Quinta do Noval Porto Vintage Nacional 2001

Quinta do Noval Porto Vintage Nacional 2001The 2001 Vintage Port Nacional is a typical blend, mostly Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Co, Souso and Tinta Roriz. Aged for 20 months in old barrels in Douro, it comes in with 19. 3% alcohol and 76. 8 grams per liter of residual sugar. This is a late release, declared in 2003 but just now about to hit the market. Christian Seely said: "[T]he 2001 was extremely backward and quite closed up, dense and very tannic. Since we had just declared

a wine of finesse yet there is enough sleek muscularity and punch present to confirm that it's a Gevrey

black currants

giving this a chance to continue developing beautifully

like many of these 2013s

the 1989 and 1990

Full-bodied and rich

The 1959 was unctuous

incense and licorice

bright and layered nose reflects notes of cool red and black cherry

This exhibits that beguiling quality of inner mouth perfume on the sleek

There is a really lovely sense of underlying tension suffusing the much more mineral-driven middle weight flavors that are not quite as rich but notably more precise on the chiseled and wonderfully refined finish

Mugnier made first-rate '98s and the Amoureuses is one of the clear successes of the vintage with its higly expressive and wonderfully complex nose that has gone secondary yet remains quite fresh