2011 Vintage Port is declared

[Andy Velebil]

Hi Eric. No Gould Campbell, Quarles Harris nor Martinez. These ports are typically made with the grapes bought in from Douro farmers, primarily in the Pinhão and Rio Torto valleys. For 2011 Symington was focussed on the opportunity to make creme de la creme ports from our own quintas - and when Charles reviewed the possible blends for these brands, the wines were simply not in the same league, so the decision was taken to let this year pass as far as declaring vintage ports for those brands.

Quite a bummer about GC. I really enjoy this house and think it's one of the better VP's which isn't on most people's radar. Translation....younger and older vintages can still be found at relatively good prices.

[Eric Menchen]

I just got news from the source that Broadbent is declaring too!

Is that going to be a Crasto or Niepoort product underneath, or something else? I think their recent bottlings have been Crasto based.

[Roy Hersh]

NIEPOORT for sure.

[Andy Velebil]

Being St George day The Fladgate Partnership has offically declared Fonseca, Taylor's (regular and Vargellas Vinha Velha) and Croft.

[Roy Hersh]

Oporto, Portugal (April 23rd, 2013) – The Fladgate Partnership, comprising the three historic houses of Taylor Fladgate, Fonseca and Croft, has declared 2011 a Vintage Port year for all three houses.

“2011 has produced textbook Vintage Ports, classics in every sense,” says Adrian Bridge, managing director. He adds, “The wines have a wonderful purity and elegance, but also plenty of structure and depth of flavor.” While the quality of the 2011 harvest was apparent from the outset, a decision as to whether or not to declare was taken only when the final blends were ready for evaluation. The blends from the three houses were carefully assessed over several weeks for quality, potential longevity and consistency of house style.

The winter preceding the 2011 harvest was wetter and colder than the 30-year average, but as the year progressed, the vines developed and ripened under ideal conditions. Head winemaker David Guimaraens notes, “2011 was an excellent ripening season and produced a well-balanced crop. The 2011s stand out for the purity of the fruit and the quality of the tannins, which are silky and well integrated, but provide plenty of structure.”

The 2011 declaration follows on the heels of four great vintages (2009, 2007, 2003 and 2000), and is good news for Port (and wine) fans worldwide. In fact, Bridge says, “Our 2009 declaration showed that demand remains strong for new release Vintage Ports, and we expect it to grow further as new fine wine markets develop. Wine consumers all over the world are realizing that Vintage Port continues to deliver astonishing value compared to many other classic wines.”

Recently, The Fladgate Partnership has seen a strong demand among collectors and investors for large format bottles. Noting this interest, Adrian Bridge says, “We will be making a limited number of large formats available from all three houses, including double magnums and imperials.”

The Taylor Fladgate, Fonseca and Croft 2011 Vintage Ports will be available later in the year. There will also be a limited release of the rare Taylor Fladgate Quinta de Vargellas Vinha Velha 2011 Vintage Port.

Taylor Fladgate 2011
The Taylor Fladgate 2011 is drawn exclusively from the firm’s own quintas (vineyard estates), and is a blend of wines from Quinta de Vargellas, Quinta de Terra Feita and a small amount from Quinta do Junco.

Tasting note: Impenetrable blue-black color with narrow purple rim. Intricate and finely constituted, the nose displays classic Taylor Fladgate elegance and poise. A dense core of pure complex fruit, redolent of blackberry and cassis, enveloped in a fragrant aura of violets. Resiny, garrigue scents and subtle notes of licorice and black coffee emerge as the nose develops. On the palate, taut, linear tannins provide a solid framework. Fine berry fruit flavors linger into the finish, where the tannins re-emerge to provide an attractive touch of austerity. This is textbook Taylor Fladgate, with its unmistakable combination of stamina and refinement.

Taylor Fladgate Quinta da Vargellas Vinha Velha 2011
Vargellas Vinha Velha is selected from old vines on two terraced plots, Polverinho and Renova do Armazém, which are classified as World Heritage sites.

Tasting note: Intense purple-black color. The nose is marked by a complex fruitiness, blending aromas of blackcurrant, plum and blackberry, overlaid with a floral mantle and hints of dark chocolate, exotic wood and black pepper. The palate is in perfect balance and supported by a dense weave of sinewy tannin. A burst of fresh berry fruit flavor liners on the finish.

Fonseca 2011
The Fonseca 2011 blend is based on wines from Quinta do Panascal, Quinta do Cruzeiro and the organically farmed Quinta do Santo António.

Tasting note: Intense black, inky core and narrow purple rim. The nose opens onto a dense, brooding mass of dark blackberry and blackcurrant fruit. Compact and concentrated, it also displays exceptional purity, one of the hallmarks of the 2011 vintage. The nose gradually opens to reveal an array of heady herbal scents, notes of exotic wood, marzipan and plum, as well as an attractive graphite minerality. Solid, well-integrated tannins give both volume and firmness to the palate, with its reserves of dense black fruit infused with dark chocolate and licorice. A vigorous, concentrated, fruit-driven Vintage Port, showing the classic opulence of Fonseca.

Croft 2011
The Croft 2011 Vintage is produced entirely from old vineyard plots from the Quinta da Roêda, which performed particularly well in 2011.

Tasting note: Deep purple-black color. The complex seductive nose has the archetypal Croft opulence, but displays impressive depth, background and aromatic reserves. A rich, powerful fruitiness provides the backdrop for heady, floral scents. Luscious, ripe berry fruit flavor dominates the palate. The velvety texture is underpinned by taut, perfectly integrated tannins. More structured than some recent Croft Vintages, the 2011 nevertheless displays all the rich, ripe fruitiness and exotic scented character associated with the Croft style.

[Eric Ifune]

Jamie Goode, in his blog, talks about a new cuvee of Grahams, the 2011 Grahams Stone Terraces. It's supposed to be an uber cuvee. Anyone know more about this project?

[Christian Gollnick]

Hi Eric:
Here you can find some information about the new wines from the Symington Family... and this report makes me wish to be a Portuguese wine journalist...:

http://malvedos.wordpress.com/2013/04/2 ... tage-port/

[Eric Ifune]

Christian,
Thanks for the link!
I guess this is akin to Nacional, being from a selected parcel(s) of land and kept seperately.

[Roy Hersh]

Ramos Pinto has declared 2011.

[Rob C.]

TFP are also producing a Skeffington

[Rob C.]

Christian,
Thanks for the link!
I guess this is akin to Nacional, being from a selected parcel(s) of land and kept seperately.

Interestingly, other snippets on the Malvedos blog indicate that both parcels are almost wholly Touriga Nacional with just a few old "field bend" vines in the mix. Other than the Ramos 1983 bottlings - this must be about as close to a single varietal vintage port as i've heard of (although I must admit i don't pay a huge amount of attention to vareital composition of vintage ports more generally, so perhaps there are lots and i don't realise)

[Derek T.]

Some of the UK contingent tasted the 2011s today at The Big Fortified Tasting (http://www.thebft.co.uk).

Best of the day for me was the Dow - a fabulously dense, austere, brute of a wine that needs more decades than I have left in me to mature. The Fonseca was my second favourite, followed by the val Meao and Offley. The vintage seems to be very good to excellent across the board, with only one or two that did not show well.

Save up your $, £, € or whatever else you trade in, you are in for a real treat!

[Roy Hersh]

Thanks for the report, Derek. No need to be coy, which did you not like as much?

[Roy Hersh]

A MUCH better report, comes from Luis Antunes a great guy who is a long time journo in Lisboa, wrote this for WS:

http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature ... XiECxy_tqA

[Al B.]

Luisa Borges let me know that her family's quinta has also declared 2011 VP.

Which quinta is this?

[Rob C.]

Luisa Borges let me know that her family's quinta has also declared 2011 VP.

Which quinta is this?

The company is Roncao Pequeno (website link) with a quinta of the same name as well as "Quinta do Fojo Velho" and "Quinta da Fonte" (the latter used for whites according to their website) - their ports and wines seem to be bottled under the label "Vieira de Sousa" (cellartracker link for 2009 VP), but i don't know whether the 2009 VP was single quinta (so if 2011 is single quinta, it might be called something different i guess...)

[Roy Hersh]

Don't forget Agua Alta.

[Andy Velebil]

posted on the FTLOP Facebook page..
http://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2013/0 ... 2013-04-25

Depicting the 2011 vintage as the next main development since that moment, de Almeida explained that ongoing research had convinced him to add a further two varieties to the blend: Sousão and Tinta da Barca.

I see a grape I've talked a lot about is getting more popular again...Sousão

[Roy Hersh]

Next thing we know, you'll be telling us you discovered that grape!

[Eric Menchen]

Next thing we know, you'll be telling us you discovered that grape!

Discovered? No, he invented it.