Angove's 1995 "Port": Drinkable or Not?

Question

I came into possession of a bottle of fortified wine - it says on the label "Premium Vintage Angove's 1995 Port".

I happened to be at Angove's cellar door doing a tasting and I mentioned to them that I had the bottle at home, and the person behind the counter gave me the impression that it was not likely to be worth keeping / drinking (without saying as much).

There is little information that I can find about this wine on the internet, which leads my to my question": would it be possible / likely that this wine would be drinkable and possibly good?

Here is the bottle in question:

I cannot vouch for how it has been kept over the years, all I know is I've had it for four years or so but have never dared open it.

score 4 · Answer 1 · answered Jan 24 '18 at 11:19

If Angove's are suggesting it may not be good, then its value as an investment is going to be low or zero, so if I were in your shoes I'd probably open it and try it. What's the worst that could happen?

That said, Vintage Ports are typically supposed to last a long time. As it mentions on the label, "extended bottle maturation" where the port is bottled with unfiltered sediment usually means they should be cellared for 20 or 30 years or even 40 years. So I'd suggest it will be coming into its own soon. Give it another few years and then open it.

Yeah it's definitely not an investment, definitely worth nothing but I'm just more interested if anyone knew of the likely quality of the wine from a "drinking it at some stage" perspective. — kunskap, Jan 24 '18 at 21:54

score 2 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 24 '18 at 19:47

2

The person you talked to knows nothing about Port. Port is meant to age a very long time. Personally, I've had 50 year old ports that were excellent. Port is made by stopping fermentation with alcohol leaving behind some unfermented grape juice and about 20% alcohol. Because of the high alcohol, properly stored Port rarely has the problems that regular wine have. Actually, part of the reason they started putting alcohol in wine like this was exactly for abuse. It was meant to ship all over the world in adverse conditions and still be drinkable.

Enjoy your Port now or hold for as long as can. Maybe up to another 20 years!

answered Jan 24 '18 at 19:47

farmersteve

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it's better than that - it is a Vintage Port, so it's not just preserved with alcohol, it's developing over the years. – Rory Alsop Jan 24 '18 at 23:24
I missed that part... yes, it's been in the barrel for quite a while before it gets bottled – farmersteve Jan 24 '18 at 23:47
More importantly - it still develops in the bottle. – Rory Alsop Jan 25 '18 at 07:22

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Feb 09 '18 at 00:08

I would open at the next possible occasion. Twenty three years is usually enough time for the majority of vintage ports to mature fully. When the previous commenter says he’s had wonderful 50 year old ports, he surely means ones from the very highest quality : (1) Producers - I don’t know much about Angove’s but my quick research has revealed some older vintages of Angove’s (early 70s) retailing for about $90. Top vintage ports from this era typically retail much higher. (2) Vintages - how was ‘95 for Australian port? I don’t know. (3) Provenance - you said yourself you’re not sure if it’s been stored properly.

Good luck!

Angove's 1995 "Port": Drinkable or Not?

3 Answers3