1961 Wine and Port Vintage
Vintage Summary and Recommendations: Welcome to Vintage Wine and Port's 1961 wine page. Read on for our summary of the 1961 vintage, our top recommendations and region reports. Scroll down to see all of our wines currently available. If you cannot find what you are looking for please call us on 01425 837177 or Contact Us. We would love to help you with your wine choice!
The 1961 vintage enjoyed some extraordinary moments, particularly in France. For Bordeaux, the vintage was legendary with great wines produced in Pessac-Léognan, Pauillac, Saint-Julien, Pomerol and – although less uniform – Margaux. However, as is often the case when conditions are ripe for perfect Bordeaux, the year was not so conducive for the sweet wines of Sauternes, and they tended to be more of a mixed bag. The year was also excellent for both Burgundy and Beaujolais, as well as Champagne, the Rhône and the Loire Valley. Although information is limited for Alsace, what does exist suggests it was very good. Outside of France, the vintages for both Piedmont and Tuscany were excellent and the best Barolo should still be drinking well now.
Our Wine Expert currently recommends the following wines for this year:
This Year in History: Fun Fact: The farthing coin, used since the thirteenth century, ceases to be legal tender in the United Kingdom.
Eurovision Winner: Luxembourg with the song "Nous Les Amoureux"
Top Grossing Movie: 101 Dalmations
Bordeaux: This is one of the legendary vintages of the century. Although most of the 1961 wines are now fading slowly, the top examples continue to shine through offering concentrated, ripe fruit with amazing bouquets. The crop was tiny and there are very few examples available. Provided the bottles have been stored correctly these wines should last for another few years. 1961 wines make and incredible 64 year old wine gift for a birthday or anniversary.
Italian: In Italy, 1961 is considered to be one of the greatest vintages of the 20th century. The wines from Piedmont (Barolo, Barbaresco and Barbera) and Tuscany (Chianti, Brunello) are outstanding. Now fully mature these wines, with careful cellaring, will still keep for many years to come.
Portugal: While not generally a declared year, the hot weather produced some concentrated ports in 1961. The harvest started in extremely hot conditions at the river quinta in early September, progressing in other areas until the end of the month making it a long, drawn out vintage. The picking required a very rigorous selection which entailed picking out the burnt and imperfect grapes from the bunches before putting them in the baskets. This led to a small harvest, making bottles from this year quite rare. Making a great wine gift for any birthday or anniversary, the 1961 ports produced are still drinking well today.
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41 products found.
Barolo, 1961
Enrico Serafino Riserva
1961 Enrico Serafino Barolo Riserva
Vintage & Background
The 1961 vintage in Piedmont is well-regarded among Barolo lovers. Warm sun, good ripeness, and favourable autumn weather gave many of the wines from that year excellent ageing potential. Enrico Serafino, a traditional producer in Barolo, has used Nebbiolo in its Riserva to show off the best characteristics of the grape in a vintage that has developed well over time.
Appearance & Nose
In mature form, this wine often displays a tawny garnet colour at the edges, with a still-deep ruby centre (depending on how well it’s been stored). …
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Price: £189.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Barolo, 1961
Marchesi di Barolo
Marchesi di Barolo 1961 Barolo
Vintage & Background
1961 is widely considered one of the great Barolo vintages. Warm growing conditions and late harvest allowed Nebbiolo to ripen fully, giving wines with both structure and longevity. Marchesi di Barolo, known for traditional style, made wines in 1961 that have aged into elegance while retaining hallmark Barolo tension.
Appearance & Nose
The colour in bottles that have been well stored tends to be a garnet red, often with ruby tones still visible, especially toward the centre, and slightly more tawny or brick hues at the rim. …
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Price: £179.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Barolo, 1961
Pin Bologna - Riserva
Barolo DOCG 1961 “Pin Bologna” Riserva
Vintage & Background
1961 is widely acknowledged as one of the standout Barolo vintages of the 20th century. It saw conditions that allowed Nebbiolo to ripen fully, giving power, structure, and great ageing ability. The “Riserva” or reserve designation would imply longer ageing or special selection. The “Pin Bologna – Rocchetta Tanaro” label suggests a specific vineyard or cooperative origin in the Piedmont region.
Appearance & Nose
In a bottle stored well, expect a mature wine with a garnet centre and rim edging into tawny or brick-coloured hues. …
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Price: £169.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Bordeaux, 1961
Delor
Bordeaux, in the south-west of France, needs little introduction to anyone with an interest in wine. One of the world's most prolific wine regions, it also manages to rank among the most famous and prestigious. The secrets of Bordeaux's wine success (other than magical Bordeaux Blend) are its three trump cards: diversity, quality and quantity. The majority of Bordeaux wines are the dry, medium-bodied reds that made the region famous.
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Price: £99.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Chateau Doisy-Vedrines, 1961
Barsac
Sweet White Wine
Doisy-Védrines is the largest of the three Doisy vineyards in Barsac (the other two are Doisy-Daëne and Doisy-Dubroca) that started to achieve acclaim in the early 19th century and was named a Second Growth in the Classicfication of 1955. This is a vintage that produced hard, firm wines even in Sauternes, wines that required decades of cellaring.
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Price: £265.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Chateau Gilette, 1961
Creme de Tete, Sauternes
The 1961 Chateau Gilette is a beautiful Sauternes dessert wine still has a wonderful golden colour. It tastes young and vibrant, with good acidity and finish.
Château Gilette is a Bordeaux wine estate located in the Sauternes appellation within the Bordeaux region of France. It is renowned for producing sweet white wines, particularly Sauternes, which are made from Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscadelle grapes affected by noble rot. Noble rot, or botrytis cinerea, is a beneficial fungus that concentrates the sugars and flavors in the grapes, resulting in luscious and complex sweet wines. …
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Price: £349.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Chateau Giscours, 1961
Margaux 3rd Growth Classification
The 1961 Château Giscours is a notable vintage from this esteemed Third Growth estate in the Margaux appellation of Bordeaux. The 1961 vintage is often regarded as one of the finest in Bordeaux's history, producing wines with remarkable depth and longevity.
Tasting Notes:
Aroma: The bouquet reveals complex aromas of earth, forest floor, truffle, smoke, blackberry, cigar box, spice, and ash.
Palate: Full-bodied and concentrated, with flavors of black cherry, though some tasters have noted a tart cranberry sensation in the finish.
Critical Acclaim:
Vinous: Awarded 96 points, describing it as a hidden gem of the vintage, with a magnificent bouquet of blackberry, estuary mudflats, seaweed, and a hint of bay. …
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Price: £350.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Chateau La Croix de Gay, 1961
Pomerol
The 1961 Château La Croix de Gay from Pomerol is an exceptionally rare and precious bottle from what is widely regarded as one of the greatest Bordeaux vintages of the 20th century. The 1961 harvest was small in quantity but extraordinary in quality, producing wines of immense concentration, richness, and longevity. In Pomerol—home to some of the most seductive and long-lived Merlot-based wines—this vintage reached legendary status, and La Croix de Gay, with its deep gravel and clay soils, crafted a wine of remarkable depth, perfume, and elegance.
In the glass, it shows a deep brick-red core with a tawny rim, a testament to over six decades of graceful ageing. …
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Price: £189.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Chateau L'Hermitage, 1961
St Emilion
The 1961 Château L’Hermitage from Saint-Émilion is a remarkable rarity from what is considered one of the most legendary Bordeaux vintages of the 20th century. The 1961 harvest was famously small in quantity yet astonishing in quality, producing wines of unparalleled concentration, balance, and longevity. In Saint-Émilion, the Merlot-dominated blends thrived, benefiting from the vintage’s perfect growing conditions to create wines of depth, richness, and extraordinary ageing potential—qualities that this Château L’Hermitage showcases beautifully after more than six decades.
In the glass, it reveals a mature brick-red hue with tawny highlights, an elegant testament to its long evolution. …
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Price: £345.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Graham's Port, 1961
Malvedos Crusted Port
Unlabelled
In neck
A very rare single quinta crusted port from Graham's.
Graham's owns Quinta dos Malvedos an historic estate in a prime location. In the past their estate ports was produced this Crusted, an unusual and unique traditional Port wine style. Port Crusted is a batch of full-bodied wines that age in large wooden casks, two years for this Grahams, then are bottled unfiltered and remain in the cellar for a few years before being released to the market.
Learn more about Graham’s
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Price: £485.00
Stock: Out of Stock
Taylor Fladgate, 1961
Colheita Single Harvest Port
Includes Taylor's oak gift box
Taylor’s has an extensive and enviable library of very old Ports and this very limited 60 year old Single Harvest Port which represents the cream of their aged reserves.
Only 3,000 bottles of this phenomenal Port have been released. Nestled in a beautifully illustrated box, we think this limited-edition Port is the ultimate 60th anniversary gift. Or, with its fabulously festive flavour profile, it may well be the perfect Christmas Port.
The cool Taylor’s Cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia are home to one of the most extensive collections of very old Port casks anywhere in the world. Tucked away are a selection of Single Harvest Ports with an immense capacity to age and develop. …
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Price: £365.00
Stock: Out of Stock