Michael Schuster: Very fine, dense nose of licorice, marked minerality, ripe black fruit; beautifully balanced and defined, taut, concentrated, very firmly but very finely tannic wine, with the characteristic restraint and finesse of the Vargellas vineyard. Long, linear, gently sinewy Port; not that big (less sweet and rich than Taylor itself, for example) but with a wonderful definition, clarity of flavor, terroir complexity, and firm, fine, long-term tannin; finished off with splendid length, comprising both subtle fruit and a marked mineral scent, that Vargellas vineyard hallmark. Elegance and class, presence and persistence, rather than sheer strength or power—partly a function of the year. What you have here is a density of aroma that adds great resonance to the fruit core, and that is what makes it so special. A really beautiful combination of freshly fragrant fruit and a mouthcoating suffusion of minerally, terroir scent. A very “particular” taste, in Pepys’s Haut- Brion sense! A very complete Vintage Port. 2027–50+ (May 2009). 19