Made by Ferreira...and tasted at an event hosted by the Vancouver Wine Festival.
Same tasting as the Ferreira Port (see TN's).

Barca Velha has been produced since 1952. The aim was to create a revolutionary red table wine that displayed the richness and complexity of the Douro Valley terrior.
Once the final blend is determined...usually 50% Tinta Roriz, with lessor amounts of Touriga Nocional, Touriga Francesa, and Tinta Barroca...Barca Velha is bottled unfiltered after 12 to 18 months in new Portuguese oak. This wine is only released when the winery feels it is ready to drink, after about 7 years in the bottle.
Case in point, the winemaker Jose Soares Franco said they did not produce Barca Velha in 1994...they felt the grapes were just not good enough.

1995:
Dark ruby in color with a nose of spicy dark fruit with notes of oak, tobacco, eucalyptus, and some phenolics.
The taste was tight at first...Black fruit with medium tannins and slight acidity. The mid-palate opened up with black cherries and black currant with notes of black pepper, mushrooms, and oak.
The finish was suprisingly silky, slightly acidic and dominated by black currant.

1983:
Dark ruby with slight browning on the rim.
More aromatic than the '95. Black fruit with floral, spice, phenolic notes.
The taste was of ripe plums/bl. cherries with black pepper, smokey oak, earthy notes. The mid-palate was all about the black fruit, then fade to the slightly acidic fruit finish.

1978:
Ruby in color with a brown rim.
This wine had very much the same style as its' younger siblings...but much more complex.
The aroma was ripe as was the taste...the wine practically exploded in my mouth...no sign of fading here...well balanced with an equally big mid-palate, and a nice long finish.

All the wines would be considered high 80's - low 90's.