Quinta do Noval Unfiltered Late Bottled Vintage Port 2013 (92 WA)
The 2013 Unfiltered Late Bottled Vintage Port is a field blend from typical grapes like Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão and Sousão aged for five years in casks. This traditional LBV comes in with 100 grams of sugar and a long cork. Noval is always a source for expressive and traditional LBVs that can age. The power here is more than I saw on some lesser Vintage Ports this issue. The concentration is not always as good but still admirable. The line is blurring a bit these days when you go from quality, traditional LBVs to lesser Vintage Ports. The big advantage for LBVs in those comparisons, and to me the deciding factor, is the price. They are the best values in Port. This is another terrific LBV from Noval—power, fruit, expressiveness and the ability to age.
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Quinta do Noval
Douro Valley, Portugal
One of the oldest port houses, Quinta do Noval is also 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.