Vintage Summary and Recommendations: 
Welcome to Vintage Wine and Port's 1978 wine page. Read on for our summary of the 1978 vintage, our top recommendations and region reports. Scroll down to see all of our wines currently available. If you cannot find what you are looking for please call us on 01425 837177 or Contact Us. We would love to help you with your wine choice!
In France, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Loire and the Alsace all enjoyed excellent years, producing a wide range of sophisticated wines, some of which were capable of great aging. For Sauternes, however, the year was distinctly average and, for Champagne, it was downright poor. For France, the star region was indisputably the Rhône Valley, which had a legendary year for both the north and south. Italy had a legendary vintage and Spain's was also notably good. Any of these wines would make a fabulous 47 year old wine gift for an Anniversary or birthday.
Our Wine Expert currently recommends the following wines for this year:
Barbaresco 1978 Giordano Blandys 1978 Vintage Terrantez Madeira Bordeaux 1978 Chateau Prince Larquey Chateau dIssan 1978 Margaux 3me Cru Classe Dao 1978 Porta dos Cavaleiros Montepulciano 1978 dAbruzzo Bosco Nestore This Year in History: Fun Fact: Louise Brown, the first “test-tube baby,” was born healthy in Oldham General Hospital, UK.
Eurovision Winner: Israel with the song "A-Ba-Ni-Bi" by Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta
Top Grossing Movie: Grease
Bordeaux: The 1978 wine vintage was excellent for the Bordeaux region. The dry, hot summer produced wines that were medium-bodied, deeply coloured, fruity and moderately tannic. The wines reached their peak of maturity in the 1990s but are still drinking well now and will continue to do so for some years to come.
Italian: 1978 was a trouble free vintage across the Tuscany region with an early spring, warm but not excessively hot summer and well distributed rainfall. There was a certain amount of rain early in the harvest but those producers who picked later benefited from a period of uninterrupted fine weather. Altogether for Tuscany this was a 4 out of 5 Vintage. Conversely, the year started with cold and damp weather in Piedmont. Spring was particularly wet with lower than average seasonal temperatures; not until the second half of June did the weather pick up, too late for the flowering, which took place in very wet conditions causing a significant reduction in the crop. After light rains at the beginning of September, the weather suddenly turned around and the rest of the month was hot and dry with a marked difference between day and nighttime temperatures. The dramatic improvement continued through until the end of the Nebbiolo harvest during the third week of October. Natural selection and a warm autumn meant a very small crop of thick-skinned Nebbiolo grapes in Barolo and Barbaresco. By the end of the season this hailed as a great, long-lived vintage with a rating of 5/5.
Portugal: 1978 was a good Port vintage, although not a declared one; the wines are not outstanding but are still attractive and drinkable. 1978 was the year when the labelling of 'single quinta' became popular. Michael Symington, Head Winemaker at Symington Family Estates (Owners of Warre's, Dow's, Cockburn's, Smith Woodhouse and Graham's among others) wrote of the 1978 vintage "Musts showed exceptional colour and body and very dark, heavy wines have certainly been made. Not a trace of mould or rot was to be seen on the grapes coming in, and seldom can a Vintage have been made from more uniformly healthy grapes."
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82 products found.
Vei Cavour (Piemonte), 1978
Giordano
Aged red wine. Selected red grapes produce this lively and elegant wine with an intense red colour and subtle orange tones. Its soft velvety bouquet results from a period of maturation in Slavonian oak barrels, ensuring a full and rounded taste.
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Price: £59.00
Stock: 1 in Stock
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Warre's Vintage Port, 1978
Quinta da Cavadinha Vintage Port
The 1978 Warre Cavadinha is the first release from this estate after it was purchased by the Symington family in 1978. The late ripening cycle of this estate dictates the style of Cavadinha Ports; they are fresh, elegant and have very fine aromas and now form the backbone of Warre’s Vintage Port.
Old vines make up a very high proportion of the vineyard, consequently these wines are dark and concentrated, but the south easterly aspect and higher altitude results in a very elegant style. The wines from the lower vineyards that border the Pinhão River are tannic, dark purple-red and concentrated but have superb aromas of tea-rose and violets. …
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Price: £169.00
Stock: 10 in Stock
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Ryst Dupeyron Armagnac, 1978
Ryst Dupeyron Reserve Joseph Millesime vintage Armagnac
50cl bottle
A 1978 vintage Armagnac that has been matured in French oak casks in the Ryst Dupeyron cellars in the Gascony region of France.
Tasting Notes
This is a deep, rich spirit that offers notes of apricots, figs, dark chocolate, caramel-covered nuts and white pepper. The deeper oak influence, contributes to a slightly tannic structure and more pronounced vanilla. The finish is long and lingering, a hallmark of well-aged Armagnac.
Serving & Food Pairing
Armagnac is traditionally enjoyed neat, allowing you to fully appreciate its complexity. However, it can be paired with a variety of cheeses like Roquefort, Comté, high quality dark chocolate, caramel-based desserts and roasted or candied nuts. …
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Price: £99.00
Stock: Out of Stock
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Croft Port, 1978
Tercentinery Special Edition Old Tawny Port
To mark their Tercentenary Year Messrs Croft of Oporto have made available a limited quantity of an exceptional Port of Great Age. each numbered bottle of Reserva Particular reflects the unique style and tradition of the House of Croft.
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Price: £169.00
Stock: Out of Stock
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Niepoort Port, 1978
Vintage Port
"Niepoort is to Vintage Port what Krug is to Champagne. They are both small houses in a world dominated by large competitors but they are producing outstanding wines which very few can match." (James Suckling, Vintage Port).
Niepoort is a family company now in its fifth generation and presently managed by Dirk Niepoort. Despite being the second smallest shippers in the trade they are second to none in quality. Already famous for their classic tawny ports, they have now joined the ranks of the great producers of Vintage Port.
Vintage Port must be bottled within two years of the harvest date and be 100 per cent wine from that harvest. …
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Price: £249.00
Stock: Out of Stock
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