Wine & Spirits - December 2019 - 86

274663

93 | Disznókó

$50/500ml

2013 Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos ^ A year with a
long, warm autumn, 2013 produced a spicy,
concentrated aszú. It offers a warm wash
of golden-honey flavor, with notes of spice
cookies and lavender. And it lasts, deepening into butterscotch and toasted bread. It's
dessert in itself, or a pairing for a plain cake. §
Monsieur Touton Selection, NY
274415

92 | Oremus

$52/500ml

2013 Tokaji Aszú 3 Puttonyos ^ In 2014,
Hungary abolished the 2 and 3 Puttonyos
levels of aszú wines, insisting that all aszú
wines contain at least 130 grams per liter
of residual sugar. This one, bottled at about
60 grams per liter a year before the regulation went into effect, shows the advantages
of the style. It's smoky and spicy, with notes
of chamomile tea and honey on its gentle
quince flavors. Not too sweet, it would make
a lovely nightcap all on its own. § Europvin
USA, Van Nuys, CA
274290

90 | Arvay

$70/500ml

2013 Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos ^ This is bright
and pale in color, with tangy lemon sweetness and honeysuckle scents riding over
smoky notes of botrytis. § Palinkerie/Fine Hungarian Imports, Brooklyn, NY
274725

90 | Patricius

$25/375ml

2015 Tokaji Katinka Noble Late Harvest ^
This is golden and plump, packed with sweet
apple flavors. Notes of spice and a hint of
tea-like bitterness keep it balanced, the wine
holding to an elegant line. § Classic Wines,
Stamford, CT
274724

90 | Patricius

$69/500ml

2006 Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos ^ A delicate
aszú wine, this is impressively fresh, with
a lightly vegetal sweetness underlining its
plump apricot fruit. Notes of orange and
lime zest enliven the flavors and balance this
to serve with something sweet, like a pound
cake. § Classic Wines, Stamford, CT
273930

88 | Château Pajzos

$20/500ml

2015 Tokaji Late Harvest H (Best Buy) ^
"H" stands for hárslevelú, a grape name
that translates to "linden leaf." In fact, this
is reminiscent of linden blossoms in its delicate florality, an aspect that helps to keep
its candied-apple flavors buoyant. It's light,
sweet and charming, especially with a chill. §
V.O.S. Selections, NY n

YEAR'S BEST
TAWNY PORTS
Our blind panels tasted 67 Tawny Port wines for this issue. Joshua Greene, our critic for
Portugese wines, rated 26 as exceptional (90+) and 9 as Best Buys. Find a complete list of
wines tasted and all reviews at wineandspiritsmagazine.com.

WHITE PORT

just above Regua. Their latest ten-year-old
Tawny is sleek and classical, generous in its
cherry-plum richness, elegant and bright in
its integration of alcohol. Pour it with fresh
almonds. § Quintessential, Napa, CA
274461

274388

93 | Kopke

$67

2003 Porto Colheita White ^ A great moment
to catch Tawnies is often in their teenage
years, and this 16-year-old white Port makes
a parallel argument from its own ideal place.
It feels like a bright sphere of apricot, cardamom spice and fresh nut flavors, all integrated into luscious richness. (Bottled 2019) §
Wine In-Motion, Newark, NJ
274424

92 | C. da Silva

$375

92 | C. da Silva

$140

1968 Porto Dalva Colheita Very Old Dry
White ^ This wine's richness is moving toward
lacy maturity, the toasty and warm flavors
of apricot pulp and orange melding in the
end with the delicate bitterness of hazelnut
skins. Savory and tight, this is fully evolved
into pleasure. (Bottled 2018) § Grape2Glass,
Newark, NJ
274428
Porto 40 Years Old Dry White ^ Still young
and beautiful, this wine offers a view of
Douro schist through the pallor of white
grapes. It buzzes with tension and energy,
giving a sense of underground water pressuring rock, and the scents of the green desert
flora up to the high notes of oranges ripening
in the Douro heat. The white-peach flavors
are round, the structure brisk and elegant.
(Bottled 2018) § Grape2Glass, Newark, NJ

1 0 - Y E A R - O L D TA W N Y
274407

92 | Qta. do Vallado

$40/500ml

Porto Tawny 10 Years Old ^ The descendants of Dona Antónia Adelaide Ferreira
farm this property along the Corgo River,
86

WINE & SPIRITS

DECEMBER 2019

90 | Ramos Pinto

$40

87 | Quinta da Romaneira

$26

Porto Tawny RP10 Quinta de Ervamoira
10 Years ^ Fresh flavors of apricot and golden
plum fatten this wine, balancing its notes
of wood and brandy. It's warm, spicy and
clean, ready to serve at cellar temperature
with sheep's milk cheeses. § Maisons Marques
& Domaines USA, Oakland, CA
273690
Porto Tawny 10 Year Old (Best Buy) ^ Sweet,
simple and round, this wine offers a lot of
smoky wood flavors. Serve it cellar temperature, with dried fruits. § Vias Imports, NY

2 0 - Y E A R - O L D TA W N Y

274088

93 | Cockburn's

$42

93 | Quevedo

$55

Porto Tawny 20 Years (Best Buy) ^ This carries some of the fresh flavors of a blanc de
noirs (white cranberry, white currant and
light yellow plum), buffed by the oxidation and caramel sweetness of a long-aged
Tawny. It's plush and creamy, a lovely wine
for a savory apple tart. § Premium Port Wines,
San Francisco, CA
273987
Porto 20 Year Old ^ Claúdia Quevedo blends
the Port wines at her family's cellars in S.
João da Pesqueira; both her mother, Beatriz,
and her father, Oscar, are from grape-growing families in the Douro, and together they
have developed their holdings to include six
quintas, with 276 acres of vines. Their genera-

http://www.wineandspiritsmagazine.com https://www.kopke1638.com/store/port-wines/colheita/kopke-colheita-branco-port-2003/ https://www.cockburns.com/wine/cockburn-s-fine-tawny-port/5

Wine & Spirits - December 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - December 2019