin and has an acrid taste which is a bit medicinal. Underneath there are cherries and zest of orange but it will be a lot better tomorrow.

What the hell happened at the end of that game?

DRT wrote:Is the official birthday at 10:21?

It was 10:15 - happy birthday everyone.

KillerB wrote: What the hell happened at the end of that game?

No idea - I only just realised that it was Turkey playing - I thought it was Russia

DRT wrote:

KillerB wrote: What the hell happened at the end of that game?

No idea - I only just realised that it was Turkey playing - I thought it was Russia

watching the penalties live on the web!

benread wrote:

DRT wrote:

KillerB wrote: What the hell happened at the end of that game?

No idea - I only just realised that it was Turkey playing - I thought it was Russia

watching the penalties live on the web!

Issa Turkey!

All bow and pay homage to The Creator who has just graced us with her presence here on

Gosh - has it been a year?

Well I have just stuck my nose in the Martinez 1985 and had to leave it 20 minutes before I risked doing that again! On initial sniff the Martinez had fumes that I could smell a yard away, was acrid in nature and reminded me of cough mixture.

After 20 minutes, it had calmed a little but was so strong I could hardly get close enough to taste it! The taste was sweet, with fire on my lips and in the back of my throat , but surprisingly soothing.

See you all next year!

Treacle x

Right. I've finally got the family packed off to bed, so now nothing but serious port quaffing for the rest of the evening.

Is the New York chapter on line yet?

DRT wrote:I won't score this tonight, I will just enjoy it and re-visit the refridgerated half bottle later this weekend with a clean palate.

I thought the refridgderaded sample was for drinking on top of a mountain tomorrow?

AHB wrote:

DRT wrote:I won't score this tonight, I will just enjoy it and re-visit the refridgerated half bottle later this weekend with a clean palate.

I thought the refridgderaded sample was for drinking on top of a mountain tomorrow?

#
No. I refredgederatered the half bottle to prevent me from bring it with me tonight so that the most I could drink was the half bottle I have minus the one glass I had last night. I have no will power so putting 275 miles between me and temptation was the only practical solution.

...and I forgot to bring a very small bottle so I can't take any to the top of the world tomorrow

Derek

DRT wrote:I have no will power so putting 275 miles between me and temptation was the only practical solution.

At least it's only 275 miles. At one point this afternoon I thought I was going to be 645 miles from my bottle.

What was really scary was the fact that the bar upstairs from check-in had Rozes ruby available...and I had felt deperate enough to go and find out!

And I remember how sympathetic you were to my plight. I have lots of port waiting to be drunk.

The aftertaste on the Martinez 1985 is really wonderful.

I think I've just spotted a problem with the TN Index. There are no Martinez ports listed

I went looking for my own M85 notes (I think I have done at least 2) and found no Martinez vintages listed in the index. Using the search facility I found loads.

Please can Jdaw investigate?

Ooh goody. The Avengers has just started. Wonder what Diana Rigg will be wearing today?

AHB wrote:Ooh goody. The Avengers has just started. Wonder what Diana Rigg will be wearing today?

I don't like the long green coat - it covers her best feature

Here

Conky wrote:Alex,

Wonderful. As a man with a soft spot for this Port, I'm pleased you are enjoying it. I also think it might be a little better after a day.

Alan.

It was the experience of the group with the Martinez '85 that you found under your sink (figuratively) that persuaded me to look a little more closely at this shipper.

I must admit, that I am very pleased that I have. So far I have tried the 1994, 1985, 1983, 1955 and a crusted from 1968. I have enjoyed every one of them and have the 1970 and 1967 vintages to try at some point this year.

Alex