In early 2021, I connected with a few of my Port-loving friends from Los Angeles, Santa Cruz and Las Vegas and we organized the first of what has been come a quarterly get-together to catch up with each other and drink a lot of Ports and wines together. Unlike many of the formal tastings that we attend where there are carefully curated lineups, formal tasting, intense discussion, and copious tasting notes, we decided that these gatherings would be low-key and focused on just enjoying the weekend, the wines and each other’s company. Tasting notes optional.
For the April 2023 edition The Guys’ Port Weekend, we met up in Southern California to celebrate Andy’s birthday. We all brought a few “interesting bottles” as we always do, but Andy reached deep into his collection to pull out some unique and amazing wines to share with us for his birthday celebration.
As we normally do, Eric, David and I all coordinated our flights to arrive in LA around the same time. We all met up in baggage claim, gathered up our luggage and wine suitcases, and before long Andy was picking us up and the weekend was officially underway.
We headed back to Andy’s place, and Andy had an impressive array of bottles selected for the weekend. We wasted no time pulling out our own bottles from our wine carriers and loosely grouping them in with Andy’s wines. However, the theme for these events is always “casual” so the standing rule is we can open whatever we want, whenever we want, without much fuss about the order. To further embrace the “casual” nature of this Guy’s Port Weekend, many of the wines – especially the non-Port wines – I didn’t normally even write tasting notes for, but captured what they were for this article (and posterity’s sake).
We thought we would start off with a nice Champagne to celebrate being together again, followed by some table wines. We had a great lineup from the Symington’s, Wine & Soul, and Niepoort as we got caught up with each other for a few hours.
2004 Louis Roederer Cristal Brut Champagne
2008 Niepoort Redoma Douro White
2019 Wine & Soul Pintas Character Douro Red
2019 Wine & Soul Manoella Douro Red
2019 Prats and Symington Post Scriptum Douro Red
Our first Port of the day was one that I had never tried. This brand was once associated with the Douro Wine Shippers and Growers Association, and this very well could be a brand that they bottled and shipped as a “Buyer’s Own Brand” where they bottle and private label with another company’s label.
1980 Morano Golden Orb Vintage Port – Light amber in color with some visible sediment. Red fruit on the nose with herbs and just a hint of that characteristic dirty note that is common with wines of this era. This is usually picked up from the aguardiente that producers were required to buy from the IVDP. Medium bodied with pleasant, simple profile that is easy to drink. 89 points. (4/29/2023)
The next Port was likewise an interesting one. I had never seen this one before, but I was excited to try this one. I love old rarities like this!
1973 Vinho Delho do Douro (Regua) Garrafeira Particular Port – Amber orange in color. There’s some noticeable oxidation and a touch of VA on the nose with some vanilla notes just underneath. Surprisingly, there is less oxidation on the palate with sweet notes of honey, caramel, and refined sugars. Smooth, medium-bodied with sweetness and light acidity on the finish. 88 points. (4/29/2023)
And then it was time for one of my favorite Vintage Ports. I joke that the 1994 Vesuvio was my “gateway Port.” The first time I tasted it in 2006 in Portugal, a whole new world of Port opened up in front of my eyes (and palate). It wasn’t rare, or expensive, or anything like that, it just took everything I thought I liked about a Vintage Port to that point and turned it up to “11”.
1994 Quinta do Vesuvio Vintage Port – Crushed blueberry and blackberry with floral notes and just a hint of mint. Entry is powerful, lush, and mouthcoating waves of blue fruits, and a rich texture and complexity. The mid-palate sings with an intricate dance of fruit and tannins, and the very long finish just underlines how powerful yet balanced a wine this really is. 94 points. (4/29/2023)
Next, we shifted gears significantly and tasted the 1934 Reserve Port from Dalva. Dalva is a producer we know pretty well, mostly from their Golden White Port series, but I hadn’t tasting anything this old from Dalva before. The bottle is funky and unique, and the wine was similar (funky in a good way).
1934 Dalva House Reserve Port – Bottled in 1973. Amber-orange in color. Some old oxidized notes on the nose but also some wonderful dried fruits and some Madeira notes. Rich, red fruit notes with some spirit and acidity present on the palate. Nice long finish. 92 points. (4/29/2023)
Next stop on our tour was a 50 Year Old White Port from Kopke. The 50 Year Old category is a relatively new category of Port, so these are some of the first bottlings we are trying from producers like Kopke.
Kopke 50 Year Old White Port – 375ml bottle. Amber-orange in color. Oak and caramel on the nose. Saline, dried nuts, and caramel on the palate. Nice acidity with noticeable sweetness and good structure. 93 points. (4/29/2023)
After the Kopke, we decided to turn our attention to a number of old table wines and a few Portuguese table wines.
1978 Alexander Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir
2019 FitaPreta Alentejo Os Paulistas Chão dos Eremitas Vinhas Velhas Alentejo Red
1973 Beaulieu Vineyard Special Label Burgundy
1973 Fetzer Cabernet Sauvignon
1973 Beringer Vineyards Johannisberg Riesling Auslese
When it comes to White Ports and Tawny Ports, if producers have quality wines that all come from the same year (and have the proper documentation to substantiate that), they can bottle those wines as “Colheita” Ports, and they put the year on the front label. Colheitas generally vary by year/vintage, and often reflect the individual harvest conditions of that particular year. For example, the flavor profile might be different in a hot year versus a year with more rain. Otherwise, master blenders will normally make their commercial blends from a mix of Ports from the various stocks they have in the cellars, developing the perfect blend that reflects their house style.
Our next wine was one that was could have been labeled a “1973 Colheita White Port,” but likely lacked the proper documentation for the various source wines that went into this blend. The wines blended together ARE all from 1973, but without the documentation and/or approvals, they couldn’t label it as a Colheita. Hence: “Finest White Reserve Port.”
Quinta da Devesa Porto Finest White Reserve – Bottled in 1973. Blend of the two Component wines from 1973 that were aged in tonnels right next to each other. Caramel and honey on the nose. Yellow golden color. Balance sweetness and good acidity on the wine. Nice long finish. 93 points. (4/29/2023)
After the fun Devesa tasting, we moved on to a selection of older Vintage Ports.
1963 Martinez Vintage Port – Amber orange in color with just a slight tinge of pink. Red fruits and some light alcohol on the nose. Rich red fruit with some heat on the palate. Nice sweetness with just a touch of bitterness on the very end of the finish. 93 points. (4/29/2023)
1970 Dow Vintage Port – Dark amber in color with slight orange on the edge. Dark chocolate and some dark fruit on the nose. Beautiful rich flavor with touches of cinnamon, red fruit and light herbal notes. Great long finish. 94 points. (4/29/2023)
1944 Royal Oporto Colheita Port – Bottled in 2004. Cloudy appearance. Rich dusty fruits and a touch of heat on the nose. Great acidity and brightness. Good intensity with lime, citrus, and caramel on the palate. The finish is surprisingly wonderful and long. 93 points. (4/29/2023)
1947 Messias Colheita Port – Bottle in 1986. Amber orange in color. Bright nose of caramel, cassis, and candied orange. Great balance on the entry, with a clean, sweet flavor profile. Brown sugar and caramel notes on the palate. Great long finish with balanced acidity. 95 points. (4/29/2023)
2012 Far Niente Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
1973 Sterling Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
1974 Barros Colheita Port – Bottled in 2022. Amber-orange in color. It has a really fantastic structure and flavor profile. Great balance, good acidity, and complex flavors of orange spices, nuts, and dried fruit. Very long luxurious finish. 94 points. (4/29/2023)
Quinta de Brunheda Cask 51 Very Old Tawny Port – Amber-brown in color. Cloudy. Chocolate and some rich sweetness and structured tannins on the palate. Great balance and complex flavor profile. A touch of heat right at the end of the palate but otherwise a fantastic wine with very long finish. 94 points. (4/29/2023)
1853 Whitwham Millennium Reserve Port – This is a while that has a bit of controversy in its history. The back label of the bottle says: “Some Douro farmers have hidden treasures. Old Ports that lay in cask, undisturbed in family cellars throughout generations, sometimes crossing several centuries. This rare wine was produced by the Cavaleiro family in the Upper Douro to celebrate the coronation of King Pedro V of Portugal, in the middle of the XIXth century. Just over one pipe of this wine has lain undisturbed in the same family hands ever since. After nearly one and a half century in the cask, the time has come for the wine to be bottled and for it to be enjoyed in the 21st century, the new Millennium. The wine finally made its way down the Douro in February 2001 and was bottled by Niepoort in their Vila Nova de Gaia lodges.” I’ve heard several stories regarding this wine, including that is a Niepoort Colheita Port (not true, based on the back label), that Niepoort added some of their own wines into this blend (not verified), and that this wasn’t actually a Niepoort wine, just that Niepoort did the bottling (which seems to be backed up by the back label story). Dark amber-purple in color. Great nose of old dark fruit with maple and old dusty wood on the nose. Rich butterscotch and orange spice on the palate, with exceptional balance and stunning intensity. Wow! Great complexity and a very long finish. 95 points. (4/29/2023)
The back label of this wine shares the following story:
