We opened a bottle of vintage port a few days ago and have been working on it glass by glass since, watching it change as it breathes.
The wine is a 1992 Dow's Quinta Do Bomfim. The first day it was somewhat closed in and smelled mostly like chocolate covered raisins and alcohol. It wasn't the most complex vintage port I've had, but it was warming and comfortable and a cold, snowy night. After a glass and a half I vacuum stoppered the bottle.
A day later the wine smelled like a Christmas pudding - raisins, candied fruit, cinnamon, cloves, chocolate. It was still not overly complex, but it did open quite a bit and was much better than the first day. One could detect the alcohol on the finish.
Day four was last night and the parts finally seemed to have come together. The Christmas like aromas and tastes were there, but they had finally blended together into a solid core. Some elegance had arrived on the scene and the alcohol heat had dissipated somewhat. Last night it was at its best.
This is a good wine, but not a heavyweight by any means. Solid effort, good flavor and probably at its peak now. There is one more glass left for this evening, another cold and snowy one. A decent value when purchased a long time ago. The $35 price tag is still on the back of the bottle. 20% alcohol by volume.
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