2017 Niepoort
Buying options
Tasting notes
A small harvest. All the fruit, from vines aged 80–100 years, was foot-trodden in circular granite lagares with 100% of the stems. The wines were racked soon after harvest, aged two years in tonéis (large barrels) in the Douro over the winter, and then moved to the cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia in March 2018. pH 3.56, RS 89 g/l. Deep crimson. Fabulous dark and floral nose, wild and almost sour like elderberries, with a dark rocky mineral nose, minerally and peppery. This is absolutely glorious (as it was when I tasted it in May ), the tannins are so fine but so dry and elegantly constraining the fruit, which is all at the heart and beating away as the wine ages gracefully. Insanely good. Mouth-watering freshness and Douro-dry tannins. Brilliant with the Montgomery cheddar, which cuts through the sweetness and alcohol. Although this is a wine that will live for decades, it is ridiculously delicious now. (JH)
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
The 2017 Vintage Port is a field blend from old vines (80 to 100 years old). It comes in with 89 grams per liter of residual sugar. This was set for bottling in two weeks, but it was the final blend. Even when open for a couple of days, this was still tight, muscular and concentrated, grabbing the palate and never letting go. On opening, it was fragrant and delicious, but even then, there was plenty of muscle and evident concentration. The concentration and power merely improved as it aired out—unlike a lot of 2016s (which year Niepoort did not declare). Tasting it after several days open showed that it shut down and closed up in terms of expressiveness, but it definitively proved that it's an old-school, long-haul wine. Dry, stern and long on the finish, this is brilliant. It is hard to think of any basis on which this is not perfection just now—Niepoort says it is the best he's ever made. It's certainly the best I've seen from him, and it is a leading candidate for "Wine of the Vintage," although certainly not the only one. Finally, this is going to require patience. Nothing about it says "drink me now." It should age brilliantly. If you lack a cellar and patience, look away.
The 2017 Vintage Port was picked early to obtain optimal ripeness, commencing 24 August and finished 26 September. Yields are some 30% below the previous year. The fruit was foot-trodden in granite lagares and matured in large barrels in Vila Nova de Gaia. It has a refulgent purple colour. The nose is explosive, a heady cornucopia of blueberry, black cherries and crème de cassis, later just a touch of lavender. There is no holding back on these aromatics. The palate follows suit with sumptuous black fruit, quite tannic but simultaneously rounded and lavish/velvety in texture. Touches of fresh fig and raisin appear towards the finish. Drop dead gorgeous.
Wow. Smoky and intense on the nose with dried fruits and slate undertones. Lots of wet earth too. Full body, sweet yet dry and tannic on the palate. Very powerful and focused. Racy and powerful. A fantastic center palate of fruit. A blend of touriga franca, tinto cao, tinta francisca, tinta amarela, sousao, tinta roriz and others. Drink in 2025 and onwards.