ThePortForum.com

A new release from Cockburn: a range of three Ports (a white, tawny and ruby). I think, from their advertising, they are blended for making cocktails. They are apparently only selling them direct at the moment to Portugal and the UK, at £20 or €20 a go.

http://cockburns.com/tails

There isn’t much in the way of concrete technical specification about them. The White is said to be made from high-altitude vines and is a little drier than, presumably, the standard Cockburn White, so I guess it is an off-dry. They say that all three are experimental blends for a new generation of wine-makers.

Trivially, I think the bottles look absolutely fantastic. The Symington group has really upped its graphic design game recently (e.g. the Graham’s № range; the new LBV tubes; the Cockburn Fine White with its embossed label) etc. Long may that continue!

I also like the idea of limited edition Ports. I sometimes worry that any non-single-vintage Port can be made to a lowest common denominator since there is a need to produce it consistently over many years in large quantities. I am accordingly a huge fan of the fact that there are now limited editions of them being produced (e.g. through the Port Club) which means its is possible to try something a bit different.

That said, I do always slightly worry that stuff made for cocktails might be a bit lower-quality than that which is advertised for drinking neat. After-all, the history of cocktails started with an attempt to improve poor quality spirits with ice, sweeteners and bitters. However, I will do my best to down-play my cynicism and see what these are like.

Have ordered one of each, should be delivered within 2 weeks so will share my findings on here.

DanSelk wrote: ↑09:58 Thu 29 Jul 2021 Have ordered one of each, should be delivered within 2 weeks so will share my findings on here.

Me, too. I hope the weather improves so that some cocktails will be tempting!

DanSelk wrote: ↑09:58 Thu 29 Jul 2021 Have ordered one of each, should be delivered within 2 weeks so will share my findings on here.

PS: did you get a confirmation email from Fells? I didn’t and so have been wondering if my order actually made it through or not...

Yes, nearly enough straight away from Cockburn's Port Lodge. Nothing since though.

Thanks very much. I'll chase them up and see if it worked.

I've tried the tawny and ruby so far. The tawny was, unfortunately, rather disappointing considering its price. Very few tawny flavours, it was rather simple and sweet. The ruby, on the other hand, is a very good ruby: lots of fresh dark fruits; decent tannins balanced against some acidity. Drinkable but with some complexity. I'd happily drink this more often: it's one of the better ruby reserves I've tried recently.

I bought all three about 3 weeks ago and not touched them yet. No email to say when to expect them; the caretaker brought them to my room at work. Surprised they weren’t broken with the packaging. The design is really top and would look great adorning any back bar. I’m not holding out much on the complexities. These are aimed undoubtedly at a new to port drinker who used to make cheeky vimtos and now wants something a bit snazzier. Regardless I’m willing to be swayed in a more positive direction once I open them.

The only 'mixology' I do with port, aside from the odd white 'sundowner' cocktail, is to throw a dash of ruby port into a glass of old red wine that is slightly over the hill - a great rejuvenator..