Cockburn's - Special Reserve NV (750ml)

Cockburn's Special Reserve is the world's most popular premium port. Special Reserve is a medium dark ruby color, with a deep garnet edge. The blend has a clean aroma, showing maturity and finesse, with a hint of dried plums. Off dry to medium sweet, Special Reserve has a rich, mellow texture and smooth tannin structure, with a long, satisfying finish. The classic way to serve Special Reserve is with aged Stilton cheese after dinner. Or enjoy with roasted almonds or walnuts and squares of rich, dark chocolate for a simple but elegant dessert.

The NV Special Reserve Port was bottled in 2015 with 110 grams per liter of residual sugar after five years in well used oak vats. This lovely Special Reserve starts with a delicious rush of fruit. Lush and fruity with velvety texture, it has some bite and power, too, but the tannins fall off rather quickly. It s all about the sweet and friendly fruit. Aeration proves that it is not quite as rich and deep as it first appeared, but it is always chock full of flavor. I tried it again the next day. It remained a very appealing Reserve with fine fruit and flavor, plus enough structural support to be interesting. In the context of its category, it does everything very well in its sexy fashion and it is often on the street for under $15. It s a nice value for a lighter-styled, casual Port. It can certainly hold, barring cork failures, but it is designed to be approachable young, not aged. Note that I normally don t review NV releases without unique identifiers, but this NV bottling for Premium Port Wines, the USA importer, has a sticker referencing the 200th anniversary: 1815-2015.

Although there is brandy spirit on the nose, the palate is much more balanced. The wine has a rich feel to it, very fruity forward and attractive. It shows a great jelly note on the finish.