Get FREE curbside pickup on any order! Orders are typically taking 1-2 business hours to complete at this time. Please wait for an email confirming that your order is ready before coming to the store.
The Dollar Sale is on now at Premier! For a limited time and on select wines, when you buy one bottle at regular price, get a second identical bottle for just ONE DOLLAR!DOUBLE UP FOR A BUCK!
FREE Shipping to New York State on orders over $200!
Now you can get FREE ground shipping to destinations within New York state on orders over $200! There's no coupon code necessary! This applies to 750ml bottles of wine only.
Portuguese wines are rich in history, with winemaking in Portugal dating back to the Roman Empire.
Portugal is most famous for Port (or “Porto”) wines, which have been produced since the 1600s. Port is classified as a fortified wine and is made in several different styles, including Ruby, Tawny, Vintage, Late Bottle Vintage and Colheita. Madeira is another example of fortified Portuguese wine.
White wines in Portugal are most commonly represented by a light, bubbly, low-alcohol wine made from grapes with low sugar content and are called “Vinho Verde”. Examples of Vinho Verde do exist in red and rosé varieties but are most typically sold within Portugal.
Other Portuguese wines of note are the dry red (still) wines from important areas such as the Douro Valley, Dão, and Alentejo. These wines have improved in quality over the years and are becoming popular worldwide.
SP8989 pts. - Wine Spectator - May 31, 2017 This offers a sweet yet still fresh mix of almond, dried orange peel and piecrust notes, zipped up with a thread of green tea through the finish. Drink now. 5,500 cases made.WE8585 pts. - Wine Enthusiast - 12/15/2008 A traditional medium style, aged in cask for three years before bottling. This is light, flavored with dates and softly sweet. It misses some of the classic Madeira acidity, leaving a gentle aftertaste.
WE8787 pts. - Wine Enthusiast - 12/31/2011 Although there is brandy spirit on the nose, the palate is much more balanced. The wine has a rich feel to it, very fruity forward and attractive. It shows a great jelly note on the finish.
RP8888 pts. - Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 14th Oct 2021 The 2020 Touriga Vai Nua Signature Series is unoaked and comes in at just 12.2% alcohol. As noted, this is another of the winery’s unoaked series this issue. They are increasingly interesting as a group. This is not quite as tight as the Tinta Carvalha, to name one, although it comes close. It’s fair to note that this is a year younger, however. Then, it is much along the same lines. The Tinta Carvalha has more finesse and acidity. This has that extra bit of concentration, at least in terms of mouthfeel. Neither, however, is very fleshy, very ripe or seems dominated by fruit as opposed to structure. They both have wonderful freshness, understatement and fine purity of fruit. This, like the Tinta Carvalha, is a rather different vision of Alentejo, and that is certainly not an accident. This does seem to lack a little in expressiveness, though, and there the Tinta Carvalha wins. For bargain hunters, it is worth noting that this is some $40 cheaper, even if not quite as interesting. (Mark Squires)
SP9090 pts. - Wine Spectator - Jun 30, 2012 Refined, with bright flavors of dried berry, plum compote and cherry tart that are long and lush. Very creamy on the finish, which features chocolate mousse. Drink now. 6,000 cases imported.WE9090 pts. - Wine Enthusiast - 6/1/2012 In the full Fonseca style, this aged tawny shows both rich fruit and a more serious wood-aged character. Good acidity follows the sweet initial taste, broadening into ripe flavors of nut, plum jelly, and a final crisp acidity.
SP9595 pts. - Wine Spectator - Jul 31, 2012 This is gorgeously vibrant and grapey, with good cut to the luscious dark fruit and cedar flavors that are flanked by zesty acidity and tannins. A touch brooding midpalate, with a minerally rush and a finish of slate and iron. Best from 2016 through 2036.WE9595 pts. - Wine Enthusiast - 4/1/2012 A classic Fonseca, rich and powerful, with just an extra edge of weight from the vintage. It has a dry character, a tannic edge that gives great promise, but the open-hearted fruit is all there. A wonderfully intense wine for aging.WS9393 pts. - Wine & Spirits - December 1, 2011 The voluptuous 2009 vintage seems to play right into Fonseca’s house style, creating a cool, concentrated wine. There’s a schisty grip of tannins and a fine cut of acidity to balance chewy blueberry jam flavors. Darker notes of roasted black cherries and brighter strawberry layer detail into the finish. A delicious young Porto, this will probably be at its peak 20 years from the vintage.
JS9898 pts. - JamesSuckling.com - Tuesday, May 29, 2018 Lots of ripe fruit here with raisins and wet earth that turn to violets and hot stones. Full-bodied, tannic and powerful with fantastic grip and intensity. Grabs you. Impressive. Drink in 2025.SP9797 pts. - Wine Spectator - Dec 31, 2018 This leads in with bramble, spearmint and blueberry notes, with the energy extending through the core of dark plum, blackberry and fig fruit. The finish features a strong graphite spine, allowing this to draw deep water, but this remains stylish in feel overall. The definition of suave. Best from 2030 through 2055. 4,900 cases made.WE9797 pts. - Wine Enthusiast - 12/1/2018 This bottling brings together a fine structure with great fruit to give a luscious wine that is also destined for long-term aging. With its ripe berry flavors sustained by some acidity, this is already balanced. Drink from 2028.RP96+96–98 pts. - Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 19th Jul 2018 The 2016 Vintage Port is a field blend that was not quite bottled when seen (set for a week later), but it was the final blend. It was aged for 20 months in wood and comes in with 99 grams of residual sugar. This Fonseca is remarkably expressive, lifted and gloriously fresh. It has good concentration but some years have had more and seemed sexier. However, the most notable feature is the structure. It is very impressive in structure, that classic Port power and firmness coming to the fore and overshadowing the rest at the moment. This is very tight and very unevolved. Don’t even think of buying it if you aren’t prepared to cellar it. The 2030 start date that I have will not be even close to late enough if you want harmony and complexity. To me, this is the best of the three 2016s from the Fladgate Group this issue (Croft and Taylor being the other two), thanks to its pure intensity, but time will tell if it becomes as sexy as I’m sure Taylor’s will be. In the meanwhile, Fonseca looks like one of the greats of this vintage.VN9696 pts. - Vinous - Jun 2018 The 2016 Fonseca Vintage Port began to be picked on 21 September at their Panascal vineyard, their Quinta do Cruzeira vineyard not picked until 6 October. It is deep, almost inky in colour. The bouquet is very intense with luscious black fruit laced with embers, clove and hints of bay leaf. There is wonderful purity here and a broodiness that suggests you’d better be patient. The palate is sweet and lively on the entry with some gorgeous ginger and curry leaf notes littered over the compact black fruit. There is wonderful density to this Fonseca. It is like a coiled spring with so much energy towards the finish that you just know this will be a long-term prospect. Superb. Production is 4,900 cases.
JS9898 pts. - JamesSuckling.com - Tuesday, May 29, 2018 Lots of ripe fruit here with raisins and wet earth that turn to violets and hot stones. Full-bodied, tannic and powerful with fantastic grip and intensity. Grabs you. Impressive. Drink in 2025.SP9797 pts. - Wine Spectator - Dec 31, 2018 This leads in with bramble, spearmint and blueberry notes, with the energy extending through the core of dark plum, blackberry and fig fruit. The finish features a strong graphite spine, allowing this to draw deep water, but this remains stylish in feel overall. The definition of suave. Best from 2030 through 2055. 4,900 cases made.WE9797 pts. - Wine Enthusiast - 12/1/2018 This bottling brings together a fine structure with great fruit to give a luscious wine that is also destined for long-term aging. With its ripe berry flavors sustained by some acidity, this is already balanced. Drink from 2028.RP96+96–98 pts. - Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 19th Jul 2018 The 2016 Vintage Port is a field blend that was not quite bottled when seen (set for a week later), but it was the final blend. It was aged for 20 months in wood and comes in with 99 grams of residual sugar. This Fonseca is remarkably expressive, lifted and gloriously fresh. It has good concentration but some years have had more and seemed sexier. However, the most notable feature is the structure. It is very impressive in structure, that classic Port power and firmness coming to the fore and overshadowing the rest at the moment. This is very tight and very unevolved. Don’t even think of buying it if you aren’t prepared to cellar it. The 2030 start date that I have will not be even close to late enough if you want harmony and complexity. To me, this is the best of the three 2016s from the Fladgate Group this issue (Croft and Taylor being the other two), thanks to its pure intensity, but time will tell if it becomes as sexy as I’m sure Taylor’s will be. In the meanwhile, Fonseca looks like one of the greats of this vintage.VN9696 pts. - Vinous - Jun 2018 The 2016 Fonseca Vintage Port began to be picked on 21 September at their Panascal vineyard, their Quinta do Cruzeira vineyard not picked until 6 October. It is deep, almost inky in colour. The bouquet is very intense with luscious black fruit laced with embers, clove and hints of bay leaf. There is wonderful purity here and a broodiness that suggests you’d better be patient. The palate is sweet and lively on the entry with some gorgeous ginger and curry leaf notes littered over the compact black fruit. There is wonderful density to this Fonseca. It is like a coiled spring with so much energy towards the finish that you just know this will be a long-term prospect. Superb. Production is 4,900 cases.
SP9797 pts. - Wine Spectator - Dec 31, 2019 Dark and dense, with fig bread, baker’s chocolate and tar notes leading off before the core flavors of plum, black currant and blackberry paste finally start to emerge. The wild, spirited finish shows cast iron, licorice snap and roasted alder elements, delivering a decidedly chewy feel. A big, old-school, throwback Port that will age at a glacial pace. Best from 2035 through 2060. 1,000 cases imported.RP96+96–98 pts. - Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 11th Jul 2019 The 2017 Vintage Port, not quite bottled when seen but the final blend, is a field blend (with typical grapes like Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesca, Tinto Cão, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Barroca) aged for approximately 20 months in used French oak. It comes in with 98 grams of residual sugar, a little drier on paper than its Taylor sibling this year. Sappy and sensational in flavor and fruit, this seemingly has moderate tannins around the edges on first taste, velvety texture and a long finish. Despite the first impression of moderation, there is plenty of power here. As it got some aeration, it showed nothing but power and closed down fairly hard. The combination of great fruit and fine structure makes this a potentially great Fonseca, but right now it is obviously immature and not showing everything it has. I’d recommend some patience here.