### 1948 Taylor Fladgate Vintage Port

###  

BY NEAL MARTIN | MAY 7, 2018

There is Vintage Port and then there is the **1948 Taylor Fladgate**. It remains a monumental Port that towers over the 20th century. Nineteen forty-eight is perhaps one of the lesser-known declarations compared to 1945 and 1963, although nine houses declared that year. Michael Broadbent described that as an “error of judgment” given the quality of the vintage in retrospect. I have been fortunate to taste the 1948 Taylors on several occasions, encountering one or two perfect bottles along the way. “Christopher & Co” bottled my most recent encounter in 1950, British merchants bottling a lion’s share of production in those days. With the recent declaration of the 2016 vintage, the 1948 serves as a timely reminder of the heights Vintage Port achieves with age. Deep in color, it appears more twenty-years old than seventy. The bouquet is exactly like the previous bottle in 2015, soaring from the nose with opulent raspberry, blackberry, clove, sage, vanilla and Medjool dates, perhaps this bottle more floral than others. The aromatics just feel exuberant and vivacious. The palate is beautifully balanced to the point where you barely notice the power locked inside this multi-faceted fortified. Red and black fruit, orange rind, cracked black pepper and smoke, later fig and a hint of cassis. The purity makes this so ethereal and the finish has been abraded by the passing decades to create a sense of harmony that only time and not winemaking can create. No doubt that well-stored bottles will reach the century mark and still be going strong. Broadbent suggested that the 1948 stands as one of the greatest Vintage Ports ever made. Of that, I am in no doubt. 100/Drink 2018-2048.

![](https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1525710953983-cf_1948_taylors+copy.jpg)



Cellar Favorite: 1948 Taylor Fladgate Vintage Port 

Cellar Favorite: 1948 Taylor Fladgate Vintage Port  (May 2018)

ConstantScore(-article_id:{312 381 422 466 735 1092 1114 1146 1208 1209 1210 1231 1235 1241 1242 1245 1249 1258 1261 1276 1283 1298 1302 1312 1321 1325 1338 1601 1734 1980 1998 2164 2193 2198 2268 2425 2529 2566 2825 2994 3120 3140 3371 3977 4341 4690 4691} #producer.id:6088 #article_id:[1874 TO 1874])

DocValuesFieldExistsQuery [field=_primary_term]

Taylor Fladgate

Content

Engage

Vinous

Social