1963 Vintage

WINE TALK
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I’m aware that 1963 was a superb vintage for Port and supposedly crap pretty much everywhere else, but does anyone know of a dry red/white that may still have some life in it? I’ve seen professional (e.g. Suckling) tasting notes of a 1963 Lopez Tondonia Blanco Gran Reserva, but it doesn’t appear to have ever been for sale(?). Anyone have insights into a dry wine from 1963 that may be out there and enjoyable?

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I had a 1963 Louis Martini “California Mountain” Cabernet Sauvignon a while back that was absolutely stunning. One of the best wine experiences I’ve had. In fact, the seller had two bottles and, as soon as I finished this first bottle, I immediately bought a second. I still have it in my cellar. I’ve been waiting for the perfect time to pop it, but have been hesitant bc I worry that it will inevitably be a disappointment compared to the first.

Here is my tasting note from CellarTracker along with a few pics: https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=282831&searchId=DA1C70F3%23selected%253DW9446_1_Kabe23605fc2079c2a8350442dc100b96

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Thanks for the two posts. My wife’s birth year is ‘63, but she’s never liked port. When I open ‘63s on her birthday, she won’t even try a sip. Maybe I should try to track down some ‘63 Napa Cabs

4

Just a quick update, I email Lopez de Heredia and according to them the wine was never produced, so the source of this tasting note: R. Lopez de Heredia Viña Tondonia Rioja Gran Reserva Blanco Rioja 1963JamesSuckling.com (I’m not a subscriber so can’t see the details only the existence) are very questionable

5

There a few of these on Winebid with OK CT notes.

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A few mere clues (Port to be searched, of course) :
Muscat de Samos Jarousse spécial exposition 1963 : 18/20 (in 2007)
Montilla-Moriles - Toro Albala - Don PX Reserva Electrico double étiquette 1963 : 17/20 (in 2003)

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Merci Laurent

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I´ve had 2-3 good 1963 Rieslings (Mosel Auslese) and a sound Barolo (forgot the producer) … but nothing “great” …

1963 was a good vintage in Austria for off-dry whites … a TBA from Rust/Burgenland/Austria 0.375 was excellent a few years ago … but those are almost impossible to find now …

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Nothing to fancy about in my very weak palmares (and I was born in 1960 !).

10

Hill of Grace 1963 was the mutt’s nuts when I tried it.

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'63 Grange beautifully stored. First of the 100% Shiraz Granges other than early 50s. I bet Matthew’s Hill of Grace was stunning too.

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I’ve had a couple 63 DRC that were surprisingly good; I’m not sure I’d seek them out, though.

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Looks like 63 Grange is about 5300…a bitttt out of my range [cheers.gif]

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Expensive but outstanding…

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tasting note from our own Otto Forsberg.


1963 Aliança Bairrada Garrafeira Particular - Portugal, Beiras, Bairrada (13.1.2021)
12,5% alcohol.

Medium-deep lemon-yellow to pale golden color; remarkably youthful for a white almost 60 years old! The nose feels developed and rather tertiary yet not particularly old with wonderfully complex aromas of roasted nuts, caramel, some mushroomy tones, a little bit of honeydew melon, light nuanced of dried exotic fruits and a hint of honeycomb. Truly a captivating bouquet, not unlike a combination of aged white Burgundy and a more tropical white. The wine feels medium-bodied, beautifully evolved and rather concentrated on the palate with complex, dry flavors of chopped nuts, stony minerality, dried yellow fruits, some beeswax, a little bit of ripe citrus fruits, light savory woody tones, a hint of burnt sugar bitterness and a touch of tangy salinity. The firm, high acidity keeps the overall feel wonderfully firm, balanced and quite structured, even though the mouthfeel shows some oily viscosity and sense of weight. The finish is dry, evolved and remarkably long with very complex flavors of chopped nuts, bruised apples, some saline tones, a little bit of stony minerality, light savory woody tones, fruity hints of tart pomelo and sweeter dried fruits and a touch of mushroomy funk.

An extraordinary, remarkably balanced and exceptionally complex wine that is in no way as old as I anticipated. The wine certainly feels quite mature, but more like how a white wine would be at 20 to 30 years of age; the color is remarkably pale and not showing any signs of age (actually the wine was lighter in color than the 1994 Arinto that was tasted alongside) and although both the nose and the taste are undeniably very evolved, they don’t feel like the wine would’ve gone downhill one inch yet. Most likely the wine is at its plateau of maturity, has been there for quite some time, and will continue to be there for some time more. Although the wine feels slightly more tropical than your typical Burgundy, if somebody poured me this wine blind and said this was old Grand Cru Burgundy, I would have no reason to suspect this wasn’t the case - this wine is all you could ask for an aged white Burgundy, at the fraction of the price. Simply fantastic. At 39,50€ this is a steal.
(95 pts.)

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https://www.wineberserkers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1633449#p1633449

i bought this bottle from Berns in Tampa. i found an unopened case of this wine in the warehouse across the road and they let me keep a bottle for next to nothing. It is probably still there

Brodie

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That looks perfect. Unfortunately it seems unlikely to find Otto’s bottle stateside

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I’m told the 1963 Herdade do Mouchao from the Alentejo is one of the finest Portugese wines of all time.

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This would be a great one to find. There’s a bottle available for sale in portugal at the moment, but even given the age, the bottle condition looks a little rough

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This would be a great one to find. There’s a bottle available for sale in portugal at the moment, but even given the age, the bottle condition looks a little rough

Any table wine almost 60 years old will be a crap shoot. Especially from an unheralded vintage such as 1963. If you want more of a guarantee, you’d have to go with Port.