Lot 386
TAYLOR FLADGATE VERY OLD SINGLE HARVEST PORT 1967 (2, OWC) WA 95
Lot 386 Details
TAYLOR FLADGATE VERY OLD SINGLE HARVEST PORT 1967 (OWC)
Douro, Portugal.
This molasses-flavored beauty emphasizes its complexity, seeming elegant in the mid-palate, but remarkably concentrated in flavor. Despite that concentration of flavor, this never seems even a little jammy. It is also wonderfully persistent on the finish. The most notable features here, though, are the smooth, unctuous texture and the complexity--the mature flavors, not only molasses, but a bit of seared caramel. It was interesting revisiting this a few days later, by the way. Some say these long-aged tawnies never change. I never believed that was true and this is a good example. On opening, there was a touch of a hard edge and it was sometimes just a little harsh on the finish. A couple of days later that was literally gone and after a week or more, this seemed remarkably graceful and impeccably balanced. It eventually seemed even a touch understated. This was bottled in 2016 with a bar-top cork. As noted on occasion, wines aged this long in barrel can in theory last indefinitely, assuming no cork failures, but it is ready and the bar-top cork means it is meant to drink now. December 2016 Drink: 2016-2060 WA 95