Quinta do Vesuvio Quinta do Vesuvio Vintage Porto 2017 750ml

Densely packed and dark in profile, with lots of warmed fig, mulled blueberry, açai berry and blackberry paste flavors rolling through, scored with graphite and tar notes, carrying through a finish that has a smoldering feel. A long licorice snap echo adds a lip-smacking hint. A terrific young Port. Best from 2035 through 2055. 1,220 cases made. (James Molesworth)

Expressive, with a wave of pure creamed plum, blackberry and blueberry fruit gliding through atop enticing anise and milk chocolate notes. Velvety, caressing finish makes it hard to see the graphite structure here, but it's there. Suave finish too. Will be hard to lay off this one in its youth, but it's destined for terrific development. Best from 2032 through 2055. 965 cases made, 100 cases imported. (James Molesworth)

The 2016 Vintage Port is a blend of 43% Touriga Nacional, 25% Touriga Franca and 17% Alicante Bouschet, with Tinta Amarela and Sousão filling out the rest. It comes in with 115 grams of residual sugar. If this Quinta has a hallmark to me, it is the expressive, gorgeous fruit. It has a seductive feel, but it is also muscular and intense. It is one of the most muscular in the Symington stable this year, with the concentration to soak up the power. I’d give this the nod for the moment over the 2015, but they are pretty close, granting that I do not have them side by side. They may wind up in more or less the same place overall in the long run. We’ll see. That said, this seems superb. Bottled in May 2018 and to be released in October 2018, there were 1,220 cases produced. (Mark Squires)

This offers of a lovely mix of raspberry, black currant, plum and fig pâte de fruit notes, which stretch out slowly over a ramrod straight graphite spine. Bramble, anise and apple wood details are tucked in neatly on the finish, giving this a compact feel for now, but everything is in place for a long, steady maturation in the cellar. Shows a pleasant, dry edge to the finish. Best from 2035 through 2055. 1,200 cases made, 263 cases imported.

The 2016 Quinta do Vesuvio from Symington’s has a slightly more savoury bouquet than its fellow 2016 releases—earthier, almost nuttier with some lovely grilled walnut scents percolating through with time in the glass. The palate is sweet and candied on the entry, notes of marmalade and dried quince infusing the cassis and black cherry fruit with high notes of blueberry and a slight saline tincture towards the well balanced, quite persistent finish. Very fine. (Neal Martin)

The 2017 Quinta do Vesuvio Vintage Port was picked from August 28, the earliest on record and the Symingtons single out the Touriga Franca as the foundation of its quality for imparting all-important freshness. It has a fragrant and more floral bouquet compared to its peers, not as intense as either Warre’s and Cockburn’s with scents of blackcurrant, Medjool dates, raspberry preserve and raisin, well defined, although you are convinced that this Vesuvio is holding something back. The palate is smooth with lace-like tannin, very well judged acidity, quite powerful and dense with a voluminous black plum and blackcurrant finish with hints of espresso and mint. This is a fine Vesuvio although, it lacks the profundity of its peers in this vintage. Total production 1,200 cases.