Was that in the States? The last time I bought Port in the U.S. it was less than half the price it is i Canada.
And don’t get me started on cigar taxes. I bought a box of cigars in the U.S. for about $125 that cost almost $400 here.
Yeah, here in Oregon at our local grocery store.
We had an amazing 1977 Krohn Colheita after Thanksgiving dinner, older than all but 4 people at the table. That’s probably the best port I’ve ever had, wonderfully smooth and subtle, but flavorful and light. The cork dissolved on removal so we had to finish the bottle.
Ok do NOT just grab any bottle that says port on it.
As far as being to sweet to be a dinner wine, the Family Christmas Gathering is a rather informal event regarding food. It will be set out buffet style and people will eat or notnas and when they want, no sit down meal time or anything like that. So a sweet dessert wine would actually probably fit right in and be just fine I think
Remember that port is also a fortified wine, so the alcohol content is higher than regular wine. Think before you drink.
I got on a Calvados kick about a year ago - I think it’s time to go back to port at least until I get bored with that again 
For my 50th birthday, my wife found a bottle of 1967 Kopke Colheita. It was very, very good.
We did 10 days in Portugal earlier this year in a variety of wine regions, ending in Porto. If you have the chance, go. I find Porto to be an absolutely charming city, and day trips out into the Douro Valley are easy to arrange (or spend a few days out there). The Douro is stunningly beautiful, and seeing the conditions under which the wine grapes are grown gives me an even greater appreciation for the beverage.
Pro tip: if you are in a pretty decent restaurant, ask for a glass of dessert wine with an appropriate appetizer (foie gras with Tokaji, or port with roasted bone marrow, for example), and the sommelier will likely come over to your table to find out who the worldly, knowledgeable, hoopy frood is who made such a pairing. 
Ok so I checked the state liquor store website and they have several varieties I would have avoided just based on price(several varieties of something called Fairbanks, a style not a label)
They list Dows and Grahams and Cockburns, but how about Foncesca bin 27 or Quinta Do Noval, Sandeman or Hardy Whiskers Blake. These are all within the same price range with each other
Fonseca, Quinta do Noval, and Sandeman are reputable labels. I’ve not heard of the other one.
Fairbanks is a Gallo product, from the Central Valley of California. Inexpensive and sweet. Not worth your time.
Fonseca Bin 27 is a Vintage Character Port, like Graham’s Six Grapes. “Vintage Port” is a different critter. Only made in certain great years (the ‘vintages’), it’s expensive and meant to be cellared for a long time. 21 years is typical. ‘Vintage character’ is, in the words of the UK merchant Berry Bros and Rudd:
So, as I pointed out upthread, if you wanted a clue about a particular Port House’s style of winemaking, you could try their vintage character wine, and save yourself the now 100 dollar a bottle and up cost for the vintage port. All of the others you mentioned are Portuguese producers, with the exception of the Hardy’s, which is Australian. I’ve not had it, but I imagine it’s competent. It’s a tawny-style.
So long as it isn’t the only wine on the table, I think you’re OK. People may find the ridiculously sweet nature of Port to be off putting before or during a meal. I find tawnies to taste less sweet than many rubies, if that helps.
Are you also going to discover Starboard? 
Fore and Aft?
Bow and Stern?
Foncesca bin 27 is a solid choice and a really good value.
It’s “Fonseca”, not “Foncesca”.
I got a bottle of Tokaji to serve when we watched the first episode of the HBO His Dark Materials adaptation, since a decanter of it features in the first chapter of the book. It was DELICIOUS. It’s a botrytis wine from Hungary. Mmm.
Aye Mac when yur a sailor long put out to sea, nothing is ever as sweet as port and a bit of leave
Tokaji is liquid happiness.
Try it with seared foie gras sometime (or even a good-quality paté de foie gras). They are a match made in heaven.
At the snobby store to pick-up a few ingredients, I noticed a Taylor Fladgate 30 year on 25% off special. I seriously considered pulling the trigger to see what that kind of aging will do. But decided on second thought, best case is I spend a good amount of money on something I don’t find worth it, worst case is i do find it worth it, and spend a whole shitload of money in the coming years.
All the “30 year” really means is that there is a percentage of that vintage in the batch, not that the entire bottle was aged 30 years. Still, it’s likely to be an excellent port.