Now stuffed but obeying the propinquities of fine dining, we sipped on a port from Lou’s cellar, an amusing little Taylor Fladgate Vintage Oporto 1985.
I have been a fan of the Taylor Fladgate style for many years; it is a bit more restrained, not quite as opulent as others, with great intensity rather than body. This one was in keeping with the house: rich but not over the top, solid berry fruits, inky purple-red color, and what seems to me to be a quintessentially English style.
(A moment of reminiscence here: some years ago when I was a retailer I had an elderly English couple come into the store, all tweedy and proper.We had a sale going, and the old gentleman wished to make a purchase. "Ten cases of the Taylor Fladgate 1966," he said. I hesitated a bit, not wishing to intrude on a customer's personal business, then remarked that was the largest single sale of port I'd ever made and I wondered if it were for entertaining or gifts?. He said, "No, not at all. We are getting on in years, and who knows what will happen. I am insuring that we have an adequate supply of our favorite Oporto to drink, so I am stocking the larder now." I began drinking the Taylor Fladgate shortly afterwards, and have loved it every since.)
