It’s been really heartening to see such a positive reception towards the 2024 Vintage Port declaration. I’m sure the seven year wait has something to do with that, and while the 2017 vintage was the last ‘general declaration’, it’s also the nature of the vintage that has captured the imagination. This wasn’t a year of record-breaking ripeness or levels of tannin, but a vintage that produced wines that feel like a throwback, with great aromatic intensity, wonderful freshness and real finesse.
I accompanied James Tanner, Purchasing Director Stephen Crosland and Private House & Corporate Manager Graham Mason to a brilliant masterclass tasting at The People’s History Museum in Manchester on 19th May. We tasted the lineup of 2024 Vintage Ports from Symington Family Estates, The Taylor-Fladgate Partnership and Quinta do Noval, hosted by a panel of their head winemakers and ably compered by Adrian Bridge. That same evening, Tanners HQ hosted Charles and Teresa Symington, before welcoming David Guimaraens the following evening to show their wines to our customers. It was a privilege to welcome such personalities here, share the experience with our customers, and understand the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of it all firsthand from such incredible winemakers. The wines, of course, showed magnificently!
It’s a given that the Douro will dependably produce powerful wines and rich enough fruit for Port production in most years, but Vintage Port demands quality, balance and structure. Vintage Port is a showcase, accounting for only a few per cent of the entire output in the Douro; thus, only the very best will do. Vintage Port is also about the region as a whole, and a marque (Dow’s, Warre’s, Taylor’s) could be made up of two, three, four (or more) Quintas up and down the river - if one of those constituent quintas or vineyards therein doesn’t quite perform (and these are very fine margins), the wine will not pass muster. Simply put, a hot year does not necessarily mean ripe fruit (but that’s a whole other blog).
Following a series of hot and dry vintages and years of extremes – not just fierce heat, but episodes of heavy rainfall – 2024 was a return to something more classical. The winter of 2023/24 was cool and wet; it was the second consecutive wet winter, and this is, of course, a great thing for the water reserves in a place as hot and dry as the Douro. Spring was a little cooler than the new norm. Budding arrived early, and further rains conspired to set a reduced yield. Summer saw no rain at all, and it was typically warm and dry, though not excessively so, with only three days above 40°C. Warm nights contributed to some stress on the vines (a little stress is a good thing), but as harvest approached, the temperatures cooled off, especially in the evenings. This helped to stretch out the growing season, allowing the more sensitive (and wonderfully perfumed) Touriga Franca to reach perfect ripeness.
The 2024s have great aromatic intensity; they feel fresh to the nose and the palate, and we found the tannins to be very fine throughout. There is no denying that a high level has been achieved across the board, with wines that will cellar for decades, but I’m sure many of our customers who attended the tasting will also agree – some of these Ports are incredibly drinkable already and will give great pleasure as younger wines, especially in half bottles.
This is a special vintage, and production was notably low at around 50% of the typical level. Looking back at my notes, I can’t help but smile as I recall the wines and it was incredibly difficult to single out a handful of favourites, let alone one or two, so please do explore the vintage line-up below.
Vintage Port 2024
These are elegant, stylish Ports that feel classically structured, which will offer great enjoyment as younger wines and great cellaring potential.
