Jay Powers wrote:Sounds like they have a much bigger problem to deal with with their Ruby Ports.
I'm quite sure there will always be a stead flow of French alcoholics to take care of all that cheap Ruby
I think that all shippers should produce either an SQVP and/or a blended VP every year and market it at a price which reflects the quality of the wine. I have yet to drink a VP that does not deserve its place in the category. I am quite sure that even in the worst years the big producers could find a small quantity of grapes that were good enough to produce a VP or SQVP. However, I think this would require a degree of honesty that current marketing approaches may not be able to handle
Actually, I have a feeling that it is the house style and more so, the reputation they've built over centuries ... that prevents some of the traditionalists in the trade from doing so. I am not so sure that a company like Taylor to just choose one name, (as an example!) would have much to gain by offering lower priced VP that would appeal to a broader market. They might see this as competiting with themselves.
I'm with the SQVP loving crowd. Like Derek I managed to pick up some bargains just before Christmas and this is due to Supermarket policy. I would not be able to get the same sort of discounts with a full-declared VP and so would not have as much in my cellar.
In recent years I have been able to get hold of Graham's Malvedos, Dow's Quinta do Bomfim, Taylor's Quinta de Vargellas, Quinta do Crasto and Fonseca Guimaraens at prices at or little more than the cost of an LBV. The quality difference is astounding.
Meanwhile I have to scrimp and save and search around for drinkable Vintage Port from declared years.
I don't think that SQVP diminishes VP, I think it serves as a superb intermediate point between unfiltered LBV and VP, sometimes beating the latter and being cheaper than the former. Long may it continue.
The marketplace realities are so different between countries like the UK, US and Canada ... not to mention all the others. Is it coincidental that the largest population of posters and members of FTLOP are from the 3 key Port markets?
Back to Alex's great post. In looking at the market pricing, it is a wonder that Port lovers in some countries can even afford Port given the silly prices we sometimes see posted here. I think Alex nailed the SQVP niche a point.
What is interesting is the way the SQVPs tend to fill the void these days between vintages that are generally declared. Will their market share grow to the point that with more inexpensive SQVPs available, the price point for newly released classic VPs must come down? Will the market be able to otherwise absorb the abundance of Ports from annual harvest production, the way prices used to roll with quality of Claret (remember those good old days?) each year.
I would imagine that controling the ebb and flow of SQVP will play a significant role for the Port trade and especially for those that produce both types of VPs. As Derek mentioned, will the marketing approaches be forced to change with the times and will they still be able to achieve the goals that the shippers would like to achieve?
An interesting question which has been debated here before if I recall correctly.
My understanding is that at a point in the not too distant past Malvedos was a second label VP made from a blend of grapes from Quinta do Malvedos and a number of other properties. In recent years it has been produced exclusively from Malvedos grapes and the wines they produce today are therefore SQVP's. I cannot remember when the change occurred but I think it was around 20 years ago.
In the Québec market , I can't see SQVP's filling the void created between VP's and the other end .
The marketing mechanisms put in place by the SAQ will prevent this from happening .
Sales of VP in the Québec market amount to less than 6% !!
Sales of SQVP's dont even register . . .
Recently , a spokesperson for the SAQ said they had our best interests at heart !! Reality check please . :x
A half a dozen times a year , there's a 10% rebate on any purchase of $100.00 or more .
Try getting premium VP at that price .
There aren't enough SQVP's to fill the void .
Montreal is having Its Wine tasting at the end of March .
The SAQ , true to form , will have a booth . A 10% rebate will also apply to a purchase of . . . . . . minimum $ 250.00 !!!!!!!
Can I explode now ?
Vintage avant jeunesse/or the other way around . . .
I feel your pain. As Roy stated earlier in the thread... it is a wonder that some of us can even afford VP at all! I guess this is why it is a rare treat for me to have a VP of significant age. I was not collecting the '70s when I was a mere baby and to buy many 1970s-range VPs these days in Edmonton is ridiculous.
Need that field trip to the UK with a full wallet to scratch that itch I guess!
Todd , txs .
Maybe I'll join you on your field trip to the U.K. ( Portugal maybe . . . )
Collecting 1970's VP's in Montréal isn't in the cards for me either .
I guess we're in a league of our own .
Vintage avant jeunesse/or the other way around . . .
