Fonseca 1963 (750ML)

98 WS / 98 DE / 97 WA / 96 RP / 18.5 JR

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A grand slam. Deep ruby with a slightly red edge, intense black cherry and raspberry nose, full-bodied, with masses of fruit, full tannins and an extremely long finish. This can age indefinitely. -James Suckling, 1989, Wine Spectator

Served at the bicentenary dinner in June, I was served from two bottles. One was fragrant and floral, sweet and elegant with gentle tannic grip, but soft and redolent of a tawny on the finish. The other, on which I base this score, had the focus and dark chocolate intensity-Richard Mayson, Decanter (Jan/2017)

This example was bottled in Porto and remained in the house's bin until this tasting. The 1963 Vintage Port has a dark russet color. The nose is beautifully defined, perhaps this particular bottle less exuberant than other that I have encountered. It offers walnut, small cherries, juniper berries and a touch of spirit that expands in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with wonderful balance and fine tannins. It has tremendous weight matched by nigh perfect acidity. It is very harmonious, almost honeyed towards the finish with hazelnut and cloves infusing the decayed fruit and hints of menthol on the spicy aftertaste. This is a sublime Fonseca that will last another two or three decades with ease. Drink now-2030+. - Neal Martin, Feb. 2013, The Wine Advocate

Fonseca is one of the great port lodges, producing the most exotic and most complex port. If Fonseca lacks the sheer weight and power of a Taylor, Dow or Warre, or the opulent sweetness and intensity of a Graham, it excels in its magnificently complex, intense bouquet of plummy, cedary, spicy fruit and long, broad, expansive flavors. With its lush, seductive character, one might call it the Pomerol of Vintage ports. When it is young, it often loses out in blind tastings to the heavier, weightier, more tannic wines, but I always find myself upgrading my opinion of Fonseca after it has had 7-10 years of age. The 1963, one of the great modern-day classics of vintage port, is an incredibly aromatic, sublime, majestic port that simply defines Fonseca's style perfectly. - Robert Parker, Jan. 1989, The Wine Advocate