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Wine Description
The Story
Fonseca’s three vineyards—Quinta do Panascal, Quinta de Cruzeiro and Quinta de Santo António—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
Vintage 2018
After an extended drought, rain finally came to the Douro in spring 2018 in such quantities that there was some damaging erosion. Following that, summer was hot, and yields were consequently low, but the classic varieties thrived in the heat, producing deep, intense, fragrant wines.
The 2018 Single Quinta Vintage Ports are the result of a rollercoaster growing season – with a prolonged winter drought, a deluge in spring, and heatwaves through the final ripening period. Despite the challenges, the 2018 wines are characterised by a well-defined acidity and marked freshness, reflecting the characteristics of specific parcels of vineyard within each estate. The star of the year was the late-maturing Touriga Franca, which excelled in the warm harvest, allowing each estate’s signature aromas to flourish.