Fonseca’s three vineyards—Quinta do Panascal, Quinta de Cruzeiro and Quinta de Santo Antonio—all form the backbone of Fonseca’s Late Bottled Vintage Portos, produced in excellent years when a general vintage is not declared. In the winery, the newly developed, robotic “Port Toes” technology for treading the grapes allows the winery to maximize the quality of the fruit by imitating the traditional action of human feet and avoiding damage to the bitter grape seeds. Fermentation is halted by the addition of grape spirits before all the residual sugar has been fermented, creating a sweet, fortified wine. The wine is then matured in neutral oak and bottled without filtration to allow further evolution in the bottle.

Tasting notes

This wine shows fresh, black fruit and dark cherry aromas and flavors, with spice notes. This concentrated, structured wine has great volume and mouthfeel, with fine length on the finish.

Rating

Ultimate Beverage Challenge 91 points (May 2011) May 2011 Ultimate Wine Challenge

Food pairing

An excellent pairing with full-flavored cheeses, especially blue cheeses, and with dark chocolate or fresh berry desserts. This wine is unfiltered and should be decanted because of sediment in the bottle.