Graham's vertical

[Glenn E.]

I purchased a ready-made Graham's vertical from 1963 through 2007. Since that purchase, 2011 has been declared and I have obtained a 1955 and a 1948. So I would like to extend my vertical back to 1948 inclusive.

Which means I need to pick up a 2011 and... 1960? Was there another general declaration (or just Graham's declaration) between 1948 and 1963?

[djewesbury]

When I saw the title of this thread I thought it was an invitation. Now I am disappointed.

[RAYC]

Not according to VPS.

[Glenn E.]

When I saw the title of this thread I thought it was an invitation.

Some day it will be! But apparently I must first acquire a 1960 and a 2011.

I leave 1945, 1942, 1935, 1927, 1924, 1920, 1917, 1912, 1908, 1904, 1901, 1897, 1896, 1894, 1892, and 1890 to you.

[g-man]

i have 6 of the 1960

sooooooooooooooo that'll be my ticket

[marc j.]

Glenn,

I believe that Graham also declared 1954. Check out Suckling's book, he has TN on it and it is also listed on vintageport.se. If I recall correctly it was a small declaration so finding bottles of it 60 years later is a tad difficult..

[uncle tom]

I believe that Graham also declared 1954

I suspect this is an error by Suckling, and that the .se site lifted some of its data from his book.

There was a 1954 Malvedos, rarely seen, but noted by Broadbent. Although Graham rattled off some consecutive declarations up until 1901, their declaration strategy has been very conservative since.

I have seen no other evidence of a '54 Graham..

[TLW]

I would be delighted to contribute a 2011 magnum (when they arrive at the cellar) in exchange for an invitation!!!!

[Axel P]

Do include the Malvedos 65 as this is a very good Port to enjoy. We did a Malvedos Tasting at the RAF Club some years ago and if you do have all the good stuff for educational reasons do include some Malvedos.

Axel

[marc j.]

I believe that Graham also declared 1954

I suspect this is an error by Suckling, and that the .se site lifted some of its data from his book.

There was a 1954 Malvedos, rarely seen, but noted by Broadbent. Although Graham rattled off some consecutive declarations up until 1901, their declaration strategy has been very conservative since.

I have seen no other evidence of a '54 Graham..

I think you're right. Suckling doesn't list a TN for the 1954 Malvedos, which I know was produced and bottled. Mystery solved!

[jdaw1]

From a draft of a chapter of a book (forthcoming, eventually):

â–º Christopher & Co., Christmas 1960: ‟Christopher’s (Shipped by Graham) 1954”, bottled in England, at 18/6 per bottle.

â–º In a memorandum for the Jesus College Cambridge Cellar Committee dated 10th May 1957, ‟Grahams did not declare a vintage but shipped their 1954 wine under the name of "Grahams Special Vintage"; I have reserved 10 dozen of this.” A later cellar list has the shipper as Dolamore and the price as 17/4.

â–º Brasenose College Oxford served ‟Graham 1954” at the Gaudies of 26 March and 1 October 1971.

â–º Noted in James Suckling (1990), though in the ‟Graham” list rather than in ‟Graham’s Malvedos”.

â–º Michael Broadbent (1980): ‟Graham’s Malvedos”, tasted in 1972 and 1979, who also reports that Graham’s ‟despite my misgivings was selected as Harvey’s ’54”.

â–º In the premises of The Wine Society is an empty bottle bearing an elegant unfussy label in black and a little red writing on white: ‟Crusted Port Wine”, ‟Malvedos”, ‟Vintage 1954”, ‟Bottled 1956”. The Wine Society Numbering Book records the purchase from Reid, Pye & Campbell of ‟Graham 1954 Malvedos”, even assigning it the reference MO. But the only 1954 port ever to appear in a Wine Society catalogue was ‟Quinta Boa Vista, the only wine shipped of this vintage”.

• Some of these refer to ‟Malvedos”, or a variant thereof. Some do not. The use of a Quinta name for junior vintage port was novel in the 1950s, and the authors suspect that some of the English bottlers might have labelled it plain ‟Graham”. If this suspicion is correct, then these were all Malvedos.