Vintageport.se

Est. 2011

Great Vintage Port Tasting

Vintage 1963

Our wine club ‘The Wine Society 18%’ celebrates its 20 th anniversary this year and we have during these 20 years tasted quite a lot of vintage port. It has been altogether 556 different vintage ports ranging from 1873 to 1999. Of course we have tasted a lot from the 21st century too, but they are so young. Unfortunately we have only tasted 3 vintage ports from the 19th century. We are 15 members and have 5 meetings/year and then some extra now and then. We are only 15 members so we can have quite rare bottles i.e. 1 bottle is enough. The meetings are in Malmö, Sweden. We had planned to have some tastings due to this celebration and started already the year before (i.e. 2012) as we planned our club the year 1992. The first of the celebration tastings was the vintage 1978 and after that we had celebration tastings of the vintages 1979 and 1947 as extra tastings this year and we have ended the celebration year with a Great Tasting of 1963 which included 38 houses.

The Wine Society 18% has had once a year a Great Tasting since 2005 and we started this Great Tasting with 39 houses of the vintage 1963 and after that we have had Great Tasting of the following vintages: 1960, 1966, 1970, 1975 and 1977 before our Celebration Year which included 4 Great Tastings. Unfortunately 4 of the houses from the tasting 8 years ago were missing this time but we had 3 new houses that we did not have last time.

We were 17 participants in the tasting. The tasting was semi-blind i.e. we know which houses participate in each Flight but not what we had in each glass. We had 4 Flights and in the last Flight we had, as we also had in 2005, an extra vintage Port i.e. Quinta de Noval Nacional 1962 and the same happened this tasting too, 1962 Nacional was split best in show!

The 1963 vintage is a classic Vintage, intense and perfect balanced, deep-purple, fruity and with a large aging capacity. Almost all shippers declared. According to Broadbent 25 shippers declared and according to Port Wine Institute, IVDP, 44 shippers declared. Broadbent and Decanter gave this vintage ***** out of 5*, Suckling 98 points out of 100 and IVDP 7 out of 7. We rated it as Classic and gave it 10 out of 10.

The tasting was conducted over four flights.
First flight:
Flight 1

Second flight:
Flight 2

Third flight:
Flight 3

Fourth flight:
Flight 4

Tasting notes. Note that the points are for the actual bottle tasted. Read about how we set point on the page "How to understand our points valuations"

Sort on: Name Sten's rank Jörgen's rank Stefan's rank Group's rank

HouseAndresenVintage1963
ColourQuite beautiful in colour, almost tawny.
BouquetBurned candy, brown sugar and some pharmacy in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and even some tired. Burned candy in taste. Still quite elegant and balanced with a nice finish.
SAI point15.50JB point14.90SS point15.50Group point14.57
SAI rank32JB rank37SS rank24Group rank36
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseBarrosVintage1963
ColourDark, yellow mature beautiful in colour.
BouquetComplex wonderful nose of old grocery shop, cacao, crème caramel, coffee and much more.
TasteMedium body. Mature and at its peak but still some soft tannin. Cacao and toffee in taste. Elegant and balanced port with lots of complexity. Wonderful!
SAI point17.75JB point17.75SS point17.50Group point16.97
SAI rank5JB rank7SS rank11Group rank10
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseBorges & IrmaoVintage1963
ColourBeautiful yellow, mature in colour but rather dark.
BouquetLovely, complex bouquet. Mostly old grocery shop, figs and cinnamon but also some pharmacy.
TasteMedium body. Mature and maybe even a little old. Cinnamon in taste. Complex port with an elegant finish.
SAI point16.40JB point15.90SS point16.50Group point14.94
SAI rank25JB rank27SS rank18Group rank32
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseBurmesterVintage1963
ColourBeautiful mature yellow in colour.
BouquetElegant, complex bouquet of truffles, dark berry, mulberry and mint in the nose. Very impressive.
TasteQuite full-bodied. Wonderful complex taste. Flavour of dark chocolate and cacao. Mature and at its peak Delicious and quite long finish.
SAI point16.00JB point15.75SS point15.40Group point15.29
SAI rank27JB rank29SS rank29Group rank27
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseCalemVintage1963
ColourYellow mature but still rather dark in colour.
BouquetWonderful complex old grocery shop, cinnamon, coffee, burned sugar and toffee bouquet.
TasteFull bodied. Very tasty indeed. Mature and at its peak. Plum in taste. Complex, very sweet, balanced and elegant with an enormous finish. Wonderful port!
SAI point16.90JB point16.90SS point15.50Group point16.44
SAI rank11JB rank13SS rank24Group rank16
CommentThe Group had a split ranking SS: Something disturbing in the nose, not really ok for me.
HouseCockburnVintage1963
ColourAttractive mature and yellow in colour.
BouquetWonderful complex bouquet of old grocery shop, coffee, fudge, toffee, tea, cacao and much more.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and at its peak. Vanilla, toffee, fudge and chocolate in taste. Dry but balanced. Long finish. Easy to drink and an attractive port. One of our favourites.
SAI point16.50JB point16.40SS point17.00Group point16.38
SAI rank22JB rank20SS rank13Group rank18
CommentSS had a split ranking.
HouseCroftVintage1963
ColourMature yellow almost tawny in colour.
BouquetFudge, toffee, ginger and old grocery shop in the nose.
TasteQuite full-bodied. Mature and at its peak. Toffee in taste. Fairly sweet, elegant and balanced with a delicious and quite long finish.
SAI point16.40JB point16.40SS point15.75Group point16.03
SAI rank25JB rank20SS rank23Group rank21
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseDelaforceVintage1963
ColourYellow mature almost tawny in colour.
BouquetQuite closed in the nose with figs, pharmacy and hospital.
TasteMedium body. Full mature and maybe a little old but very elegant with some pharmacy in taste. A nice but maybe a little short finish.
SAI point15.50JB point15.40SS point15.00Group point15.09
SAI rank32JB rank33SS rank33Group rank29
CommentSAI had a split ranking
HouseDiez HermanosVintage1963
ColourMature yellow tawny in colour.
BouquetA bit closed in the nose with pharmacy. Ginger bread and burned sugar bouquet.
TasteMedium body. Mature and maybe a little old now. Dried fruit and fudge in taste. Delicious and balanced with a nice finish.
SAI point15.40JB point15.50SS point15.50Group point14.97
SAI rank35JB rank31SS rank24Group rank31
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseDowVintage1963
ColourYellow mature almost tawny in colour.
BouquetComplex nose of roses, candy and ginger and spiciness in the nose.
TasteFull-bodied with almond paste and ginger in flavour. Mature and peaking. Elegant and balanced with a long and attractive finish.
SAI point17.00JB point17.75SS point18.00Group point17.64
SAI rank10JB rank7SS rank7Group rank5
CommentJB and SS had a split ranking
HouseFeistVintage1963
ColourMature tawny in colour.
BouquetComplex pharmacy, Sultan raisin nuts and ginger bread in the nose.
TasteLovely body. Medium body. Mature, peaking and even a little old. Ginger bread and nuts in taste. Attractive And balance finish.
SAI point15.40JB point15.50SS point15.25Group point14.29
SAI rank35JB rank31SS rank30Group rank38
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseFeuerheerdVintage1963
ColourMature yellow colour.
BouquetCacao, dark chocolate and coffee in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and maybe a little old. Elegant with cacao in taste. Complex port with a quite attractive finish.
SAI point15.50JB point15.00SS point14.75Group point14.00
SAI rank32JB rank34SS rank35Group rank39
Comment
HouseFonsecaVintage1963
ColourBeautiful, yellow and mature in colour.
BouquetEnormous bouquet of crème caramel, violet and liquorice.
TasteFull-bodied, still some soft tannins. Complex and balanced port with violet in taste and an extremely long finish. Wonderful port.
SAI point19.00JB point19.50SS point16.50Group point16.79
SAI rank4JB rank3SS rank18Group rank13
CommentJB and SS had a split ranking SS: This wine was corked for me. Even so it was quite impressive.
HouseGonzalez-ByassVintage1963
ColourMature tawny colour.
BouquetGinger bread, figs and pharmacy in the nose.
TasteHardly medium body. Mature and maybe a little old. Pharmacy in taste. Still knit together and balanced but a short finish.
SAI point14.00JB point14.50SS point14.50Group point14.47
SAI rank38JB rank38SS rank38Group rank37
Comment
HouseGrahamVintage1963
ColourDark yellow mature in colour.
BouquetChocolate, coffee, violet and old grocery shop in the nose. A wonderful bouquet.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and on top. Cacao and toffee in taste. Elegant and balanced with a complex and never ending finish. Lovely port which continue developing in the glass. Astonishing! We just love this port!
SAI point19.50JB point20.00SS point20.00Group point18.14
SAI rank3JB rank1SS rank1Group rank3
CommentJB and SS had a split ranking
HouseHooperVintage1963
ColourNice mature quite dark in colour.
BouquetCrème caramel, nuts Christmas raisin and some pharmacy in the nose. Quite elegant.
TasteMedium body. Mature and at its peak. Sweet. Nuts and cacao in taste. A complex and lovely finish. Lovely port!
SAI point17.75JB point16.90SS point16.90Group point16.46
SAI rank5JB rank13SS rank16Group rank15
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseHuntVintage1963
ColourMature tawny in colour.
BouquetA bit old in the nose. Dark chocolate, nuts and pharmacy.
TasteMedium body. Burned sugar and nuts in flavour. Mature and quite long and elegant finish.
SAI point15.75JB point15.00SS point15.50Group point14.89
SAI rank29JB rank34SS rank24Group rank33
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseKopkeVintage1963
ColourMature yellow very beautiful in colour.
BouquetFudge, burned candy hospital and ginger bread in the nose.
TasteRather full bodied. Mature and peaking. Toffee in taste. Complex with a lovely, long and very attractive finish.
SAI point16.75JB point16.00SS point16.75Group point15.35
SAI rank17JB rank23SS rank17Group rank26
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseMackenzieVintage1963
ColourYellow mature lovely colour.
BouquetFull complex nose of coffee, crème caramel, ginger bread and toffee.
TasteExcellent body. Complex and balance port. Mature and peaking. Toffee in taste. Attractive port with a long finish.
SAI point16.75JB point16.00SS point16.40Group point14.88
SAI rank17JB rank23SS rank21Group rank34
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseMartinezVintage1963
ColourMature yellow in colour.
BouquetLovely complex old grocery shop, crème caramel, naphthalene, pharmacy and burned sugar in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Sweet. Mature and maybe peaking but perhaps faded a little. However, elegant and a wonderful finish. Quite delicious.
SAI point16.75JB point16.50SS point17.00Group point16.38
SAI rank17JB rank16SS rank13Group rank18
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseMessiasVintage1963
ColourLight coloured tawny with an olive green rim.
BouquetSweet burned candy, fudge and pharmacy in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Seemed a bit old and had some alcoholic taste, but easy to drink and in a way knit together anyhow. Nice finish.
SAI point14.90JB point15.00SS point14.75Group point15.04
SAI rank37JB rank34SS rank35Group rank30
CommentJB and SS had a split ranking
HouseNiepoortVintage1963
ColourMature yellow colour.
BouquetCrème caramel, cacao, dark chocolate and toffee. Complex and elegant nose.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and at its peak. Taste of crème caramel and viol. Elegant and balanced with a complex long and wonderful finish. Marvellous port!
SAI point20.00JB point19.50SS point18.40Group point18.07
SAI rank1JB rank3SS rank5Group rank4
Comment
HouseOffley Boa VistaVintage1963
ColourBeautiful mature yellow colour but still rather dark.
BouquetLovely minty, pharmacy, fudge and old grocery shop in the nose.
TasteQuite full-bodied. Mature and at its peak. Minty in flavour. Elegant and balanced with a very long and lovely finish.
SAI point16.50JB point16.50SS point15.25Group point16.04
SAI rank22JB rank16SS rank30Group rank20
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking SS: Hints of cork-defect for me.
HousePocas JrVintage1963
ColourBeautiful tawny in colour.
BouquetGinger bread, toffee and fudge in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and at its peak. Balanced and elegant. Crème caramel in taste with a wonderful and generous finish. Very good indeed.
SAI point16.90JB point16.00SS point14.90Group point14.74
SAI rank11JB rank23SS rank34Group rank35
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseQuarles HarrisVintage1963
ColourStill quite dark with yellow mature colour.
BouquetCoffee, tea, crème caramel, and old grocery shop in the nose.
TasteQuite full-bodied. Mature and peaking but maybe a little old. Balanced and complex with a long, long finish. Still a lovely port.
SAI point17.50JB point16.90SS point17.90Group point16.91
SAI rank8JB rank13SS rank9Group rank11
CommentJB had a split ranking
HouseQuinta do Corval Real Comp. VelhaVintage1963
ColourMature tawny in colour.
BouquetSpring flowers and spiciness in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Very mature indeed very tasty. Balanced and quite elegant with a rather long finish.
SAI point15.75JB point15.75SS point14.75Group point15.64
SAI rank29JB rank29SS rank35Group rank25
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseQuinta do NovalVintage1963
ColourYellow mature in colour.
BouquetGenerous bouquet of crème caramel, toffee, fudge, burned candy in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Sweet and generous. Fudge and toffee in taste. Mature and peaking. Balanced and with a complex and lovely finish. It has really improved and been quite better during the last decade.
SAI point16.90JB point18.00SS point18.00Group point17.07
SAI rank11JB rank5SS rank7Group rank9
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseQuinta do Noval NacionalVintage1963
ColourBeautiful, still quite dark but yellow mature in colour.
BouquetDark berry, tobacco, violet coffee, cacao and much more in the nose.
TasteFull-bodied. Still fruit and tannins but wonderfully balanced. Rather mature but will develop more. Balanced and complex. Marvellous finish. Can port be better?
SAI point19.90JB point20.00SS point20.00Group point18.75
SAI rank2JB rank1SS rank1Group rank2
CommentJB and SS had a split ranking
HouseQuinta do Sibio Real VinicolaVintage1963
ColourBeautiful mature yellow in colour.
BouquetGenerous bouquet of cacao, dark chocolate, coffee, old grocery shop and cinnamon in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and at its peak. Cacao and chocolate in taste. Sweet. Elegant and balanced port with a long, lovely and attractive finish.
SAI point16.75JB point15.90SS point15.50Group point15.25
SAI rank17JB rank27SS rank24Group rank28
CommentSAI and SS had a split ranking
HouseQuinta do Vesuvio FerreiraVintage1963
ColourMature yellow quite nice colour.
BouquetComplex mint, toffee, burned candy and crème caramel in the nose.
TasteMature and at its peak. Quite full-bodied. Toffee in flavour. Elegant and balanced. Complex, long and quite attractive finish.
SAI point16.90JB point16.50SS point17.00Group point15.82
SAI rank11JB rank16SS rank13Group rank23
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseRamos PintoVintage1963
ColourMature yellow in colour.
BouquetOld grocery shop, pharmacy and burned sugar in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and maybe a little old with some acidity. Complex port with a lovely and quite attractive finish.
SAI point16.00JB point16.50SS point16.00Group point16.44
SAI rank27JB rank16SS rank22Group rank16
CommentSAI and JB as well as the Group had a split ranking
HouseReal VinicolaVintage1963
ColourMature almost tawny in colour.
BouquetPepper, cacao, nuts and crème caramel in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and maybe a little old. Nuts and toffee in flavour. Elegant and quite balanced with an attractive finish.
SAI point15.75JB point16.00SS point16.50Group point16.00
SAI rank29JB rank23SS rank18Group rank22
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseRebello Valente RobertsonVintage1963
ColourYellow mature in colour.
BouquetCrème caramel, herbal, pharmacy, raisin and cinnamon in the nose.
TasteMedium body. Mature and at its peak. Toffee and herbal in flavour and a lovely and complex finish. Delicious port indeed.
SAI point16.75JB point17.40SS point17.25Group point16.74
SAI rank17JB rank12SS rank12Group rank14
CommentSAI had a split ranking
HouseSandemanVintage1963
ColourStill dark but mature yellow in colour.
BouquetVery complex nose of coffee, cacao, tea, ginger, cinnamon and much more.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and on top. Mostly fudge and toffee in taste but very tasty. Balanced and complex port with a generous, lovely and attractive finish. How wonderful!!
SAI point17.75JB point17.50SS point18.25Group point17.57
SAI rank5JB rank10SS rank6Group rank6
CommentSAI, JB and SS had a split ranking
HouseSmith-WoodhouseVintage1963
ColourMature yellow in colour.
BouquetLovely burned sugar, coffee, toffee and cacao in the nose.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and on top. Sweet. Toffee and pharmacy in taste. Complex and wonderful port with a lovely and very very long finish.
SAI point17.50JB point17.75SS point17.75Group point16.79
SAI rank8JB rank7SS rank10Group rank12
Comment
HouseTaylorVintage1963
ColourYellow mature in colour.
BouquetViolets, coffee, tea, cacao and ginger in the nose.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and at its peak. More of burned candy in taste. Balanced and complex port with an enormous and attractive finish.
SAI point16.90JB point17.50SS point18.50Group point17.25
SAI rank11JB rank10SS rank4Group rank8
CommentSAI and JB had a split ranking
HouseWarreVintage1963
ColourMature yellow almost tawny in colour.
BouquetLovely nose of coffee, tea, toffee, cacao and ginger.
TasteFull-bodied. Mature and at its peak. Very tasty with coffee and cacao in flavour. Complex and balanced. Sweet. A wonderful, long and incredible finish.
SAI point16.90JB point18.00SS point18.75Group point17.43
SAI rank11JB rank5SS rank3Group rank7
CommentJB had a split ranking
HouseWiese-KrohnVintage1963
ColourMature yellow in colour.
BouquetCrème caramel burned sugar, coffee, Sultan raisin and bitter chocolate in the nose.
TasteQuite full-bodied. Mature and at its peak. Elegant, balanced and complex port with a long and quite attractive finish.
SAI point16.50JB point16.25SS point15.25Group point15.79
SAI rank22JB rank22SS rank30Group rank24
CommentSAI and SS had a split ranking

Last tasted:

20th October
Vale da Mina 2003
19th October
Quinta dos Malvedos
Graham 2006
Quinta do Estanho 2006
12th October
Don Pablo
C. da Silva 1991
11th October
Burmester 1984
4th October
Prime
Messias 1989
27th September
Gould Campbell 1980
21st September
Pocas Jr 2001
19th September
Cockburn 1983
Delaforce 1992
Dow 2000
Fonseca 1994
Graham 2003
Quinta do Cachao
Messias 1983
Quinta do Pego 2000
Quinta do Vale Meao 2003
Rozes 1994
Taylor 1992

more...

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