Fonseca was founded in 1815 and made its first Vintage Ports in 1840. In 1857 Manoel Fonseca Guimaraens took over, and the family is still at the center of the house: head winemaker David Guimaraens is the sixth generation. Fonseca Bin 27 was launched in Britain in 1972.
Fonseca says it is the only Port house with four 100-point wines, and it quotes the critic James Suckling calling its Vintage Ports perhaps the most consistently great of them all. Those are the house’s claims, but they tell you where Fonseca puts its effort: Vintage Port.
How to store Vintage Port, from the people who make it
This is the part of Fonseca’s advice we would pass on even if you never visit. Store Vintage Port lying down, so the cork stays moist. Before opening, stand the bottle upright so the sediment settles to the bottom. Vintage Port throws a deposit because it ages in bottle rather than in wood. For the longer version, see our guide on how to store and serve Port, and on dealing with sediment.
The wines to look for
- Fonseca Bin 27.
- Fonseca Guimaraens Vintage, in its 2018 release.
- Fonseca Vintage 2017.
Visiting
Fonseca’s lodge is at Rua do Choupelo 84 in Vila Nova de Gaia, close to Taylor’s on the same street. We could not find published visit times or prices for Fonseca, so write to [email protected] before you go. If you would rather not plan ahead, Taylor’s audio-guided cellar visit, a short walk away, is open every day.
Canto Cooking is a commercial partner of Pinot Squirrel and we earn from bookings. Winery and lodge prices on this page come from each producer's own website.
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