Austin Beeman

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Fonseca 1985 Vintage Port: Tasting with 6th Generation Winemaker David Guimaraens and Austin Beeman

Austin Beeman

David Guimaraens, the 6th generation winemaker, discusses his pride in a vintage port made by his father, the Fonseca 1985.

He emphasizes the pleasure of drinking a mature vintage port and the complexity it offers. Guimaraens also mentions the cult following of the Fonseca 1985 and its ability to age well.

He and Austin Beeman, the interviewer, discuss the personal and historical significance of tasting and experiencing wines from different years.

Guimaraens reflects on his own career and the legacy he hopes to leave behind and they conclude by toasting to the complexity and enjoyment of fine wines.

THIS IS BONUS CONTENT RELATED TO EPISODE 96 OF UNDERSTANDING WINE WITH AUSTIN BEEMAN

SPECIAL THANKS:

TRANSCRIPT:

Note: Transcript was created by a third party service and I’ve endeavored to clean up the spelling of ‘wine words’ and non-english words. Any persistent errors are mine alone.

Or, watch the video. It is awesome.

David Guimaraens:

Cheers. We're talking about a port that I had nothing to do with. My father made this port. But it's a port that I'm very proud of and it's a port, which for me is also what drives what I do. Because at the end of the day, when I bottle a vintage port like the '17, I want my son or my grandson to be proud of what I did. This port was made by my father, the Fonseca 1985. It is now reaching or getting close to the ripe age of 40 years. And it is a wonderful moment and a great example of what a mature vintage port is.

And if you have a number of bottles in your cellar, if you open this bottle, you'll have the pleasures of the incredible complexity. Look at this, all this bottle maturity, this marzipan, the spiciness that you get, which is what nearly 40 years in the bottle will give you. But it has still got so much fruit, so much intensity that if you have a case and you drink a few bottles for yourself and you leave some for your son, then you'll be very happy with that as well. He'll be even happier.

Austin Beeman:

Yeah. There's something about the time travel that many great wines can do, but vintage port can do with ease.

David Guimaraens:

For those who know what they're doing. And I stress that because that's very important. Fonseca 1985 has got a cult following. It is considered the greatest of the '85s. I look at it and see the youth that it still has, now it's 38 years old, and it's still so youthful. But look at this extraordinary... how much is going on in your palate when you're drinking this, how much you discover. You said you'd had an '85 before. How long ago was that?

Austin Beeman:

It was, I want to say in the early 2000s, 2004 I think.

David Guimaraens:

Yeah. And look at it now. Look at how much more it has gained. But then you drink and say, "Well, okay, it's incredible, but it will be even better in another 20 years time than it is today."

Austin Beeman:

Yeah. And you were talking about how this is the wine that your father made and the ability of when you see that '85, when you taste an '85, you're thinking about, "Okay, who was I when this was made? Who was I when I first had it?" I recently had an opportunity to taste a wine from Alsace when Alsace was German in the middle of the Second World War. And it started a conversation about what my grandfather was doing during the war at that time and thinking about, "Okay, '85," and for me, I was seven years old when this wine was being harvested and what the world was like and all those things coupled with the prettiness of the fruit. You go from this wine and the fruit's all there, but then you come back to the Bin 27 prettiness, but at a completely different level.

David Guimaraens:

What you're saying is exactly what the world of fine wine is about. You're talking about what the world of the wine lover is about. Every bottle of vintage port has got a story to tell. 1985, you were seven years old. 1985, I was 19 years old. My father gave me a one-way ticket to Australia because he wanted to show me the new world. I ended up studying in Australia for five years, study and working. So I was in Australia for five years and 1985 was a year which produced these ports, which the extraordinary concentration. Every bottle of vintage port has got a story to tell and what happened. And in the same way that you can explore a region and different producers by the different wines that you taste, you can also travel the world by drinking fine wine from different countries. And that is what the world of fine wine is about.

That's why today there have never been so many people interested in quality wine. Because if you have that interest, and this is only interesting if you have that interest. Wine is about people who like it, it's not about imposing it on people, but if you have that interest, there is so much to discover in fine wine. And that's why vintage port is considered as one of the greatest wines in the world alongside the great Burgundy's, the great Bordeaux's. Because to do it, to do it well, you really need to know what you're doing. But when it is good, it is extraordinary. So, cheers.

Austin Beeman:

Cheers. It's extraordinary.

David Guimaraens:

It's been a pleasure. And cheers to the camera who's done all the hard work. Isn't the complexity of this just something?

Austin Beeman:

Wow, this is so good. Just in this limited amount of time, every sip has been radically different than the one before.

David Guimaraens:

And you see the way the flavors go. If we talk about '13 going on in relation to the '17, but then look what this has in relation to the '13, Patrick, this is what it's about. And I had nothing to do with it. Well, I did help with the harvest.

Austin Beeman:

There you go. There you go. You can take credit.

David Guimaraens:

No, I won't take any credit. I can take credit or criticism for the pause that I've made. I'll credit my father with great pride of the pause that he made.

Austin Beeman:

What was the first vintage you made that you claim?

David Guimaraens:

'94. So I started back home in 1990 and my father retired in '95, so '94 was the first I was fully responsible for. But still today, I always said that if any of the vintage ports I make are as good as the Fonseca '63, then I'm happy with my career. And I think you've got to always look at what you're doing, thinking about what I've had the good fortune to inherit from previous generations, but also to think what am I going to leave for the generations to come? That's the port business. I think when you come to the lodges here, that's what you see here, that's what you sense.

Austin Beeman:

Absolutely.

David Guimaraens:

And this is our life. This is what we are.

Austin Beeman:

Fabulous, man. Cheers. Thank you so much.

David Guimaraens:

Yes. Cheers.

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Main Camera: Canon R8

2nd Camera: DJi Pocket 2

Mic:  Audio Technica AT875R

Travel Bag: Peak Design Travel Line Backpack 45L.

Camera Bag:  Peak Design Everyday Messenger Bag.

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FTC Compliance: I have no professional relationship with Fonseca or the Fladgate Partnership other than selling their wines during my time as a retail buyer. This is not sponsored. See more.