Poças Júnior Vintage Port 2017

The 2017 Vintage Port is a field blend from old vines aged for six months in wood and 16 months in stainless steel. It comes in with 123 grams of residual sugar. This was set for bottling in a few weeks, but it was the final blend. This is a terrific VP with a sexy demeanor. It is middle-of-the-road in terms of power – there’s plenty, so it is no wimp – but it doesn’t have astringency, and you can drink it relatively young. It leaves you feeling that the structure can easily support this as it ages, but it doesn’t have to be cellared for 15 years if you don’t want to do so. Then, it shows good concentration and a fruit-filled finish. As hard as it may be to keep your hands off of this still-serious Port, it would indeed help if you put it away for that 15 years. Power is less the issue than the need to acquire complexity. It should age well. Drink date: 2026-2067. Score – 93-95. (Mark Squires, robertparker.com, July 11, 2019)