"19.5 Points, Jancis Robinson MW: "Heady, opulent nose. Completely enveloping, Smells as though there is going to be the most fabulous texture. Wow! All stops pulled out for this one. It's all absolutely gorgeous intensity of sweet fruit on the front palate and then gradually the schist and structure reveal themselves. This is really wonderful stuff. So tempting to sip it decades before it is ready. 2035-2080."
97-99 Points, Neal Martin: "The Fonseca 2011 is typically more forthcoming on the nose compared to the bashful Croft: a strident bouquet with lifted scents of freshly picked blackberries, kirsch, crushed stone and a dash of Hoi Sin and oyster sauce. It is very well-defined, very focused and direct. The palate is silky smooth with not a rough edge in sight, though not a typically voluptuous Fonseca because of the keen thread of acidity and the structure that lends this mighty Port wonderful backbone. A slight viscosity on the finish lacquers the tongue and indicates a core of sweet fruit is ticking away underneath that will surely explode several years after bottling. A tincture of salted licorice on the aftertaste is very attractive. This will turn out to become an outstanding Fonseca, the growing season taming its exuberance with spectacular results. So much potential, but just 6,000 cases were produced. Tasted May 2013.""
Fonseca was founded in 1815 and is regarded as one of the most stylistically consistent of the classic Vintage Port houses. Every one of its Vintage Ports has been made by five generations of the Guimaraens family since its foundation. Fonseca produces one of the most exotic and aromatically powerful of all Vintage Ports. The heady opulence of a mature Fonseca Vintage is almost intoxicating in its power and complexity and it is this remarkable aromatic potential which ensures the longevity of the Fonseca Vintage Ports. The cornerstone of the Fonseca vintage blend is Quinta do Panascal, the firm’s famous estate located on the steep slopes of the Távora Valley. The wines of Fonseca’s two quintas in the Pinhão Valley, Cruzeiro and Santo António, are also traditional components of the blend.
