What is wrong with Quarles Harris?

Post by **jdaw1** » 20:18 Tue 19 Feb 2008

The website of the Symington Family Estates lists eight port names, seven of which have a link to that brand’s website (Graham’s, Warre’s, Dow’s, Smith Woodhouse, Quinta do Vesuvio, Gould Campbell, and Martinez), and one of which that doesn’t have its own website (Quarles Harris). Is QH being deliberately snubbed? Is the brand being allowed to wither for some reason? Why no QH website?

Post by **DRT** » 02:19 Wed 20 Feb 2008

Is it a discontinued brand?

Post by **jdaw1** » 02:53 Wed 20 Feb 2008

Quarles Harris 2003 is available at Nickolls & Perks and at Garrafeira Nacional. So if discontinued, very recently so.

RonnieRoots · Post by **RonnieRoots** » 08:13 Wed 20 Feb 2008

Derek T. wrote:Is it a discontinued brand?

No, as far as I know, it never had a website of its own. Don't know the reason for that. Probably because it's a low key brand, in which the Symington's don't put a lot of marketing effort.

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 11:55 Wed 20 Feb 2008

For a long time QH has been firmly at the bottom of the Symington list of port houses, and until recently was the company name in the small print on products such as Tesco own brand vintage port.

As far as I can make out, the Syms blend a respectable wine for QH labelled product, using the stocks available to them at the time - but do not saddle themselves with a house style for the brand.

Tom

Post by **DRT** » 00:30 Sat 23 Feb 2008

I do find this odd. I believe that all of the Symington brands use the same web designer and hosting arrangement, all of the brands being consolidated under their main site http://www.thevintageportsite.co.uk

I can't imagine it would be too much effort to create a QH site by copying and re-branding some of the pages from one of their other sites and adding different content. When they have gone to the trouble of creating sites dedicated to every other brand, why not QH? Doesn't make sense to me.

Derek

Post by **jdaw1** » 00:32 Sat 23 Feb 2008

Derek T. wrote:When they have gone to the trouble of creating sites dedicated to every other brand, why not QH?

jdaw1 wrote:Gould Campbell

GC’s site comprises only a few pages under SW.

Post by **DRT** » 00:39 Sat 23 Feb 2008

jdaw1 wrote:
Derek T. wrote:When they have gone to the trouble of creating sites dedicated to every other brand, why not QH?
jdaw1 wrote:Gould Campbell
GC’s site comprises only a few pages under SW.

Precisely. Why not do the same for QH. No more than 3 or 4 days effort at most with no maintenance required.

Derek

Post by **DRT** » 00:41 Sat 23 Feb 2008

And it would cost peanuts to have these reside on meaningfull urls.

Seems daft not to.

Derek

Post by **jdaw1** » 00:42 Sat 23 Feb 2008

I agree. Hence my question.

Post by **DRT** » 00:44 Sat 23 Feb 2008

Does anyone here know which of the Symington family owns/runs QH?

Do they have a Quinta or is it just a brand used for wines blended from bought-in grapes?

Derek

Post by **jdaw1** » 00:49 Sat 23 Feb 2008

uncle tom wrote:As far as I can make out, the Syms blend a respectable wine for QH labelled product, using the stocks available to them at the time - but do not saddle themselves with a house style for the brand.

Post by **DRT** » 00:58 Sat 23 Feb 2008

That doesn't really answer the question, or, it doesn't answer the question I meant to ask.

Is QH a proper port house with property, its own grapes, its own winery, its own lodges in VNG etc or is it just a brand?

Derek

Post by **Alex Bridgeman** » 10:04 Sat 23 Feb 2008

I don't have my books with me, but I don't recall ever reading about a Quinta being associated with the QH label. From this, I would presume that it is a label that relies on grapes sourced from external vineyards. However, my understanding is that such arrangements are usually built around long term relationships and so a house style tends to develop by default, if not intent.

RonnieRoots · Post by **RonnieRoots** » 11:13 Sat 23 Feb 2008

I found this in "Port & the Douro" (Richard Mayson):

The company has no vineyards of its own and is principally a winemaking operation whose purpose is to supply the French market. At the upper end of the spectrum, Quarles Harris produces some fine vintage ports which are well made and well priced.

Post by **Alex Bridgeman** » 13:19 Sat 23 Feb 2008

QH vintage ports shouldn't be too lightly dismissed. Although they are not top tier, they are generally good value for money.

When I was living in Belgium in the mid-nineties my nearest supermarket used to stock a very good range of wines (first growth claret down) and ports (VP and down). Often the remnants from large stock lines were dumped into clearance bins and I still clearly remember the day I found a bottle of Latour 1980, 2 bottles of 1989 Yquem and 6 bottles of QH 1977 - all for £10 a bottle!

I drank quite a lot of QH port while I was in Belgium and grew quite attached to it. I still enjoy QH on the odd occasion that I drink one and I would recommend that they should not be overlooked or dismissed without tasting.

Or, just pass them on to me!

Alex

Andy Velebil · Post by **Andy Velebil** » 17:12 Sat 23 Feb 2008

Alex is right, I've had the QH 1977 and its a pretty darn good bottle. Don't write them off until you've tried them.

SD · Post by SD » 17:25 Mon 25 Feb 2008

Locally in Trader Joe's are several Quarles Harris ports. Earlier posts mentioned Quarles Harris as a supermarket brand and it seems that the Symington's are positioning the brand that way. It is their low end.

I doubt we will ever see a high quality port like the 1977 Quarles Harris again. Quality port will go into another Syminton brand.

But the Symington's should have a web site for the brand. Even if it is low end, it may be an introductory port for many people because of the price. The port trade always needs to educate its consumers.

RonnieRoots · Post by **RonnieRoots** » 20:52 Mon 25 Feb 2008

Although you may find it in supermarkets, I don't think it is principally a low end brand. Warre's is in supermarkets as well. No one would call that low end...

Newer vintages of Quarles Harris are still good and perfect value for money. See my TN of the 2000 here.

g-man · Post by **g-man** » 21:12 Mon 25 Feb 2008

RonnieRoots wrote:Although you may find it in supermarkets, I don't think it is principally a low end brand. Warre's is in supermarkets as well. No one would call that low end...

Newer vintages of Quarles Harris are still good and perfect value for money. See my TN of the 2000 here.

I thought the original intention of warres was to be the "poor man's" port?

Conky · Post by **Conky** » 21:29 Mon 25 Feb 2008

g-man wrote:I thought the original intention of warres was to be the "poor man's" port?

G-Man,

or anyone else for that matter, does anyone know that story about Warres being a poor mans Port? Thats flown under my Radar, if true, but I'm willing to learn?

Alan

g-man · Post by **g-man** » 21:51 Mon 25 Feb 2008

I've heard it in passing at a pub in london some 7 years back and it just stuck, I have no idea on the truth of such statement =(

Conky · Post by **Conky** » 21:57 Mon 25 Feb 2008

Fair enough, we'll see if anyone else knows if there's any truth behind it.

Post by **DRT** » 22:20 Mon 25 Feb 2008

The more common meaning of the term Poor Man's Vintage Port applies to the Crusted Port style.

I have never heard of this term being applied to Warre's and would suggest that either the person who said it in the pub didn't know anything about port or, as may be more likely, g-man was slightly overtired and emotional at the time and has turned more than one story into a well known legend

Derek

g-man · Post by **g-man** » 23:10 Mon 25 Feb 2008

Derek T. wrote:The more common meaning of the term Poor Man's Vintage Port applies to the Crusted Port style.

I have never heard of this term being applied to Warre's and would suggest that either the person who said it in the pub didn't know anything about port or, as may be more likely, g-man was slightly overtired and emotional at the time and has turned more than one story into a well known legend

Derek

a few pints + a pitcher of red bull vodka always leads to a few legendary stories

Post by **DRT** » 23:14 Mon 25 Feb 2008

Post by **Alex Bridgeman** » 07:27 Tue 26 Feb 2008

I think there have been some serious points made here. Quarles Harris is, without doubt in my mind, one of the lesser ports in the Symington's portfolio. That said, I have had a few of their ports from the 70s and 80s and would be delighted to have them again. These would be great ports to use to introduce people to the world of vintage port - think of them as being on a par with Morgan Brothers with the 77QH being the quality equivalent to the 91 Morgan. Don't buy QH if you want a blockbuster but if you see their Vintage Ports for a good price in Trader Joe then buy all you can afford for delicious everyday drinking.

That said, I also agree that they should have their own website.

I read Suckling's book over the weekend to see what he said about QH. According to him, they do not have any particular affiliation to specific growers but are blended to a house style using grapes sourced mainly from the Rio Torto region of the Douro.

Post by **DRT** » 08:12 Tue 26 Feb 2008

Alex,

I agree. I have just checked the 4 QH TNs on this website, 2 of which were my own, and there isn't a bad report amongst them.

I recall drinking QH many times before as it used to be one of the brands stocked by Costco, which was once my single source of VP. I don't recall which vintages but I am talking about the early 90s so I would imagine they were from the late 70's and early 80's and I can't remember ever having a bad one.

I would say that the direct answer to the question in the title of this thread is "Nothing, apart from the fact they don't yet have a website"

Derek

SushiNorth · Post by **SushiNorth** » 17:34 Tue 26 Feb 2008

They have it at Trader Joe's, eh? I'll have to stop by one and see what I can find. (This has been a very naughty port week, i'm up by 14 bottles and it's not over yet!)

Post by **DRT** » 23:20 Fri 29 Feb 2008

SushiNorth wrote:This has been a very naughty port week, i'm up by 14 bottles and it's not over yet!

Is that buying or drinking?

Derek

SushiNorth · Post by **SushiNorth** » 15:39 Mon 07 Apr 2008

Derek T. wrote:
SushiNorth wrote:This has been a very naughty port week, i'm up by 14 bottles and it's not over yet!
Is that buying or drinking?

Just buying, and i promised myself unless it was more 03 croft or 83/85, i wouldn't buy any more port for a while. But, as it happens, i passed Trader Joes in NYC yesterday and walked out with 3 QH LBV 2000's. $13 a pop.

If nothing else, they'll be good for newbies. But if someone has 2000 VP from them, I'll have one or two left for a side-by-side down the road.

ThePortForum.com