Not all Late Bottled Vintage is created equal. Quinta do Noval pioneered this category when it bottled its first LBV in 1958. Right from the early days, Noval chose to treat this wine exactly like its Vintage Port before aging: focusing on using only great-quality, estate-grown grapes trodden by foot. And unlike the prevailing norm where heavy-handed filtration strips out so much, Noval bottles its LBV without filtration. The result is a considerably richer style that shares some of the depth and intensity of Noval’s VP.
Like the Vintage Port, the grapes are stomped in lagares (the traditional stone vats of the Quinta), then macerate during a three-day fermentation to obtain the best possible extraction of the polyphenolic compounds. From a terrific year for this grower’s Ports, it is a rich and complex wine with gorgeous notes of wild berries and blackcurrant fruit alongside hints of dried peel and Christmas spice. True to form, it’s polished and refined with admirable poise, complexity and a twist of quality dark chocolate and sweet tobacco on the lingering finish. The newly released 2018 carries on this wine’s proud tradition of fine, structured tannins, great freshness and purity of fruit.