Spirits
Spirits are the highest ABV products of the alcohol family and as a result have the greatest capability to age, far beyond most fine wines. Cognac and other types of Brandy have long been collectible, with a bottle from the 1762 vintage selling at auction in 2020 for $1,500,000, and rare, aged Rums have started breaking into the mainstream but fine whisky is certainly the most desirable spirit on the world right now.
Whisky can be made in a variety of styles and is mostly produced in Japan, Ireland, the United States and most prominently, Scotland. Single malt Scotch Whisky is extremely collectible and is one of the most sought-after in the world, with the The Macallan's top releases being the pinnacle.
Fortified wines are not categorised as spirits, yet they contain a distilled spirit, usually brandy, to stop fermentation and “fortify” the wine. Port and Sherry are two of the most well-known and popular examples of fortified wines.
Spirits
Product Name | Region | Qty | Score | Price | |||||
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Porto | 1 | 100 (WA) |
Inc. VAT
£554.58 |
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Wine Advocate (100)The 2017 Quinta de Vargellas Vinha Velha Vintage Port is a field blend of typical grapes (like Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca) aged for 20 months in French wood. It comes in with 105 grams of residual sugar. When last seen, this was only a tank sample. A darker flavor profile than the regular Taylor's, more leaning to plums and blackberries, this shows all that great Taylor's fruit and welds it to a serious backbone. The regular Taylor's seems a bit brighter, while this seems a bit sterner and richer, but at this point in their very young lives, I am not sure there is a lot to choose from qualitatively. That may change, in favor of this, I think, as they go further into their very long lives. Today, there isn't much to separate them except style and price. I'd take this, both for the style and the upside potential, but the price spike is certainly worth noting for many, while the qualitative difference is nominal. |
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Porto | 2 | - |
Inc. VAT
£415.20 |
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|
Porto | 1 | 17.5 (JR) |
Inc. VAT
£343.55 |
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Jancis Robinson (17.5)Blackish crimson with medium rim. Heady and ripe on the nose. Subtle and savoury. Satin-smooth palate entry and a very dry end but really exciting and herbal in the middle. Very much in the Taylor's idiom. Neat and ambitious. |
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Porto | 1 | 86 (WA) |
Inc. VAT
£1,080.00 |
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Wine Advocate (86)This house makes rather restrained yet rich, flavorful vintage port and a very good tawny called Nimrod. Their vintage ports seem slow to develop, and while they never quite have the voluptuous richness of a Dow, Graham, or Fonseca, they have a unique mineral-scented character that gives them their own complexity and style. The1975 is soft, supple and clearly mature. |
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|
Porto | 1 | 18.5 (JR) |
Inc. VAT
£763.56 |
|||||
Jancis Robinson (18.5)Deep blackish purple. Lovely lift and savour. Slight hint of sawdust on extremely luscious fruit then some fine tannins. Pretty interesting, if non-classic wine. A real flatterer. Long but with great interest. Dry finish. |
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|
Porto | 2 | 92 (VN) |
Inc. VAT
£535.98 |
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Vinous (92)Deep ruby. Vibrant, expressive aromas and flavors of kirsch, dark chocolate and flowers. Very dense, fat and sweet, with excellent inner-mouth energy leavening the impression of lushness. Finishes long and sweetly tannic, with a bit of brandy to be absorbed. This has the density and tannic clout for a graceful evolution in bottle. |
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|
Porto | 1 | 96 (JS) |
Inc. VAT
£459.18 |
|||||
James Suckling (96)Very complex with dried flowers and roses. Full-bodied, very layered and tightly wound. Chewy and powerful. Firm and off-dry. Needs five or six years to soften. Beauty. Try in 2024. |
Product Name | Region | Qty | Score | Price | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Porto | 1 | 100 (WA) |
In Bond
£449.00 |
|||||
Wine Advocate (100)The 2017 Quinta de Vargellas Vinha Velha Vintage Port is a field blend of typical grapes (like Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca) aged for 20 months in French wood. It comes in with 105 grams of residual sugar. When last seen, this was only a tank sample. A darker flavor profile than the regular Taylor's, more leaning to plums and blackberries, this shows all that great Taylor's fruit and welds it to a serious backbone. The regular Taylor's seems a bit brighter, while this seems a bit sterner and richer, but at this point in their very young lives, I am not sure there is a lot to choose from qualitatively. That may change, in favor of this, I think, as they go further into their very long lives. Today, there isn't much to separate them except style and price. I'd take this, both for the style and the upside potential, but the price spike is certainly worth noting for many, while the qualitative difference is nominal. |
|||||||||
|
Porto | 2 | - |
Inc. VAT
£415.20 |
|||||
|
Porto | 1 | 17.5 (JR) |
In Bond
£260.00 |
|||||
Jancis Robinson (17.5)Blackish crimson with medium rim. Heady and ripe on the nose. Subtle and savoury. Satin-smooth palate entry and a very dry end but really exciting and herbal in the middle. Very much in the Taylor's idiom. Neat and ambitious. |
|||||||||
|
Porto | 1 | 86 (WA) |
Inc. VAT
£1,080.00 |
|||||
Wine Advocate (86)This house makes rather restrained yet rich, flavorful vintage port and a very good tawny called Nimrod. Their vintage ports seem slow to develop, and while they never quite have the voluptuous richness of a Dow, Graham, or Fonseca, they have a unique mineral-scented character that gives them their own complexity and style. The1975 is soft, supple and clearly mature. |
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|
Porto | 1 | 18.5 (JR) |
In Bond
£585.00 |
|||||
Jancis Robinson (18.5)Deep blackish purple. Lovely lift and savour. Slight hint of sawdust on extremely luscious fruit then some fine tannins. Pretty interesting, if non-classic wine. A real flatterer. Long but with great interest. Dry finish. |
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|
Porto | 2 | 92 (VN) |
In Bond
£421.00 |
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Vinous (92)Deep ruby. Vibrant, expressive aromas and flavors of kirsch, dark chocolate and flowers. Very dense, fat and sweet, with excellent inner-mouth energy leavening the impression of lushness. Finishes long and sweetly tannic, with a bit of brandy to be absorbed. This has the density and tannic clout for a graceful evolution in bottle. |
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|
Porto | 1 | 96 (JS) |
In Bond
£357.00 |
|||||
James Suckling (96)Very complex with dried flowers and roses. Full-bodied, very layered and tightly wound. Chewy and powerful. Firm and off-dry. Needs five or six years to soften. Beauty. Try in 2024. |