Producer: Taylor Fladgate 
Region: Duoro, Portugal 
Blend: Red Blend 
Year: 1994 

James Suckling, 100 Points 

"This is, to date, the greatest Vintage Port ever from here. It overwhelmed me years ago when I tasted it from barrel, but only now is it crossing gradually into its drinking window. The intensity is still mind-boggling here, with sweet-and-sour notes as well as mounds of clay. There are violets lurking somewhere too. A full-bodied, medium sweet and sublime Vintage Port, showing forest fruits and freshly picked blackberries on the palate in the form of a creamy, focused and tannic texture." 

Wine Spectator, 100 Points 

"In a word, superb. It's full-bodied, moderately sweet and incredibly tannic, but there's amazing finesse and refinement to the texture, not to mention fabulous, concentrated aromas of raspberries, violets and other flowers. Perhaps the greatest Taylor ever, it's better than either the '92 or the '70, though it's very like the '70 in structure." 

Wine Enthusiast, 99 Points 

"This is very much in the mold of the 1992—maybe slightly less rich but just by a whisker. It’s dense without being heavy, with a beautifully spice-filled and long finish. Flavors of chocolate, mint and plum pudding linger elegantly for a few seconds longer than the ’92." 

Decanter, 95 Points 

"Still sullen on the nose, the underlying ripeness has more to give. The palate is fine, with linear fruit – not as rich or voluptuous as some, with good definition leading to a firm finish. Not big, but powerful with lovely purity on the finish. Needs time to show at its best." 

John Gilman,94 Points 

"The 1994 vintage of Taylor is a huge and powerful wine, but it does not possess quite the same vivid freshness of my very favorite vintages in the last several decades. Perhaps this is just a stage that the wine is in today, but amongst the fine troika of vintage Taylors from the 1990s, I have to give a slight nod to the remarkably refined and hauntingly brilliant 1992 Taylor over the larger-scaled 1994. The very powerful bouquet on the ’94 offers up a mix of intense cassis, plum, chocolate, licorice, tar, and a huge base of earth. On the palate the wine is full-bodied and quite closed on the attack, with a huge, rock solid core of fruit, firm, well-covered tannins, great soil inflection, and an impressive brightness on the finish that is not evident on the nose today. If this is simply a dumb stage for the wine, then my score will prove to be conservative." 

Wine Advocate, 94 Points 

"Aromas of blackberry, sloes, mulberry and a touch of eau-de-vie. The palate is full-bodied with slightly lower acidity than the -92 but it remains an impressive port with pure blackberry, macerated cherry, raspberry, fig and mulberry, with a more lush, spicy finish. I doubt it will have the longevity of the -92 but still a superb port." 

Alcohol: 20.5% 

*Discounts do not apply to items like this one in the Fine & Rare category. Price and availability in store may vary.