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This is the first time the great 2007 Quinta do Noval has been offered by AXA. As a vintage, it is one of the best of the 20th century, and several critics have placed Quinta do Noval 2007 as the #1 Port of the vintage. Porto, as the Portuguese call it, is the lusty, dark, sweet red wine fortified with brandy during fermentation. The wine is ripely sweet yet sometimes dry at the same time and is served after dinner. Named Port for the city of Oporto on northern Portugal’s Atlantic coast, the English have been heavily involved in Port production since the late 1600s. Quinta do Noval is one of the oldest port houses, dating to 1715, and is arguably the greatest. It is unique among top port houses in that most of the ports are made from estate-grown fruit and, notably, all of the vintage Noval wines are from the single Quinta do Noval vineyard.
For serving at home, great port and cold winter evenings are one of life’s best simple pleasures. Pair with a wedge of English Stilton blue cheese, tablewater crackers, and a bowl of salted nuts and you will have a classic match.
International Wine Cellar
Black ruby-purple color, one of the darkest colors of the vintage. Superripe, high-pitched, rather brooding aromas of black and red berries, bitter chocolate, flowers and spices. Hugely rich, sweet and mouthfilling yet at the same time savory, with uncanny verve for such a thick, silky wine. This saturates every millimeter of the palate with black fruit and spice flavors. Is any other 2007 this dense, deep and ripe? A wine of great intensity and persistence.
Score: 96.
—Stephen Tanzer,
Wine Advocate
The 2007 Quinta do Noval Vintage Port is a star of the vintage. Dense purple-colored, it gives up an already complex aromatic array of lavender, Asian spices, incense, and an amalgam of black fruits with a hint of chocolate in the background. Plush and mouth-filling, this large-scaled Port manages an uncanny blending of elegance and power. Long and savory in the finish, it will continue to blossom for another 20+ years and drink well through its 50th birthday if not longer.
Score: 94.
—Jay Miller,
February
2010.
Wine Spectator
Very complex, with intense aromas of squeezed tangerine, blackberry and blueberry. Full-bodied, medium sweet and chewy. Extracted yet balanced, with an intense fruity and grapey character. Tight and reserved on the finish. Best after 2015. 1,800 cases made.
Score: 93.
—James Suckling,
May
31,
2010.
Wine Enthusiast
Ripe and juicy, a wine that wears its heart on its sleeve. It is perfumed, with the 2007 freshness and a fine layer of nutmeg coming through the blackberry juice flavor. For medium-term aging.
Score: 92.
—Roger Voss,
December
15,
2009.
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Price:$79.99 in mixed case $71.99 SKU11296 |  |
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