Brilliant ruby aspect, with firm aromas of liquorice, tar, blueberry and cigar smoke. Luscious and medium sweet on the palate, with chewy tannins and notes of plum, blackberry, chocolate and vanilla. Drink 2012-2020.

Smith Woodhouse is a specialist producer of premium quality Ports made primarily from grapes grown in the vineyards of Quinta da Madalena, a small but very good 7 hectare property in the heart of Rio Torto Valley, long recognised as one of the best areas of the Douro. As a specialist producer, quality takes priority above all else. Only the best fruit is used, picked by hand and transported in small boxes to ensure the best possible condition of the grapes coming into the winery. Rigorous selection standards and the low-yielding old vines of the Madalena vineyard combine to ensure that the quantity of Port bottled each year is very limited but of uncompromising quality.

Christopher Smith, Member of The British Parliament and Lord Mayor of London, founded a small company to ship Port from the Douro in 1784. Some years later the Woodhouse brothers joined him. Since 1970, Smith Woodhouse has been owned by the Symington family, Port producers since the 19th century.

Through the last two hundred years, this small Port company has built a reputation for outstanding Vintage Ports. In frequent blind tastings, Smith Woodhouse earns top marks. The Company's 1977 Vintage was awarded 99 points by the Wine Spectator and judged as the finest Vintage Port of this year. Smith Woodhouse Ports have outstanding length and structure and are drier than most. Its Vintage Ports show a characteristic opulent rich style, balanced by firm hard tannins. Ageing gives these wines an unmatched elegance.