ThePortForum.com

For example, whilst i knew that the regulation was problematic with usual issues like a bottle of Sercial not having to be exclusively Sercial That's pretty common in the wine industry, actually. In the US the normal limit is that at least 75% must be the as-labeled grape variety, but there are exc...

I bought a copy of Alex Liddell’s (of “Port Wine Quintas of the Douro” fame) book from 2014 called “Madeira: The Mid-Atlantic Wine”, published by Hurst & Co just before Christmas which I finally got around to reading. It is extremely good and I would highly recommend it. It sets out the extremel...

Gosh. I had no idea they kept that brand going for so long. I had thought it had petered out 50+ years ago, although I suppose the declarations post 1963 were rather capricious!

Incidentally, there is a photo of a 2003 floating around on the web. I assume there is no reason for it to be a fake!

Out of idle interest, when was the last TH declaration? I'm afraid that I'm travelling at the moment and so can't consult The Book!

I appreciate that we don’t generally do Port and food tastings, but I have just remembered that the (excellent) Northern-Portuguese chocolate shop called Chocolataria Equador makes a chocolate bar with a Six-Grapes flavoured ganache. It’s quite a similar to their generic dark chocolate and Port bar....

I’m sure I can sort out a standard bottle of the six grapes! Does anyone have a Nº12 Ruby or a Natura Reserve? It feels to me we might do the whole range...

This was one of the first cask samples of VP I tried in Portugal back in 2009-ish. Glad to see it is holding up well!

If I can adopt I would be interested.

Is it planned for this to be a separate event from the Six Grapes one? I’d be keen for this in any event. I think a Noval Black is the only Ruby currently in my possession but can get something else without too much difficulty.

Perhaps a kind moderator could create a 2021 thread so we can all wildly speculate before being proven wrong when the declarations start coming in?

Might also be quite interesting to do a clear out of some of the more premium rubies from smaller / independent places being offered by Portugal Vineyards or something. They’ve got ones by Quinta do Javali, Quinta do Infantado, Quinta da Foz, Blackett, Kranemann, Morgadio da Calçada etc. etc. which ...

Whilst it is a long time since I've drunk it, I though the Malvedos 1992 was a very good Port so that's high praise indeed!

That sounds like fun. Would be keen dependant on date.

Does anyone have an old bottle?

Presumably there are lots of ways of expanding that tasting if necessary.

I also thought the CSR to be perfectly pleasant, better than it used to be. But it pales in comparison with the 6 Grapes (which, in turn, pales in comparison with the Vilha Velha limited edition version). I’m yet to see a bottle of the Six Grapes VV for sale and, indeed, I think the Six Grapes itse...

Do you weight your scores by category? (e.g. judging a VP more exactingly than a Ruby?). I only ask because I think you’ve given >86 to quite a few VPs recently!

I’m still working my way through this bottle and something I’ve noticed is that after 5 days’ decant, it is holding up extremely well. The nose is not very present but in the mouth, I get velvety-smooth simple fruits, with just enough tannins to make it feel like proper Port, and no excess spirit or...

I am staying away for work this week. Last week, I was reasonably prepared and brought some Crusted port; a corkscrew; filter and decanter. But this week, I failed to pack anything and so had to venture out to the nearest Sainsbury’s to see what they had. I wasn’t particularly tempted by a Taylor LB...

I've drunk a few Ramos Pinto VPs but not enough to identify a house style. What would you say it is?

You did like it a LOT more than I did. I rated it at 83 points, but that could just be a stylistic preference. How does that compare to your scores for other young light whites like the Graham’s № 5 or Cockburn? I’m kicking myself that I forgot about this thread and thereby the existence of their l...

Your last paragraph is very interesting and relevant for me. Elizabeth is planning for us to visit Madeira in May 2024 to catch the flower festival and parade. I am planning to pretend to be interested in the flower festival and parade while planning which Madeira producers to visit once the parade...

Somewhat to my surprise, I haven’t tried this before. Not a massive amount of sediment. Impressively deep opaque red in the centre, fading to orange at the edge. On first trying with a couple of hours’ decanting, I wasn’t impressed. However, returning to the remains today, whilst the nose is rather ...

MigSU wrote: ↑11:12 Mon 20 Feb 2023 Tinto de verano!

I had no idea this was a thing, although I suppose Port and Lemon (a shot of ruby port diluted with a fizzy lemon drink) was a popular drink in British pubs in the mid-20th Century.

That’s interesting. I suppose most people who go on a lodge tour doesn’t really have a good idea about what Port is or how it is made and probably won’t drink very much as a result of it. It’s like visiting Lisbon and going to have a shot of ginjinha: the sort of thing many tourists do once as an ex...

Are there any modern cocktail recipes that use this kind of wine as an ingredient? Interesting question. I can’t think of any. The most popular wines for use in cocktails are champagne and other sparkling wines. There are a few which use still white wine (e.g. a kir) and sherries have become popula...

Duque de Braganca is just an older bottling of Dona Antonia. They are allegedly exactly the same Port. I don't recall off the top of my head when they changed the branding, but it was fairly recent. With COVID-related time distortion, "fairly recent" could be up to 5-6 years ago. :lol: I ...