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Wine Description
The Story
Late Bottled Vintage Port is from a single year. The wine ages 4-6 years in old oak casks (opposed to Vintage that ages 2-3). LBV fills the gap between the Rubies and the Vintage Ports since a Ruby Port should be drunk quite young and a great Vintage Port may need 15 to 20 years to really open up and show its splendour. This led to the idea in the 1960s to age the wine 4 to 6 years in large casks before bottling it, thereby producing a wine with the style of a Vintage Port with its deep colour and concentration of fruit, but with a more mature character caused by the longer ageing in wood. Late Bottled Vintage is the perfect Port to accompany chocolate desserts, specially bitter chocolate or a pepper steak.
Vintage 2018
After an extended drought, rain finally came to the Douro in spring 2018 in such quantities that there was some damaging erosion. Following that, summer was hot, and yields were consequently low, but the classic varieties thrived in the heat, producing deep, intense, fragrant wines.
The 2018 Single Quinta Vintage Ports are the result of a rollercoaster growing season – with a prolonged winter drought, a deluge in spring, and heatwaves through the final ripening period. Despite the challenges, the 2018 wines are characterised by a well-defined acidity and marked freshness, reflecting the characteristics of specific parcels of vineyard within each estate. The star of the year was the late-maturing Touriga Franca, which excelled in the warm harvest, allowing each estate’s signature aromas to flourish.