Winemaker Notes
The 2021 Quinta do Noval Vintage Port has a marked stylistic individuality, reflecting the particular conditions of the vintage. Very elegant and balanced on the nose, with great finesse, it reveals pure floral notes and black fruit aromas. It is strongly aromatic, with dense, firm and fine tannins. The purity of the fruit, the elegance and the balance are among the most striking characteristics of this lovely vintage year.
Blend: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinto Cão, Sousão, Tinta Roriz
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2021s come from a mild, even year that allowed plenty of hang time and solid ripeness. The wines certainly don't lack for power or density, even if they might not have the same overall concentrated level as the 2020. The 2021 Vintage Port clearly shows the even style of the vintage and offers a concentrated yet fresher, elegant style to go with classic young Port aromatics of cassis and jammy black and blue fruits that give way to more candied violet, flowers, licorice, and cedary herb nuances. This beauty takes lots of air to shed its primary fruit, but it's not far off the style of the 2019 and is full-bodied, beautifully balanced, has a terrific sense of freshness, and more than adequate structure to allow it to evolve for 40+ years in cold cellars.
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Wine Enthusiast
Coming from the landmark Douro terraces of Quinta do Noval, this beautifully perfumed and textured Vintage Port is certainly ageworthy. The ripe tannins and blackberry jelly fruits are concentrated and show the quinta’s hallmark medium sweet style of Port. That leaves room for the fine texture and structured young tannins and shows the potential.
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James Suckling
Intense aromas of black fruits with blueberries, lead pencil and graphite. Wet earth as well. Full-bodied and layered with very fine tannins and a juicy and savory finish. There is such polish and beauty to this. Reminds me of the 1967. Best after 2030.
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Wine Spectator
This solidly built version displays a graphite edge running from start to finish, giving a structured feel as notes of dark plum, blackberry and black currant reduction move through slowly, building tension and power along the way. Baker's chocolate, espresso crema, licorice root and alder notes all infuse on the finish.
One of the oldest port houses, Quinta do Noval is also arguably the greatest. It is unique among top port houses in that most of the ports are made from estate-grown fruit and, notably, all of the vintage Noval wines are from the single Quinta do Noval vineyard. In addition, it is difficult to elaborate on Quinta do Noval without mentioning Nacional, the legendary port made from a 6 acre parcel of ungrafted vines. When declared, only 200-300 cases of Nacional will be made, and instantly become the most sought after port in the world. Many vintages of Nacional are considered as the finest ports, and some of the finest wines, ever made.
Noval is mentioned in land registries going back to 1715, and has been sold just twice in that time, once in the late 19th century, and to its present owners in 1993. Noval has, however, a reputation for being an innovative, independent producer. Noval’s focus on its vineyard and estate ports distinguishes it, but there are numerous other areas in which it has been a pioneer:
- Noval was the first to introduce stencilled bottles in the 1920s.
- Noval pioneered the concept of Old Tawnies with an indication of age.
- In 1958, Noval was the first to introduce a late-bottled vintage (LBV).
The astonishing terraced vineyards of Noval, perched above the Douro and Pinhao rivers, are an infertile schist, and not soil as much as sheer rock. The elevation of the vineyards goes from just above river level to 1,200 feet, with density at about 2,000 vines per acre, and vines producing on average 30-35 hectoliters per hectare. The tremendous rewards of the work done at the estate over the last fifteen years are visible across the range of Noval ports, and have placed Noval a step ahead of everyone in the Douro.
Port is a sweet, fortified wine with numerous styles: Ruby, Tawny, Vintage, Late Bottled Vintage (LBV), White, Colheita, and a few unusual others. It is blended from from the most important red grapes of the Douro Valley, based primarily on Touriga Nacional with over 80 other varieties approved for use. Most Ports are best served slightly chilled at around 55-65°F. To learn more, see our full Port Wine Guide
The home of Port—perhaps the most internationally acclaimed beverage—the Douro region of Portugal is one of the world’s oldest delimited wine regions, established in 1756. The vineyards of the Douro, set on the slopes surrounding the Douro River (known as the Duero in Spain), are incredibly steep, necessitating the use of terracing and thus, manual vineyard management as well as harvesting. The Douro's best sites, rare outcroppings of Cambrian schist, are reserved for vineyards that yield high quality Port.
While more than 100 indigenous varieties are approved for wine production in the Douro, there are five primary grapes that make up most Port and the region's excellent, though less known, red table wines. Touriga Nacional is the finest of these, prized for its deep color, tannins and floral aromatics. Tinta Roriz (Spain's Tempranillo) adds bright acidity and red fruit flavors. Touriga Franca shows great persistence of fruit and Tinta Barroca helps round out the blend with its supple texture. Tinta Cão, a fine but low-yielding variety, is now rarely planted but still highly valued for its ability to produce excellent, complex wines.
White wines, generally crisp, mineral-driven blends of Arinto, Viosinho, Gouveio, Malvasia Fina and an assortment of other rare but local varieties, are produced in small quantities but worth noting.
With hot summers and cool, wet winters, the Duoro has a maritime climate.