2011 Quinta do Noval Vintage Port

The 2011 Vintage Port is very complete on the nose, focused and full of energy, with touches of grilled walnut and sage filtering through the black fruit, quite earthy in style (more than I remember.) The palate is very classy and complex with black fruit, sage, black pepper and an endearing, slightly powdery texture towards the finish. This has shed some of its puppy fat - a bit more serious now and worth cellaring for another three to four years. Tasted at the Quinta do Noval tasting at Spring restaurant in London. 

- Neal Martin (06/2022)

This is extremely dense, yet remarkably sleek in feel, delivering a torrent of dark plum, black cherry and cassis flavors. Long and very refined through the finish, with a terrific graphite spine. Offering a very focused beam of fruit and structure, this wine will outlive many of us. 

- James Molesworth (09/2018)

The 2011 Vintage Port hasn't been seen in a while. It begins our mini-vertical this issue. Showing rich and gorgeous fruit, this is pure, young and elegant. There is still plenty of power here, but decanting a small portion for about three hours gave me some hope that it would be approachable a bit sooner than anticipated. Noval has mid-palate finesse all the time—so, too, here. It makes this very graceful, despite the power and the first lush impression. The pure power does not detract from the feeling of elegance at all, as this comes together well. Dried herbs, eucalyptus and a long finish make this special, the complexity on the finish sealing the deal. This is early in this wine's evolution, but it is beginning to open its eyes and peek out at the world. 

- Mark Squires (07/2018)