An incredible single harvest port, produced in 1863 and bottled after more than 150 years in oak. Presented in a bespoke Italian crystal decanter and maple burl veneer box, this is a real piece of history.
98 Points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate “And what it is, is a time-defying pre-phylloxera humdinger that’ll knock your socks off. Simply pouring the wine, I noticed how deep and clear the color was, the intoxicating sumptuous aromas filling the room long before I had put nose near glass. We find extravagant and luscious aromas of blackberries, black plum, camphor, rosemary, iris, caraway seed and walnut, fig jam, a quite extraordinary and heady bouquet. The palate follows suit with a sumptuous, quasi-viscous texture that instantly seduces the senses. It comes armed with a sweet and candied core of black and red fruit, yes fruit, because there is astonishingly little degradation here. It is a powerful and flamboyant tawny with quince and marmalade, later cloves, raisin and dried fig on the long flowing finish.” Neil Martin 2014-09-01
1863 was a year that changed the world. Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg address and signed the Emancipation Proclamation, the first step to the abolition of slavery. In London the first underground train ran, the Football Association met for the first time, the International Red Cross was founded, and notable births included car manufacturers Henry Ford & Henry Royce, painter Edvard Munch, Pierre Coubertin (father of the modern Olympic movement) & Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Taylor Fladgate & Yeatman was founded over three centuries ago in 1692 and has been family owned and run throughout its history. The most famous of all Port houses, Taylor’s is regarded as the benchmark for Vintage Port and its declared vintages attract the highest scores and auction prices. Taylor’s Ports are noted for their elegance and restrained power, their longevity and their distinctive scented character.
Taylor’s is currently bottling its two casks of Single Harvest 1863 into 1,600 crystal decanters and will be releasing the Port worldwide over the next couple of months.
We could go on and on about how wonderful this Port is like various wine merchants on the internet, but I think Taylor’s Managing Director, Andrew Bridge’s words below say it all.
“This remarkable Port is like a time capsule, offering a fascinating glimpse into a distant past…The 1863 has been in wood for over a century-and-a-half and is a piece of wine history. Thanks to the perfect ageing environment of the lodges in Oporto it is perfectly balanced and shows an extraordinary vitality.” Andrew Bridge
An authentic piece of wine history, the Taylor’s 1863 Single Harvest Port is delivered in a specially produced Italian Crystal decanter with an individually fitted glass stopper engraved and polished by hand in Scotland.
The decanter is presented in a superb luxury box finished in maple burl veneer. Each box contains a certificate individually signed by Taylor’s Managing Director, Adrian Bridge.
There were only two casks of wine remaining from this vintage, so the 1863 Taylor’s Single Harvest port truly is a very Limited Edition – a rare and exclusive collector’s item!
Due to the limited supplies, a total of 1600 have been made available worldwide and only 240 for the U.K.
94 Points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate “The 2007 Fonseca Vintage Port is opaque purple-colored with a high-class perfume of lavender, Asian spices, pencil lead, incense, and an amalgam of black fruits. On the palate it is voluminous with layered, succulent fruit, outstanding density, and excellent integration of tannin, acidity, and alcohol. The long finish and the wine’s impeccable balance suggest a lengthy evolution and a drinking window extending out to 2045.” (2/2010)
96 Points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate “A limpid purple garnet core. The nose is quintessential Fonseca, like a riotous party reaching its crescendo in the glass. Macerated black cherries, eau-de-vie, damson, fig and a touch of Seville orange. Then what is fascinating is that the uproar dies down with aeration, becomes more focused…as if the host has asked everyone to quieten down. The palate is powerful and spicy on the entry, sweet ripe black berried fruits, a touch of spice, fig and apricot, lovely cohesion and weight building towards a deeply joyous finish that lacquers the mouth in port-like reverie. Perhaps more approachable than the 2000 or the 2003 at this stage, this is a marvellous Fonseca.” Neal Martin May 2009 – Score 96
94 Points Wine Spectator “A subtle yet powerful young Vintage Port, with freshly sliced plum, citrus and mulberry on the nose. Full-bodied and medium sweet, with a solid core of powerful tannins and a long, balanced finish. So tight and reserved. Muscularly structured. Best after 2017.” (5/2010)
Fonseca
Fonseca has belonged to the first rank of Vintage Port producers since the mid-nineteenth century. Fonseca Vintage Ports are noted for their luscious fruitiness which develops great opulence and complexity with age. Wines born of inspired winemaking and a thorough understanding of viticulture and terroir, they appeal, perhaps more than any other house’s Vintage Ports, to the enthusiast and connoisseur.Vintage Ports represent the finest produce of a single exceptional year. Unlike Ports which age in wood, Vintage Ports will continue to age and improve in bottle for decades, their character bearing the imprint of both vineyard and wine maker.A constant thread that runs through the history of Fonseca is the family’s close involvement with the making of the firm’s Vintage Ports. Throughout the 20th century, the making of Fonseca Vintage Ports was overseen by only four family members, Frank, Dorothy, Bruce and David Guimaraens and this has helped to make Fonseca one of the most stylistically consistent of Vintage Port producers.The firm’s Vintage Ports are drawn from its own quintas or estates: Cruzeiro and Santo António in the Pinhão Valley, which have contributed to the firm’s Vintage Port blend for 100 years, as well the Távora Valley property of Panascal. Fonseca is unique among Port houses in making three different types of Vintage Port.
Fonseca Vintage Ports are released only when a year produces outstanding wines with long term ageing potential. These classic Vintage Ports are a blend of wines from Cruzeiro, Santo António and Panascal. Cruzeiro contributes concentrated black fruit flavours and firm tannic ‘grip’. Panascal adds an opulent luscious fruitiness and a dense velvety texture. Finally, Santo António brings complexity and vibrancy with its fine scented character and fresh acidity.
Although they can be enjoyed when young, Fonseca Vintage Ports will continue to improve in bottle for many decades. They have the stamina and aromatic potential to last for over a hundred years. Attracting the highest scores and auction prices, they are favoured not only by fine wine enthusiasts but also by collectors and investors.
Clear & bright, it is golden in colour with traces of green. It has a sweet bouquet of white & yellow roses, peaches and apricots followed by complex hints of minerals. On the palate it’s full & rounded with notes of citrus fruits and minerals, a structured & fleshy with elegance & finesse.
86 Points Wine Enthusiast
“Soft, earthy and gentle, this is already developing and drinkable. It has fresh lemon flavors along with bright pineapple. Finished with bright acidity, it is lightly mineral and crisp at the end. Drink now.”
Duas Quintas is a white wine from the Upper Douro, more specifically from Quinta de Ervamoira (150 metres altitude) and Quinta dos Bons Ares (600 metres altitude), and is a
blend of traditional grape varieties that expresses the potential of this most extreme region. It is a structured, unctuous white wine but also fine and elegant.
2013 was an excellent year for our production of white wines on the Upper Douro. Its climatic characteristics, namely a wet winter and dry summer, as well as the perfect conditions that occurred during harvest (between August 13th and September 18th), provided very well balanced grapes with great aromatic expression
Ripe notes of pineapple, blood orange and guava intertwine with herbal notes of asparagus and freshly mown grass. Dry, fresh and crisp on the palate with good persistence. An excellent aperitif or pair with goats’ cheese salad. Enjoy over the next couple years.
Native varieties Arinto and Fernão Pires combine to create a lively and thoroughly enjoyable vin de soif. Riper tropical notes are framed by clean citrus flavours to create a refreshing yet well-balanced wine. Enjoy as an aperitif or with sea food. To be enjoyed in its youth.
Crystal clear, pale straw colour. Fresh white stone fruits with citric notes. Firm, intense and well balanced palate, persistent aromatic fruit with a long finish.
86 Points Wine Enthusiast (2013 vintage) “Soft and round, this is a wine that has the warmth of the Alentejo coupled with a tangy, fresh slice of lemon. Blending Antão Vaz, Roupeiro and Perrum, it’s a wine to drink now, or just age for a few months.”
Deep purple black with narrow magenta rim. The heady and powerfully aromatic nose displays a characteristic abundance of rich plump fruit and the exotic notes of eucalyptus and rock rose which are the hallmark of the Quinta da Roêda wines on which the blend is based. Juicy and luscious on the palate, with discreet and well fused tannins and a long generous finish.
93 Points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. “There is a nice limpidity on this Croft 2007. It is not the power that strikes you but the purity with black cherries, liquorices, violets and a hint of iodine. Very tight and focused. The palate is full-bodied with chewy tannins on the entry, pure blackberry, raspberry, white pepper and Asian spice towards the finish. Very fine focus, very pure and harmonious. Sensuous finish but it just tapers away when I need more grip and assertiveness. Still, this is a lovely Croft.” Neal Martin, May 2009.
92 points Wine Spectator. “Shows aromas of very ripe fruit and sweet tobacco, with hints of earth and spices. Full-bodied and medium sweet, with round, velvety tannins and a long, fruity finish. Likeable for its soft texture. Best after 2016. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.” (05/09)
The 2007 growing season was preceded by a wet winter that replenished water reserves after four hot, dry years. The humid conditions continued into spring and early summer with lower than average temperatures combined with periods of rain. There were no significant periods of intense heat during the summer months. This ensured that the leaf canopies were in an exceptionally healthy condition and able to benefit from the warm weather that preceded the harvest.
The first two weeks of September saw constant daily temperatures of between 35ºC and 38ºC. These warm and dry conditions brought the crop to perfect maturity, advancing the production of sugar and phenolics while retaining the excellent natural acidity resulting from the relatively cool summer. As a result the harvest produced perfectly balanced musts which have produced stylish and elegant wines, full of vitality, with a superb fresh concentrated fruit character.
A delight for any Port lover, this beautifully crafted wooden box houses three wines from the stellar 2011 vintage from the houses of Fonseca, Taylor’s and Croft.
97-99 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. “The Fonseca 2011 is typically more forthcoming on the nose compared to the bashful Croft: a strident bouquet with lifted scents of freshly picked blackberries, kirsch, crushed stone and a dash of Hoi Sin and oyster sauce. It is very well-defined, very focused and direct. The palate is silky smooth with not a rough edge in sight, though not a typically voluptuous Fonseca because of the keen thread of acidity and the structure that lends this mighty Port wonderful backbone. A slight viscosity on the finish lacquers the tongue and indicates a core of sweet fruit is ticking away underneath that will surely explode several years after bottling. A tincture of salted licorice on the aftertaste is very attractive. This will turn out to become an outstanding Fonseca, the growing season taming its exuberance with spectacular results. So much potential, but just 6,000 cases were produced.” (NM) (6/2013)
98 Points Wine Spectator “Massive, concentrated and powerful, this offers lush, heady flavors of dark plum, blackberry and cherry tart, with touches of anise. Shows plenty of grip as well, featuring a long, rich finish of dark chocolate, toffee and cream. Best from 2040 through 2060.” (2/2014)
97 Points Wine Enthusiast “A powerful, spicy wine, luscious in its peppered berry fruits and sweet tannins. The structure is dramatic, offering a smooth texture as well as a drier core. With its weight, density and dark, final character. This is a wine for serious aging.” (11/2013)
96 Points Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar “Bright, saturated dark ruby. Spectacularly multifaceted nose combines high-pitched medicinal cherry, briary black raspberry, pungent menthol, dried herbs, incense, Indian spices and a whiff of passion fruit. Boasts great creamy depth and vinosity to its black raspberry and licorice flavors, with huge sweetness buffered by spicy minerality. The note of passion fruit carries through on the palate. Really reverberates on the back end, finishing with powerful tannins and a rising whiplash of flavor. This got better and better with extended aeration, with the tannins making it obvious that it will be extremely long-lived.” (5/2014)
95 Points James Suckling “Very grapy and leafy with hints of spices on the nose. Full body, medium sweet with fine, chewy tannins. Powerful, long finish with nuts and shaved chocolate. This young Fonseca has grip. 6,000 cases produced of this foot-trodden wine. Try in 2022.” (5/2013)
19.5/20 Points.Jancis Robinson “Heady, opulent nose. Completely enveloping, Smells as though there is going to be the most fabulous texture. Wow! All stops pulled out for this one. It’s all absolutely gorgeous intensity of sweet fruit on the front palate and then gradually the schist and structure reveal themselves. This is really wonderful stuff. So tempting to sip it decades before it is ready.” (5/2013)
Classic white produced from indigenous Portuguese varities in the northern Vinho Verde region.
Delicate citrus aromas lead onto a soft, rounded and slightly off dry palate with a light spritz. It combines apple and floral characters with soft tropical notes and fresh acidity on the finish.
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