Niepoort, Colheita Port (Single Vintage Tawny)
Douro Valley, Portugal 2004 (750mL)
Regular price$54.00
/
Your cart is empty.
- In stock, ready to ship
- Inventory on the way
Niepoort, Colheita Port (Single Vintage Tawny)
Whenever we offer a Port wine, I’m always compelled to put the “what” before the “why.” For all its history, it’s still a confusing category for many wine drinkers. So, what is this 2004 you’re looking at? It is a Port made in the “Colheita” style, meaning it is a Tawny Port from a single vintage.
Tawnies are so named for their amber color, as they are aged for long periods in wood before bottling. Colheita Tawnies spend a minimum of seven years in barrel, but today’s wine, from the acknowledged master of the Colheita style, spent more than a decade mellowing into the exceedingly complex mass of sweet, savory, spicy goodness it is today. And here’s where I transition to the why: Because these are legitimately great wines, capable of aging gracefully for decades, that have landed in a kind of netherworld between wine and spirits. It always pains me to see bottles of Port gathering dust on restaurant backbars—they should be on prominent display in the wine cellar, next to the other trophy wines! But rather than turn this into a full-blown rant, let me just say that there are few (if any) wine experiences like this one at this price. It’s a mature—or, more accurately, still-maturing—red wine of uncommon power and energy. The sweetness, which is much more muted than that of a Vintage Port, is effectively incidental, thanks to oak aging and time. To me, it’s easy to categorize: This is delicious, utterly compelling aged wine, period—a must-have for any serious wine geek!
Tawnies are so named for their amber color, as they are aged for long periods in wood before bottling. Colheita Tawnies spend a minimum of seven years in barrel, but today’s wine, from the acknowledged master of the Colheita style, spent more than a decade mellowing into the exceedingly complex mass of sweet, savory, spicy goodness it is today. And here’s where I transition to the why: Because these are legitimately great wines, capable of aging gracefully for decades, that have landed in a kind of netherworld between wine and spirits. It always pains me to see bottles of Port gathering dust on restaurant backbars—they should be on prominent display in the wine cellar, next to the other trophy wines! But rather than turn this into a full-blown rant, let me just say that there are few (if any) wine experiences like this one at this price. It’s a mature—or, more accurately, still-maturing—red wine of uncommon power and energy. The sweetness, which is much more muted than that of a Vintage Port, is effectively incidental, thanks to oak aging and time. To me, it’s easy to categorize: This is delicious, utterly compelling aged wine, period—a must-have for any serious wine geek!
And it’s a steal to boot. Many of you are likely familiar with the name Niepoort: This family winery’s current proprietor, Dirk Niepoort, is an international winemaking celebrity, known not just for his Douro Valley wines—both fortified and dry—but for assorted international collaborations with other top-tier wine talents. He has been called a “visionary” and “Portugal’s most important winemaker,” and in the case of this Colheita Tawny, he typically ages it at least 10 years in barrels before bottling, after which it is held even longer before release. That means tying up inventory for more than a decade before putting the wine up for sale—and then it’s released at just $54? The fact that the Niepoort family has been making wine in the Douro since 1842 certainly contributes to that, but it’s amazing nonetheless.
Dirk does everything well, but Colheita (pronounced coal-YEE-ta) is a style he’s especially well-known for. These are my favorite styles of Port because the fruit is much softer and the wine is more savory. The winemaking process for Colheita Port is the same as any other Port: indigenous Portuguese grape varieties are harvested quite ripe, then they are pressed and fermented, and once the must reaches about 8% alcohol during fermentation, they add around 20% brandy to kill the yeasts, which leaves an abundant amount of residual sugar along with about 18-21% overall alcohol, which helps preserve the wine. And whereas Vintage Ports only spend two or three years in barrel before bottling (thus preserving more dark, primary fruit flavors and color), Dirk’s Colheita ’04 aged in barrel for more than 10 years, picking up all sorts of subtle “oxidative” notes (and shedding color) as the wine “breathes” through the barrel.
When Dirk took over from his father in 2005, he vowed to continue making Port the traditional way, but also purchased premium vineyard parcels to increase the quality of their production. These vineyards are farmed biodynamically, and the viticulture team respects the natural cycles of the vines, as well as the relationship between the distinct terroir and each unique vine. The 60+ year old Vale do Pinhão and Ferrão vineyards are used to source grapes to produce this wine and are planted to Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinto Cão, Tinta Francisca, Tinta Amarela, Sousão and Tinta Roriz, among others.
The 2004 Colheita has a dark amber center quickly moving to orange and light garnet hues extending to the rim. The aromas are powerful and complex, showing notes of dried plums, dried black cherries, sandalwood, sweet tobacco, candied walnuts, white raisins and exotic spices. The palate is generously sweet, but in a perfect way that is not cloying, showing beautiful flavors of preserved red and black fruits, grilled nuts, sweet spices and a hint of crushed stones. The amazing dried fruit flavors and nutty characteristics of this bottling are tantalizing and there are few other wines in the world I would rather drink after dinner than a well-aged Tawny. This wine should be enjoyed out of an all-purpose stem at about 55-60 degrees. Unlike Vintage Port, which typically has sediment, decanting Tawny is not needed as all the wine’s sediment falls out during the extended barrel aging process. After dinner, simply pour and enjoy with a selection of cheeses alongside Marcona almonds, honeycomb and toasted raisin bread. Best of all, you need not finish it in one sitting—re-cork it and keep it in the refrigerator and it will keep for several months without any drop-off in complexity. This really should not be missed! Cheers!
