ThePortForum.com

I bought half a dozen of these at £4.50 each so not expecting a huge amount from them. Bought simply for cooking and tonight I am having chilli, which I sweeten up with some Port. Turns out that I'd actually bought another bottle, which is my sampler, so still have a nice whole box of this - time to find out of that was £27 well spent.

Well, it's certainly a ruby. Not quite sure why they need to ink Midnight up when this is dark enough. Nose has a lot of dark, sweet fruit with some spearmint in the background. Nice mouthfeel, very rich, but not the massive fruit hit that I was expecting, this could be because it has just come out of the cellar and is still cool. Lots of more herbal notes and the mint has become more like aniseed or fennel. Good bit of tannin at the back, but overall, not very tasty. It's OK but nothing wondrous. Seems fine for cooking and I would not turn it down.

Will give conclusion on use in chilli soon.

Chilli was fine, needs a day in the pot to let the spices through. The port added little more than sweetness.

Is it functional as Port, say, as a "I'll have one before bed" thing, or only suitable for cooking?

DRT wrote:Is it functional as Port, say, as a "I'll have one before bed" thing, or only suitable for cooking?

As I wrote:

I would not turn it down.

I can say that it is functional and would be OK for one before bed as long as you just wanted a nightcap and were not expecting a taste sensation. It has the advantage of not tasting rancid, it is quite pleasant but extravagantly unassuming.

How many different rubies does Dow actually make? And why!?

How many different rubies does Dow actually make? And why!?

Good question. I assume this is a standard Ruby, as opposed to a Reserve Ruby - it gets no mention on Dow's website.

There appears to be Dow 'Fine Ruby', 'Midnight' & 'Master Blend'; but maybe 'Renown' replaces 'Fine Ruby' - I'm not sure..

'Trademark' seems to be their only Ruby Reserve (at least, I can't see the word 'Reserve' on pictures of the labels of the others..)

When it comes to publicising non-vintage products (- and updating their websites..), the Port producers rarely excel.

Compared to the effort of preparing labels, packaging etc. and launching a new product - how hard is it to update a website?

- and how long would it take to post a small note on sites like this?

"Symington Family Estates are pleased to announce.." - etc...

One day maybe...

Tom

At least Trademark; Master Blend; Midnight; Renown and Fine Ruby.

Why? Not a bleeding clue.

Just checked, it says "Dow's Renown Port", all words in different fonts and on different lines, in fact the Dow's logo is at the top. It doesn't even bother to call itself 'Ruby', let alone 'Special' or 'Reserve', so we can now refer to it as "Dow's bog-standard Port".

Changed the title to 'Ruby' from 'Reserve' - should have paid more attention.

KillerB wrote:Why? Not a bleeding clue.

Something tells me that the people at Dow's don't have a clue either.

Something tells me that the people at Dow's don't have a clue either.

I'm sure there is a logic in there somewhere, but where can be hard to work out sometimes..

..what is really odd though is that the producers will read threads like this, no doubt wincing when we get our facts wrong; yet will never jump in to correct the record or explain their rationale - not even a discreet email ..

Very strange.

Tom

KillerB wrote:At least Trademark; Master Blend; Midnight; Renown and Fine Ruby.

Why? Not a bleeding clue.

Just guessing, but all those brands probably pre-date the internet and were intended for different markets.

Why is Dalva marketed as Presidential in the US? Why is Taylor known as Taylor Fladgate? (Okay, not a good question because I know the answer to that one.) The point is that a name that works very well in one market might not be so good in another, and sometimes the reason isn't as obvious as why Chevy had to rename the Nova in Spanish speaking countries.

("no va" means "does not go" in Spanish, or so I've been told.)

Glenn,

All of these brands are available in the UK now and all are newly bottled wines. There must be a reason for it, but it isn't the different names for different markets thing.

Derek

Glenn E. wrote: ... and sometimes the reason isn't as obvious as why Chevy had to rename the Nova in Spanish speaking countries.

("no va" means "does not go" in Spanish, or so I've been told.)

Sadly, an urban myth, it means "will not". Va is "go" in French but "will" in Spanish. Apparently, it was called the "Corsa" in Spain and the rest of Europe, even back in 1983 when it was the Vauxhall Nova in the UK, but obviously under the Opel brand.