Another Great Vintage Port

1977 Dow Vintage Port.
$120
Shane’s Notes

We haven’t purchased our port tongs yet, so I took my best shot with a waiter’s corkscrew. I burrowed in at a slight angle and rocked the cork back and forth. The extraction was nearly over when the cork broke. We poked the rest of the cork back into the bottle and decanted with a funnel and screen. We took a quick sip and discovered that the wine was extremely closed. We let it sit for an hour before tasting it again. It was drinkable but still not fully open. It took another hour before the palate really started to sing.

That palate had the rich texture that you would expect from an aged vintage port. It also had that ineffable elegance that marks Dow’s style. The flavors included black cherry, fennel, and hazel nuts with undertones of vanilla and brown sugar. The brown sugar flavor became more prominent as the decanting time reached the three hour mark. The flavors were so enjoyable that you just wanted to swirl this one in your mouth before swallowing. My only complaint is that the finish was a little hot.

This port should probably be aged for another 5 to 10 years and would probably hold up well beyond that, but it is definitely drinkable now with a few hours of decanting. There really is no substitute for an aged, vintage port.