Decanting
Vintage Port forms a natural deposit in the bottle and should be decanted. Stand the bottle upright a few hours before decanting to allow the sediment to fall to the bottom of the bottle.
Select Year
1997
Storage
Continues to improve for decades after bottling. The bottle should be kept lain down in a cool place, ideally at a temperature below 16ºC.
Serving temperature
Serve at 16ºC to 18ºC. Vintage Port is best drunk one to two days after opening.
Pairing suggestions
Walnuts, blue veined and other richly flavoured cheeses are excellent accompaniments to Vintage Port; so too are dried fruits such as apricots or figs.
About the Wine
After the snowfalls of the 7th January, the Winter and the Spring of the year were warm and dry. The higher than normal temperatures brought on early bud burst and the berry set for all the vineyards was good.
The weather during the harvest was extremely hot, as a result the fermentation temperatures were high and an extra effort was required to prolong the fermentations.
The high quality was evident in the wines from the start, with the intensity of the must, good integration of the spirit and powerful, attractive aromas.
Tasting Notes
The first impression is of pungent black fruit aromas and rich dark velvety chocolate. This is then followed by delicate herbal and tobacco notes. The complexity and range of flavours on the palate are seemingly endless: rich cherry and plum jam, luscious ripe blueberry, bitter dark chocolate, scented cigar box and spice, fresh leather. And the texture and consistency of the wine is almost of molasses, or treacle, it coats the palate like a velvet glove. A wine with enormous strength, marvellous depth, dimension and structure. It fills the mouth to bursting and the finish is wonderfully prolonged.
Neal Martin