W& J GRAHAM'S Vintage Port 2003 Bottle

Description

The 2003 Graham Vintage Port is a spectacular wine with immense depth and richness. James Suckling awarded it 98 points, praising its dried fruit, raisins, Christmas cake, chocolate undertones, licorice, and wet earth. The full-bodied, medium-sweet wine already offers a beautiful, long finish and promising longevity to age for decades. Critics also highly rate it: Pierre Rovani from The Wine Advocate scored it 95, highlighting its violets, roses, spices, and candied dark fruits with an expansive, concentrated palate. VinoUS gave it 95 points for its lush cassis, violet, minerals, and spices, with outstanding persistence. Jancis Robinson awarded 17.5 points, noting its deep, exotic character. With a promising drinking window from 2022 to 2050, this Port offers both immediate pleasure and exceptional aging potential.

*****

JAMES SUCKLING 98 points
Aromas of dried fruits, raisins and Christmas cake. Some chocolate undertones too, plus licorice and wet earth. Full body, medium sweet with gorgeous depth and intensity of fruit. So long and beautiful. What an amazing finish already. So sexy. Drink or hold. But this will go on for decades.

THE WINE ADVOCATE Pierre Rovani - Rating 95
Drink Date 2030 - 2055 - "Violets, roses, spices, and candied dark fruits emanate from the glass of the murky black/purple colored 2003 Graham Vintage Port. After four days of air, this wine’s aromatics sweetened further, displaying jammy blackberry and blueberry scents. Bold, full-bodied, and expansive, the Graham benefited the most from extensive contact with air of all the 2003s tasted for this report. This opulently jammy wine assaults the palate with powerful yet soft layers of oily, candied red fruits as well as notes of tar and hints of mocha. A highly concentrated effort, it is creamy textured, suave, and reveals an admirably long finish filled with additional layers of dark fruits intermingled with spices."

WINE ENTHUSIAST 96 points - "This is a great Port, from a great brand. It is packed with solid, structured, rich and intense black fruit flavors. Its tannins show considerable aging potential. It is a big, ripe wine, balanced by a long, lingering dark aftertaste. Imported by Premium Port Wines Inc."

VINOUS 95 points
Deep, saturated ruby. Initially reticent aromas of dark chocolate and nuts; showed a high-pitched eucalyptus quality as it opened in the glass. Then almost shockingly huge and rich in fruit, with wonderfully lush, complex flavors of cassis, violet, minerals, spices, flowers and exotic chocolate. The tannins are seductively sweet, yet the finish boasts terrific focus, not to mention outstanding persistence. In terms of sheer palate-saturating flavor and texture, this runs a close second to Fonseca among these 2003s. For long aging. - Stephen Tanzer

JANCIS ROBINSON 17.5 points
Darker colour than the Warre's 2003. This seems just as floral as the Warre's but also more intense and somehow more exotic. Also darker and more rocky, more classic Douro character, more concentrated on the palate. A touch smoky. Silky-smooth, deep and balanced in a rich, bold style. (JH) 2024

DECANTER 93 points
Tasted by: Richard Mayson, Shane Jones, Demetri Walters MW (at Decanter Tasting Suite, London, 01 Oct 2022) Part of Vintage Port 2000 and 2003: panel tasting results
Drinking Window: 2022 - 2050
Ripeness, yet freshness abounds with an acidic bite. Attractive aguardente greenness and notable spice. Big, ripe and bold, dense with sweet plummy and powerful tannins rising in the mouth. Still needs more time.