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As many on this forum know, I love the size and shape of the Tappit Hen bottle. I've opened 4 in the last year, most recently a Warre 1977 Tappit Hen which was shared with fellow port lovers the week I turned 50 - it was the perfect size for 8 people to share after dinner and a 15 bottle tasting. The bottles are magnificent, shaped like the Niepoort "pote" bottle used for some of the 1970 but larger in scale. I have one empty (a Dow 1977) on the window sill of my study as a very impressive ornament - not too big to be dominating but big enough to be eye catching. I had very much hoped that the Symingtons would bottle some of their 2011 ports in Tappit Hen. But alas, available were halves, bottles, magnums, double magnums and imperials...but no Tappit Hens.

So I decided on an experiment. On the 7th of March 2014 I took delivery of 12 bottles of Vesuvio 2011 and decanted them into my three non-ornament empty Tappit Hens (2 Warre and 1 Graham). Of course, I cleaned the Tappit Hens very carefully (hot water and sodium metabisulphite and then lots more hot water before drying in an oven) and demijohn corks (boiled to make them soft and to hopefully sterilise them). I stood the filled Tappit Hens upright for a week before laying them down (I learned from the Niepoort 1997 story) for another week to make sure the corks were sound. Then I waxed them with several layers of red bottle wax to properly protect the corks, the final layer of wax being stamped "Vesuvio 2011". I'm currently working on labels, including a back label that will more or less repeat what I have said here so that if ever anyone comes across one of these (which will only happen if I die unexpectedly soon) then they will be clear I filled these bottles and it was not done by Quinta do Vesuvio Lda.

And if anyone is interested, the bottles which were opened and used to fill the three Tappit Hens were 10256 (part only used), 10516, 10661, 10986, 11090, 11100, 11101, 11103 and 11134. The back labels for the Tappit Hens will state which bottles went into which Tappit Hen.

This is what a Tappit Hen of Vesuvio 2011 looks like:

For the first time ever, I wish we had some of the bonkers emoticons they have on FTLOP. In particular I would like a symbol of an awestruck figure taking his hat off and bowing low.

Indeed,

Just the sort of thing that Avery might have done, in the days of UK bottling.

And who will tell on you to the IVDP?

The FTLOP emoticon that we need is :notworthy:

Indeed, we are not worthy.

Glenn E. wrote:The FTLOP emoticon that we need is :notworthy:

Indeed, we are not worthy.

Very cool!

This is so cool. Any worry that the oxygenation from the "re bottling" will accelerate aging?


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CaliforniaBrad wrote:This is so cool. Any worry that the oxygenation from the "re bottling" will accelerate aging?


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I would have thought this is the right time to rebottle, when there is plenty of added sulfur and antioxidants in the wine. If one is particularly concerned one could add some more sulfur.

Very nice indeed!

Very cool, been looking to do a similar thing with Dow LBV into a Demijohn; haven't found the right bottle yet.

CaliforniaBrad wrote:This is so cool. Any worry that the oxygenation from the "re bottling" will accelerate aging?

That is a risk but I am hoping that as Griff suggests, rebottling this soon after the initial bottling might help the port to minimise the effects of exposure to more air.

The big question is, when should the first one be opened to check on the progress of the experiment?

AHB wrote:The big question is, when should the first one be opened to check on the progress of the experiment?

2036

I would have thought that in order to tell whether any damage has been done you'd need to leave it 5 years; this would be enough time for oxidisation to be obvious. The wine mightn't be so amazing at that point. But at least you'd know. And you'd obviously have to open one of your other bottles to compare.
But I can't imagine any damage having been done.
Shall we start a thread for the opening of your first tappit hen in 2019?

Maybe I should take some pigmentation readings? I could then track these over the years and follow the evolution of the port that way.

PM sent.

AHB wrote:alas, available were halves, bottles, magnums, double magnums and imperials...but no Tappit Hens.

AHB wrote:The big question is, when should the first one be opened to check on the progress of the experiment?

I'm not sure what the best date is, but I do know what the control group should look like

DRT wrote:

AHB wrote:The big question is, when should the first one be opened to check on the progress of the experiment?

I'm not sure what the best date is, but I do know what the control group should look like

I volunteer to assist with 'emptying' any further Tappit Hens bottles from '77 (especially the Warre!) to allow you to fulfil all the further orders for the AHB Special '11 Tappit Hens that you will no be likely to receive

Chapeau to Alex with regards to his experiment. I confess to not having ever seen a Tappit Hen bottle in the flesh although came close to securing a W77 in this format at auction last last year. Maybe JDAW can speak to the powers that be to ensure more releases in this format!