NV Quinta de la Rosa 30 year old Tawny Port Portugal 500 ml

As the highest-scoring 30 Year Old Port in the Wine Advocate’s history, Quinta de la Rosa’s version was described as “a wonderful 30 that touches all the bases, then slides into home to score,” before the venerable publication concluded, “It does nothing wrong and everything well.”

Spicy, complex, and wonderfully fresh given its maturity, it’s as “brilliant” as it was hailed in its breathless 95-point review. And just as collectible: A mere 56 cases of this 30 Year Old Tawny were imported, so we shored up as much as we could—at $20 off its regular $90 price.

Shimmering with deep garnet and ruby reflections, this Quinta de la Rosa 30 Year Tawny bursts into a jubilee of aromas, punctuated with layers of dried orange peel, Chinese five-spice, and cherry compote. The palate is unlike any other we’ve come across, stupendous with complexity and oozing with blackberry and cherry cobbler, cinnamon spice, clove, and steeped rose petal. 

The intensity is amplified with a kiss of acidity, proving as otherworldly as its never-ending finish. It’s a glorious port now, but it will live up to its name with the decades of life this 30 still has ahead of it. 

Located 60 miles inland from Porto, Quinta de la Rosa is set in the heart of the Alto Douro, with steep terraced vineyards that give the impression of tumbling into the river below. The estate has been in the Bergqvist family since 1906, and though they were the first growers to produce a Single Quinta port from La Rosa's grapes, the family was known exclusively for their farming expertise—selling all their grapes to bigger bodegas like Croft and Sandeman. 

In 1988, enterprising third-generation proprietor Sophia Bergqvist convinced her father, Tim, to focus exclusively on bottling their own ports under the Quinta de la Rosa name. Their 30-year ascent to the top of the Douro game is celebrated in this anniversary Tawny, launched in 2018. 

The Bergqvist family is now known as a pioneer of the Douro. As farmers first, the terroir-driven quality of Quinta de la Rosa’s red wines has been credited with helping put the region on the map for serious oenophiles.

The 2002 hiring of Jorge Moreira (a mentee of Dirk Niepoort and now one of the most respected wine makers in Portugal) has only further established the estate’s reputation. Moreira’s obsessive focus on coaxing maximum minerality out of its schist soils is second only to his advocacy of old, native Portuguese varieties—like the Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesa, Tinta Barroca, and Tinta Roriz that went into this 30. 

For this special commemorative bottling, Moreira blended the bodega’s top quality ports which had been held back each year, with an average age of thirty years. Every vintage the grapes were picked by hand and trod by foot in granite vats called lagares. It simply doesn’t get more traditional. 

Vintage Port’s richness can be imposing, and exceptional patience in the cellar is required, but even the normally reticent English critic Jancis Robinson said this 30 Year Old Tawny is already “capable of giving enormous pleasure,” in her uncharacteristically glowing review. Our perfect provenance ensures its immediate versatility, making this Quinta de la Rosa ideal for holidays and special occasions, though it’s a perfect cause for celebration in its own right.