ABV: 20%
Size: 75cl
Country: Portugal
Description
THE WINE ADVOCATE 95 points
Drink Date: 2028 - 2065
"The 2018 Vintage Port is a field blend aged for approximately 18 months in very old and large wooden vats. It comes in with 100 grams of residual sugar. This is the third straight declaration (2016, 2017 and this 2018) of a classic Vintage Port for Taylor's. Of those three, this so far would be my least favorite, but it's close and time will tell. Aromatic and expressive, this adds a big bang for a finish that reminds you that it is, indeed, Taylor's. After opening it on the first day tasted, it tightened fast and showed the structure I like to see in serious Ports. It has that classic flavor profile as well and shows fine concentration. Even 48 hours later it had no problem showing off a little muscle, even though it drank decently at that point. The fruit is expressive, as noted, but it is still a bit closed just now.
I am not sure this is a truly great Taylor's, but it is a very good one. In the Fladgate Partnership lineup this issue, it is probably the most complete wine. The Croft is the sexy steal with utterly delicious fruit, but Taylor's has better structure. The Fonseca has fine structure, but the fruit seems today to be a step behind the Taylor and the Croft in expressiveness. This seems likely to be the best of the Fladgate trio as the years and decades wear on, even though the Croft is the most interesting today. The price references a full bottle, although this was tasted from a half bottle." - Mark Squires, 17th Dec 2020
