Sorry for the diminishing quality of notes from this evening, but I was the "anchor leg" at the table (i.e., I wasn't driving, so I consumed my share plus a little more.)

DATE: 4/2
PLACE: Veritas-NYC
WINERY: Graham's
WINE: Vintage
VARIETAL: Port
VINTAGE: 1985
PRICE: $20 by the glass
COLOR: Dark plum, thinning at the rim to light plum.
BODY: Full
NOTES: Thick, chewy, firm wine with good balance of fruit and acidity. Paired with Veritas' cheese plate. Simply a perfect match.
Note: Ordered by the glass, so I don't know the history of the bottle. Could have been open for days for all I know. It wasn't decanted, because my glass was of the "extra chunky" variety.
SCORE: 94]

Interesting. I have been looking at a bottle of this locally to buy, but since I know zero about VP, I have been hesitant.

No sign of the Volatile Acidity affecting other 1985 ports then? Good, I've always trusted Grahams more than most. I'm still keeping away from 85s in general though. Anybody know the gen on VA with Grahams?

i hardly know anything about port. in fact i have only had a few of them before. i had this one with dessert at delmonico steak house in las vegas last week. it was very good. the only thing i can say was that it was very smooth and was awash in thick dark chewy fruit. it went down so easy that i think i might of been able to drink a 1/2 bottle.

I've had this Port sveral times and loved it. It was available for a reasonable price, $65 I believe, from The Wine Exchange.

I tasted this with that most knowledgeable portlover, Tsunami last March and he and his pals (including the also much-informed David from Robin Garr's Winelovers Whatever) were convinced that it was beginning to suffer from va. I could not tell, but then my palate is not attuned to such subtleties. It was OK, even they admitted, but they thought it was starting to go bad, and would not be drinkable in 3-5 years. A crushing blow for me, since I have 6 bottles, all of which are waiting for future milestone anniversaries (we were married in 1985). Or not, perhaps....

bman,

do you want to sell any of them?

Probably not. I want to try one first, which we'll only do in about 18 months when we have our 20th anniversary. If it seems less than great, I'd feel guilty about selling the others, or at least doing so without the buyer knowing.

Of course, we may try one earlier (one can only be SO disciplined! ), or we may find a way to overcome our guilt!!

i've been wanting to get some but have been seeking out some where i can have assurances it was stored well.

bman...

Please don't limit yourself to the Port forums.
There is a tremendous amount of good stuff posted here!
I have to check every day, or I fall so far behind on the posted threads it seems like I'll never catch up!

bman...

Another thing.
Have you checked out JW1's Oeno-file reviews?

Good call budman. Bman, it's great to see some participation from you on this site, please stick around.

If I were you I'd taste one of those babies in about six months. If it has deteriorated so that you can taste the nail polish then it's unlikely to last much beyond your anniversary. In which case you will just have to start drinking them, won't you?

1985 Champagne was good if you need something else from that year.

I will continue to try to wait until March 9 2005 to pop my first 85 Graham and will post TNs whether I succeed or fail!

I would love to check out Jones section, but pardon my cyber-hopelessness and tell me how to do it. I am probably blind but I don't see a link that I recognize.

bman,

Try this link to get to Jones'Oeno-file

Thanks, Stem-ah! Sadly, we do not yet have Adobe Acrobat on the new computer. I will try to inspire our resident 15 year old techno-wizard to do the needful so I can read it.

I tried this over Christmas. Didn't take notes but it certainly made a lasting impression with all at the table. A beautiful port and still incredibly youthful. It has a long life ahead of it.

did you decant and if so for how long?

Decanted? Yes. For how long? Umm, minutes .

To be honest, I don't think it really needed airation. It's terribly young and while it will certainly improve with age, the decanting didn't change the flavour profile over the 45 minutes that we savoured it. The decanting was really just to remove some of the sediment.

From 750mL. Light-medium garnet colour to rose rim. Aromas of acetate, cinnamon, cardamom, candied fruit. Full-bodied, sweet, with replays from nose. Quite present VA on the palate with candied fruit. Moderate finish, 30s. 85 points (05/14/2005).

Tasted (not blind) at Resurrection Cup I, 5/21/2005.

I don't have any notes on this one. I did not notice any of the VA notes other posters have commented on, and I did not hear any of the other tasters bring it up either.

This wine was enjoyable, but the major thing I noted is that it is not the 1963 Dow. Comparing the two wines, this one could use at least another 10 years, maybe 20, before reaching the sublime level of the Dow. If I could find this at a good price, I may consider laying a couple down, but the VA comments concern me, even if I did not note them in this bottle.

Mike