2016 Fonseca - Porto Vintage Port HALF BOTTLE (375ml)

Fonseca traces its origins to the early 1800s, when the Brazilian-descended Fonseca family ran a Port trading firm in Oporto. In 1822, Manuel Pedro Guimaraens acquired control of the company, and as a condition of the sale insisted that the Fonseca name be retained, a stipulation that still defines the brand today. The Guimaraens family has overseen nearly every vintage since, most remarkably through a chain of only three winemakers across generations, and the house has become known as one of Port's benchmark producers, sometimes described by wine experts as its most consistently exceptional.

The 2016 Vintage Port is a field blend drawn from Fonseca's key estates, Quinta do Panascal in the Távora Valley along with Quinta do Cruzeiro and Quinta de São António in the Pinhão Valley. Harvest began later than usual, starting in late September at Panascal and stretching into October at the other sites, following a growing season marked by unusually heavy spring rainfall that replenished groundwater and set up ideal ripening conditions. After fermentation and fortification, the wine aged for roughly twenty months in wood before bottling, a vintage that critics have called one of the most refined in Fonseca's modern history.

The color is deep, almost inky purple with a narrow rim. On the nose, pure black cherry, cassis, and blackberry jam mingle with crushed mint, violet, and a hint of ripe tropical fruit. The palate is structured around vibrant acidity and taut, fine-grained tannins, with fresh berry flavors carrying through an exceptionally long finish. Its intensity pairs beautifully with Stilton or another firm blue cheese, and it also complements a dense flourless chocolate cake.