NV Quinta do Noval Tawny Port 20 Year Old
Estimated value
Buying options
Tasting notes
Certainly not at the same level as the 50-year Tawny, the NV Twenty Year Old Tawny Port is nevertheless brilliant and has a gorgeous perfume of toffee, candied olives, sweet orange zest, cigar, and smoky, spicy nuances. This carries to a medium to full-bodied, incredibly pure, clean, elegant, flawlessly balanced beauty that has integrated acidity, terrific mid-palate depth, and a huge finish.
Critic scores
Average Score
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Richard Hemming MW, jancisrobinson.com
More reviews and scores
This should be a Christmas favourite with its notes of nuts and macerated dried fruits – liquid Christmas cake? But there is freshness here too with a tang that belies all that sweetness and alcohol. In fact, I may be tempted to use it instead of brandy in this year's brandy butter. (JR)
The NV 20 Year Old Tawny Port was bottled in 2016 with a bar-top cork and 132 grams per liter of residual sugar. Gloriously fresh and completely alive, this adds an extra layer of depth and concentration of flavor to the 10 Year Old, of course, but that's not the main attraction here. This has all of Noval's typical grace and elegance while the complexity level is nicely above average. Then, its bright demeanor makes its fruit lifted and drives the medley of flavors home. It persists nicely, becoming something to contemplate as well as enjoy. This is a bit on the pricey side for a 20, at least judging from the list price, but it was also one of my favorites here. I don't want to be a broken record, but remember that aged tawnies should be drunk a bit cool. This was brilliant around 58-60 degrees Fahrenheit, boring around 72.
Fox red. Rich and almost chewy, the tannins still present though fine and adding power and drive. Really tangy finish. Lively, intense and yet finely balanced. (JH)