A HOUSE WITH HISTORY SINCE 1815

The Fonseca House was originated in the early nineteenth century. Its story coincides with the lives of four families who have shaped the fate of the company to the present day. Its founder, João dos Santos Fonseca, in 1820, established a partnership with Francisco José Gomes Monteiro, a member of a known family of merchants, giving rise to the company -Fonseca & Monteiro.
Later, in 1822, the young Pedro Manoel Guimaraens moved to London to establish itself as a wine merchant in London. He played a decisive role in the success of this house. The Guimaraens family, who led the company for more than a century, led it to achieve its reputation as one of the best producers of Vintage Port houses. Finally came the Yeatman family, who run the company with great success since the second half of the twentieth century.
In the last quarter of the twentieth century, Fonseca House invested in the purchase of vineyards and vineyard renovation of the Douro valley, becoming also a pioneer of organic and sustainable viticulture while helping to preserve the unique and natural ecosystem of the Douro valley for future generations.
With this approach, the celebration of its bicentennial, Fonseca and their three farms (Panascal, Cruzeiro and Santo Antonio), that are well-differentiated “terroirs” play a decisive role in shaping the character of their wines, and can be proud of its past while looking to the future with confidence to produce wines with authenticity, character with a story to tell – always prepared by creative producers who respect the environment and nature.
Keeping your identity and tradition, Fonseca House is now part of a consolidated group – The Fladgate Partnership. This is one of the most important and respectable trade groups of port wine quality.

DID YOU KNOW…

The first Vintage Port sold under the name Fonseca was produced in 1840 and marked the beginning of a generating splendid vintages, which have continued to the present day, including the iconic 1868 and the extraordinary 1927, 1948, 1977 and 1994, the latter being four wines 100 points.
Although, for collectors and connoisseurs, Fonseca House can be a synonym for Vintage Port to many wine lovers from around the world, the company is best known as the producer of Bin nº 27 Port Wine, one of the wines of Porto more popular of all time.
The Fonseca Bin No. 27 is a port wine created more than a century ago but is being only marketed since 1972.