Searching for 1947 Port (birth year)

[Michael Kessler]

I am searching for a 1947 port to drink on my 60th brithday...any recommendations and/or where I could buy one or two bottles?

[Roy Hersh]

Welcome to the FOR THE LOVE OF PORT Forum area. As we'd really like to keep this a friendly place, it would be most appreciated if you would click on the PROFILE button at the top of the page and enter your first and last name, like everyone else. Thanks so much!

As for 1947, it was a solid year but not one with many declarations by the shippers.

I have only had 3 really good Vintage Ports that come to mind from this vintage and a few that are decent but less likely to show well today.

The best of the bunch was the Quinta do Noval Nacional which I last had in late Feb. of 2005. It was harmonious and delicious (I gave it 95 points at the time). There is also the regular bottling of Quinta do Noval which is a bargain by comparison and damn good too. I have also liked the 1947 Sandeman which is a very solid bottling and drinks quite well today.

Dow, Warre and Cockburn also made decent wines in this particular vintage but not up to the level of the 3 above. I would avoid the Feist '47 as it is way over the hill, although I have only tried it from a half bottle and that was somewhere in the early 1990s, albeit a pristine bottle. I have never had the Quinta do Sibio bottling but they are not hard to find, although I would only buy one if I knew someone who had tried this producer's '47 and could find a well stored bottle.

There are some good Colheitas out there that you could most likely locate pretty easily. Kopke for sure made a '47. Your other best bet would be to find one of the MANY vintage dated tawny port styled bottlings from Australia. IF you can come across the Henschke or Seppelt, go for it!!!

Now please do go and fix that profile, so we can adequately welcome you by name. Thanks and happy hunting!

[Tom Archer]

Should you be in the the UK at the time of your birthday, you could drop by - I have a bottle of the Warre '47, and well, any excuse...

I also have a bottle of a Loire red table wine from '47, which was an excellent year, but quite probably over the hill now.

The curiosity is that I can't find any reference to the Chateau today, and the bottle is hand numbered as being bottle number 500 out of 540 - so it was clearly a bit special at the time.

I'm itching to find a good excuse to open it!

Tom

[Michael Kessler]

Should you be in the the UK at the time of your birthday, you could drop by - I have a bottle of the Warre '47, and well, any excuse... :D

I also have a bottle of a Loire red table wine from '47, which was an excellent year, but quite probably over the hill now.

The curiosity is that I can't find any reference to the Chateau today, and the bottle is hand numbered as being bottle number 500 out of 540 - so it was clearly a bit special at the time.

I'm itching to find a good excuse to open it!

Tom

Tom:

I have business partners in the UK so you may indeed find me at your doorstep...Thank you for the information and the invitation

[Michael Kessler]

Welcome to the FOR THE LOVE OF PORT Forum area. As we'd really like to keep this a friendly place, it would be most appreciated if you would click on the PROFILE button at the top of the page and enter your first and last name, like everyone else. Thanks so much!

As for 1947, it was a solid year but not one with many declarations by the shippers.

I have only had 3 really good Vintage Ports that come to mind from this vintage and a few that are decent but less likely to show well today.

The best of the bunch was the Quinta do Noval Nacional which I last had in late Feb. of 2005. It was harmonious and delicious (I gave it 95 points at the time). There is also the regular bottling of Quinta do Noval which is a bargain by comparison and damn good too. I have also liked the 1947 Sandeman which is a very solid bottling and drinks quite well today.

Dow, Warre and Cockburn also made decent wines in this particular vintage but not up to the level of the 3 above. I would avoid the Feist '47 as it is way over the hill, although I have only tried it from a half bottle and that was somewhere in the early 1990s, albeit a pristine bottle. I have never had the Quinta do Sibio bottling but they are not hard to find, although I would only buy one if I knew someone who had tried this producer's '47 and could find a well stored bottle.

There are some good Colheitas out there that you could most likely locate pretty easily. Kopke for sure made a '47. Your other best bet would be to find one of the MANY vintage dated tawny port styled bottlings from Australia. IF you can come across the Henschke or Seppelt, go for it!!!

Now please do go and fix that profile, so we can adequately welcome you by name. Thanks and happy hunting!

Yes Sirrr.... thanks for the info, I was sick that I was not able to join your on the port harvest trip.

[Roy Hersh]

Now I am cracking up Michael. I should have guessed from your "other" name that it was you. Yes, you will be missed on this trip as I don't know that there will EVER be another like it. In fact, I do know there will never be another like it. You never forget your first time ...

[David Spriggs]

You never forget your first time ...

Or your second! :twisted:

-Dave-

[Justin K]

Michael,

About 15 years ago I bought a number of unmarked bottles of port at an auction and on pulling the cork of one I found the words Da Silva 1947, I can't find a reference to it anywhere but I add it to the pile of possibilities. Maybe someone out there can expand on this.

Justin

[Tom Archer]

Da Silva 1947

The early Noval's often carry the name A.J. Da Silva - and sometimes nothing else.

'47 is listed as a declared year for Noval, so that's probably what you've got.

Tom

[Derek T.]

There is also an unfiltered LBV produced occassionally by Noval named Porto Da Silva - I have some of the 1995. Perhaps this was also produced in 1947.

Derek

[Tom Archer]

LBV was not made by design until the late fifties.

Prior to that there were some sporadic bottlings of VP that got left in the barrel for rather longer than planned, so older bottles occasionally surface, and there is therefore the eternal argument about who invented it..

Tom