Fladgate Partnership declares 2011 vintage on St George's Day

By Emily Kearns

Published: 23 April, 2013

The three Port houses belonging to the Fladgate Partnership have chosen today, St George's Day, to declare the 2011 vintage.

Croft, Fonseca and Taylor's made the announcement after several weeks of tasting to determine the quality of the final blends, in terms of potential for longevity and consistency with the Port houses' style.

The high quality of the 2011 harvest was apparent from the outset, but the official procedure is to hold off declaring a vintage until the final blends have been assessed.

Adrian Bridge, managing director of the Fladgate Partnership, claimed "2011 has produced textbook vintage ports, classics in every sense. The wines have a wonderful purity and elegance but also plenty of background and structure".

He added: "Our 2009 declaration showed that demand remains strong for new release vintage ports and we expect it to grow further as new fine wine markets come on stream. Wine consumers all over the world are realising that vintage port continues to deliver astonishing value compared to many other classic wines."

Winemaker David Guimaraens said of the growing conditions: "Abundant spring rainfall created reserves to keep the vines well supplied with water throughout the hot, dry summer. This resulted in balanced ripening and wines that have elegance as well as depth and stamina. The 2011s stand out for the purity of the fruit and the quality of the tannins, which are silky and well integrated but provide plenty of structure."

The three houses' 2011 vintage Ports will be released later in the year.

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