The Fladgate Partnership Vinhos S.A. was formed in 2001 when Taylor Fonseca Vinhos S.A. (see taylor’s and fonseca) purchased croft and Delaforce (subsequently sold) from diageo. The group, whose name was inspired by Taylor’s full name—Taylor, Fladgate, & Yeatman—remains family owned and is run by descendants of the Yeatman family. In 2014 it had 631 ha/1,558 acres of properties in the douro Valley with over 1.4 million vines.
Taylor’s vintage port is consistently one of the most admired and longest lived, and its Quinta de Vargellas single-quinta bottling can often be almost as concentrated. Vargellas, Taylor’s best-known property in the remote eastern reaches of the Douro, was acquired in 1893 when it was still suffering from the ravages of phylloxera. This acquisition marked the start of Taylor’s now considerable landowning and farming activities. Quinta de Terra Feita in the Pinhão Valley, which had been supplying port to Taylor’s since the 1890s, was bought in 1974. In 1990, Terra Feita de Cima was added, followed in 1993 by São Xisto next door to Vargellas, which was further extended in 1999. Quinta do Junco was acquired in 1998. In the late 20th century Taylor’s popularized the filtered LBV (late bottled vintage) style of port. In the early 21st century it pioneered the release of special, small-volume releases of luxury ports.
