2020 Churchill
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Tasting notes
The 2020 Vintage Port, set to be bottled in a couple of weeks, is the final blend and out of cask. It is a field blend coming in at 103 grams of residual sugar and was aged for 24 months in large oak vats. A bit herbal and also showing some eucalyptus, this is aromatic and well structured. Lean but powerful, this shows finesse and flavor, with a serious backbone. It needs some aging, and it should age well. This has a higher upside than the Gricha, its sibling in this report. That will become clearer as the years go by, I suspect, but they are both among the more interesting 2020s I have seen.
Critic scores
Average Score
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Mark Squires
More reviews and scores
Barrel sample. A field blend including Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca and Tinto Cão. Yields were circa 30% lower than in 2019. Fermented and foot-trodden in granite lagares, with strict social distancing in the pandemic year – must be tricky in a lagar! Aged 6 months over winter up in the Douro in large oak vats and then 18 months in Vila Nova, in oak vat and tank. RS 103 g/l. Inky black with dark-purple rim. Like elderberry juice. Ripe elderberry, blackberry and mulberry fruit, both intensely rich and vibrant. Super-ripe black cherry and plum – all the ripest of black fruits but without any raisining, just a hint of prunes. Voluptuous richness and the sweetness is beautifully moderated by the firm and yet incredibly smooth tannins. Wonderful depth and balance and generosity of fruit. (JH)