For The Love Of Port

Graham's 1982 Single Harvest Tawny Port will be bottled from six original pipes for a very limited commemorative bottling to celebrate the birth of HRH Prince George of Cambridge. This wine will be offered predominantly in the UK and Portugal on strict allocation for top prestige wine customers.

In other markets this 1982 Single Harvest Tawny Port will be offered in smaller quantities, such as 2 cases x 6 bottles of 75o's.

There will be a total of 360 dozen bottles. The UK will receive an allocation of 60 dozen, Portugal another 50 dozen and I won't bore you with the rest of the break down.

And what does the USA get?

The 1982 Dow Colheita was very nice... when you could find it. I have high hopes for Graham's as well!

Andy Velebil wrote:And what does the USA get?

You get to read our tasting notes

Great one Derek. It was really nice to see you and J. last weekend!

Roy Hersh wrote:Great one Derek. It was really nice to see you and J. last weekend!

So how much, if any, does the States get?

My understanding is that the U.K. is a poor market for Colheita/Single Harvest Tawnies. Are they trying to increase market penetration? If not, why not send more to the U.S. which is a better market?

I don't think they are trying to increase the market in Colhieta in the UK, I think they are trying to take advantage of the fact that there isn't one by selling these wines with an established and recognisable name through premium retailers at a price that would not be tolerated in more established colhieta markets.

Krohn 1982 is fairly easily obtained in the UK for around £50 per bottle. I would be very surprised if the Graham isn't two or three times that price.

This isn't a criticism, it is a compliment to the Symington's marketing machine that they have very successfully seized an opportunity to sell very good wines into an empty space at premium prices. Bravo!

The big questions are will anyone else follow them in and how long will the UK market stand the premium pricing?

another issue the amount available. the USA is a large market with lots of regional distributors to supply. For a large company like the Sym's, if they can't supply enough to all distributors within a given market then it's sometimes best not to send any to that particular market. A similar thing happened with the 2009 Warre's. There was none earmarked for the USA and the distributors here complained about the lack of getting any. Thus, as a fill in, we got the 2009 Quinta dos Malvedos about 10 years before all the rest of you will get it.

I do hope the Sym's send some of this new Colheita to the USA. After not getting any of the previous releases it is time we are given a share of the nectar. Paul, Dom, Charles, and Rupert please send some to this side of the pond

Andy Velebil wrote:Paul, Dom, Charles, and Rupert please send some to this side of the pond

Johnny, Andy forgot your name. Please blackball the shipments to the USA and send it all here

Derek T. wrote:

Andy Velebil wrote:Paul, Dom, Charles, and Rupert please send some to this side of the pond

Johnny, Andy forgot your name. Please blackball the shipments to the USA and send it all here

I knew he already voted to send some here. Just putting pressure on the others to agree

Derek T. wrote:Krohn 1982 is fairly easily obtained in the UK for around £50 per bottle. I would be very surprised if the Graham isn't two or three times that price

£95 per bottle is the price i've seen quoted (with an element of that being a contribution to Bagos D'Ouro)

My fellow American's...there will be no 1982 Graham's Colheita for us

Andy Velebil wrote:My fellow American's...there will be no 1982 Graham's Colheita for us

Given it also commemorates their future monarch, presumably Canada will get some?

AAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!

Tasted the Port a couple of weeks ago. It is on the feminine side compared to the concentrated 1969 and 1952. It is quite elegant, complex with great aromatics and precision, balance is achieved yet for me it was lacking depth and layers on the palate for such a Port to ask for this price. Yes it is very good, very limited and very collectible which is why you could ask for such a price. But with the same criteria and less money, I'd try to get a bottle of Warre's 1972 Colheita that is worth every dollar... though again probably not available widely