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Each bottle has the wording ‘Matured in our Cellars’ indicated on the label to confirm its impeccable provenance.

TASTING NOTE
Hanging on well to its deep, dark red colour, suggesting a still youthful wine. Very expressive aromas with Warre’s characteristically fresh, floral element (rose garden fragrance). There are also secondary aromas of red fruits, combined with eucalyptus and soft mint. The generous fruit on the palate combines with suggestions of tobacco and tea, melding with polished tannins. The creamy texture reflects Warre’s hallmark elegance and grace, but as with other Warre’s Vintages at this stage in their development, it promises further ageing capacity.

PROVENANCE · GRAPE VARIETIES
Quinta da Cavadinha (Cima Corgo) and Quinta do Retiro (Rio Torto Valley).
Varieties: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Amarela and old, mixed vines (field blend).

STORAGE · SERVING · FOOD PAIRING
Store the bottle horizontally, ideally in a cool place with a constant temperature.
Decant before serving, preferably a few hours beforehand.
An excellent dessert wine to enjoy on its own or with chocolate desserts. It is also a very good match with blue cheeses.

WINE SPECIFICATIONS
Alcohol: 20% vol.
Total acidity: 4.8 g/L (tartaric acid)
Baumé: 3.4°
pH: 3.66
Allergy information: Contains sulphites
Compatible with vegetarian and vegan diets

THE WINE
A very successful Vintage for Warre’s with several leading critics singing its praises shortly after the wine’s initial en primeur release. In October 1996, Robert Parker wrote, “One of the finest Warre’s I have ever tasted […] This is a profound example of Warre’s Vintage Port.” Following nearly three decades of quietly ageing in the Symington family’s own reserve stocks in the Warre’s Vintage cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia, the family have decided to release a limited quantity to provide lovers of fine wine with a unique opportunity to acquire and enjoy a Vintage Port that has aged under perfect conditions and is now at a perfect stage in its development.

YEAR AND HARVEST OVERVIEW
After a succession of exceptionally dry years, the very wet winter of 1993/94 was met with great relief, replenishing much needed ground water reserves that were to prove invaluable through the very hot summer. Flowering in May was affected by cool, damp conditions, resulting in some reduction of the size of the crop. July and August were exceptionally dry and hot, but Quinta da Cavadinha’s higher lying vineyards and more sheltered aspects (mainly east-facing) showed their benefits. Some light showers in early August were a further boon, helping to advance maturations and further useful showers over two days in mid-September put the finishing touches to very balanced maturations — sugar readings and acidity complementing each other beautifully. The vintage started at Quinta da
Cavadinha on September 29th and progressed with warm days and cool nights that created perfect conditions for a successful harvest. The musts displayed excellent colour and very attractive floral aromas.

AWARDS & COVERAGE:
Robert Parker: An outstanding port scoring 94 points
“One of the finest Warres I have ever tasted, this opaque purple-coloured wine is made in a drier style (a la Dow), yet it is expressive, extremely full-bodied, with superb richness, purity, and well-integrated alcohol and tannin. It possesses a great mid-palate as well as impressive length. Tasters should take note of the wealth of peppery, liquorice-scented and flavoured raspberry and blackcurrant fruit. Look for it to be ready to drink in 10-12 years, and keep for 30+. This is a profound example of Warre vintage port.”

For the Love of Port: 95+ pts, 2010
“Simply put this is one of the truly great Warre’s produced in modern times. It is essentially an exuberant, young and massively fruited wine and at the same time, so very approachable that it is easy to perceive this as elegant. Yet the underlying structural components are profound and this fine VP will drink well for another 3-4 decades. It just may be my all time favorite Port by this producer.”

The Vine: 17.5/20 pts, 2001
“Fine colour. Very lovely nose. Excellent fruit here. Finely balanced and very elegant. Fullish body. Rich. Slightly raw as Warre often is. Sweet. Good tannins. Lovely long finish. This is fine.”

A Century of Vintage Port (Sotheby’s, 2002)
“Almost a cherry nose, with a whiff of Seville oranges. Great tar and liquorice. The alcohol comes through at the end at the moment. Recently another bottle displayed that real Warre Seville oranges nose. Alcohol, tar and bitter oranges on the taste. Less luscious than most this year – seemingly more dry. Then the liquorice falls in at the end.”

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