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I think we should appropriately acknowledge Bertie3000’s ability to be the closest to all the Ports poured blind at the BBR tasting. I nailed every one of the 67 Pall Mall Port tasting. I may have been helped by the placemat which said what each wine contained, but I’m certain I would have identifi...

Bertie3000 wrote: ↑10:52 Fri 01 Dec 2023 I attended the BBR tasting.

Sounds like a very nice evening!

I would hope that I would have recognized the 1994 Vesuvio. It's such a lovely Port. Well done earning the bottle of 1994 Dow!

There is also now (as of 2022) the new Very Very Old Port category, which I believe is intended for bottles that are 80+ years old. I haven't seen that regulation, though, so am not sure about the exact age required for something to be labeled VVO. Here you go! https://files.diariodarepublica.pt/2s...

The Quevedo White was incorrectly described in the original list in the first post, but now updated. It’s actually the “Very Old…” so amendment required to placemats. To be fair, it depends whether you're looking at the box or the label. It is really "Quevedo 1970 white", but due to regul...

jdaw1 wrote: ↑21:35 Wed 22 Nov 2023 The draft of the placemats has been updated in accordance with my understanding of Glenn’s guidance. Glenn: please re-inspect and comment.

I think that covers it!

The tasting will now also include the Taylor VVO Coronation Edition. Assuming 12 attendees this means £220 per head for the wines. I'm still awaiting confirmation of the 16th May date from B&F, but I'm assuming this is OK so could people confirm availability for this please (if you haven't alre...

Roy is doing his usual review of the 2021 vintage starting next week (IIRC) with the plan being to release his notes in the FTLOP newsletter by the end of the year. I've seen a too-distant-to-see-details picture and it looks like there are lots of bottles. Granted the picture was both 2020 and 2021,...

New abbreviation? "TK" for the Single Harvest Tawnies from 1962 to 1971 that Taylor purchased from Krohn?

(only half serious)

Just to be explicit about it, I confirm for the 16th!

jdaw1 wrote: ↑20:35 Mon 20 Nov 2023

Andy Velebil wrote: ↑14:43 Mon 20 Nov 2023Are you able to wipe off the markings and reuse them?

Yes, with water and soap. This has been tested.

Writing over it with a dry erase marker, then erasing the dry erase with a dry cloth, should also work.

nac wrote: ↑15:33 Mon 20 Nov 2023 Subject to confirmation by B&F re room availabilty, this is going to be Thursday 16th May.

Most excellent, I look forward to it!

I note that 1982 Croft was apparently so horrible that it was expunged from the voting records.

(Yes, yes, I understand that it was a last-minute add. It's still funny.)

I give them some time in bottle before doing my verticals - the one honoring GST 21 will be early next year, probably in March. I find that very recently bottled Ports change rather dramatically over their first year in bottle, and prefer to taste them after that initial change has mostly settled do...

Since this has revived, I would love to attend if held the week that I'm in London for the Graham vertical. Those dates would be roughly May 12-16, 2024. I could probably change either end of that by +/- one day if truly necessary, most easily at the beginning. (Current plan is to fly to London on F...

Bottle #1: pop and pour at tasting, no decant. Bottle #2: splash decant into decanter then immediately return to the bottle. Travel to tasting later. Bottle #3: normal decant into decanter, return to bottle after an appropriate amount of time to travel to tasting. Bottle #4: normal decant into deca...

(yes, this statement could have playful consequences) Ahem. 4 identical bottles, preferably from the same case to ensure the same provenance. Bottle #1: pop and pour at tasting, no decant. Bottle #2: splash decant into decanter then immediately return to the bottle. Travel to tasting later. Bottle ...

Mike J. W. wrote: ↑01:29 Thu 02 Nov 2023

Alex Bridgeman wrote: ↑23:40 Wed 01 Nov 2023 Mike, don’t get sucked in to Glenn’s plan. He’s just trying to get you to set up a “Best of the Eighties” tasting that he can come to.

Lol. He's devious that way is he?

I can neither confirm nor deny this accusation.

I was about to email Glenn about perhaps getting together at some point next month, until Alex specifically mentioned the month of May. Yes, I know it's in the title, but what can I say.... The week after this tasting I will be in Portugal for a private "harvest tour" so we might still be...

Yeah that's an excellent price for a superb Port. Its only real rival from the 1980s in my opinion is 1987 Taylor Vargellas, and if you want to stretch a bit then maybe 1985 Graham. For an otherwise down decade for TFP, the 1985 Fonseca and the 1987 Vargellas are beautiful. The 1980 Dow is very goo...

I cannot change weeks seeing as I'm planning a 2-week vacation around this tasting. I plan to arrive in London on Saturday or Sunday the 11th or 12th, then head to Portugal on Thursday or Friday the 16h or 17th for a tour from Sunday to Sunday (19-26).

Yeah that's an excellent price for a superb Port. Its only real rival from the 1980s in my opinion is 1987 Taylor Vargellas, and if you want to stretch a bit then maybe 1985 Graham. For an otherwise down decade for TFP, the 1985 Fonseca and the 1987 Vargellas are beautiful.

Clearly they are using boats as floating cellars.

PM sent.

I rejoice at Glenn’s different experience and vote against including it in the line-up. I would send you one of mine if I could. I'm about halfway through a case and cannot recall any of them showing VA, which is something (unlike TCA) to which I am usually very sensitive. But still... not splendid...

That phenomenon has been referred to by various names. The one that I use is the "teenage funk" because in the past it tended to be most obvious when the Ports were in their teens. They'd come out of it right around 20 or 21 years old, which is one of many reasons that people used to do ho...