Is my LBV ok to drink?

[signus]

hi all,
i have questions regarding 2 ports - one "LBV" & the other "Crusted" (i always drink Finest Reserves).

a) LBV - i found this bottle in a cupboard - the front lable states "Late Bottled Vintage 2005" & near the bottom of it "Bottled 2010" - however on the rear lable it states "Drink Within 1 Year Of Purchase" - i can't remember when it was bought so do you reckon it is still ok to drink?

b) Crushed - i also found a bottle of Dow's Crushed Port - Bottled 2003 - can i continue to store it or is there a time limit involved?

my thanks

[JacobH]

Hi, welcome to .

LBV can be made in two ways: filtered (which is more common) or unfiltered. Since your bottle says ‟drink within 1 year of purchase” it’s likely to be a filtered wine which means that all the bits that help a Port mature have been removed before bottling. It therefore shouldn’t need decanting (like a ruby reserve) but isn’t designed to improve by being matured. However, I can’t see why they put such a short limit on drinking. You can easily mature filtered LBVs for a decade or so without them going bad and they often become quite nice with some time in the bottle. We’ve even drunk some from as far back as 1965 which may be a bit too long was still, at least, drinkable...

Crusted is a different kettle of fish. It is made in a similar way to Vintage Port but has wines in it from different years (whereas Vintage Port is made from one year only). That means it is not filtered and will need decanting off the sediment when you open it. However, it should mature quite nicely, like a Vintage Port. I’ve tried the Graham’s 2004 Crusted a few times in the last fortnight whilst it very nice to drink now but will certainly be better in 10-15 years (if you can wait!).

With all Port, try to keep them lying down (so the corks don’t dry out) somewhere dark, if you’re going to keep them for any length of time.

[signus]

jacob - that was great info - will the try the LBV tomorrow evening - thanks again

[John M]

Hi Signus:

Jacob's advice is spot on.

Who is the producer of the LBV? If you are going to drink it, I'd suggest opening it at least 4 hours in advance just to let it blow off a little. If you can, save some to try over 3 days and see if it changes at all.

[Alex Bridgeman]

Hopefully the two bottles have been kept somewhere dark and cool, lying on their side (although the lying on the side bit is less important for the LBV). If that's the case then they should be rather tnejoyable. 2005 LBVs are still being sold in the supermarkets so I'd be surprised if this is not very enjoyable.

The crusted is capable of being kept on its side in a cool, dark place for 10-20 years and being better for the extended storage. Or it could be drunk now and be a very fruity, very structured and enjoyable port.