Selling port for dummies!

[Walshy]

Hi all,

I received a case of port when i was born as an investment/present. And i was looking into selling it. Other than enjoying occasional glasses of port im pretty much a complete novice on how to go about selling the port or getting it evaluated. I contacted a couple of sites and have not heard back, though someone from work has given me an offer i do not know if it is a fair one or not!

The Port is Graham's Malvedos 1990.

Any tips/pricing estimates would be greatly appreciated.

First post so go easy!

[g-man]

If it helps

i can find that port here int he states for 35$/bottle.

[Alex Bridgeman]

Malvedos 1990 is not a first league port and isn't what would normally be regarded as investment grade. In the UK you can buy it for about £30 a bottle at retail, which means that you would expect to be able to sell it for around £15 a bottle.

The easiest way to sell it would be privately to the friend at work or through a wine bulletin board, such as this one. Alternatively, you could go to your local independent wine merchant or local auction house and see if either of them would be interested in helping you.

But, since you enjoy the occasional glass of port, why don't you keep it and drink your way through the case over the next 20-30 years? Enjoy a bottle every 5 years or so to celebrate a landmark birthday and see how the port changes over time. You just need to keep the bottles lying down somewhere undisturbed, cool and dark and they should last that long.

[PhilW]

Hi Walshy,

Welcome to the forum
It might be worth mentioning your rough location (particularly US/UK) as this may affect the likely value. I see current stockists offering £25/bottle for a case of 12 at retail, so Alex's estimate that you could sell at £15/bottle for the case sounds reasonable; this could be varied up or down slightly depending on the bottle condition and how/where they have been stored. Also don't be too scared by the first line of Alex's comment:

Malvedos 1990 is not a first league port and isn't what would normally be regarded as investment grade.

While perfectly true (since 1990 was not a 'declared' year), this is still good quality vintage port and should be very pleasant drinking. You could always open one and try it with your friend (if you do, make sure to filter/decant properly) and decide whether to keep some, all and decide on a fair price that way for any you decide to sell.

Phil.

[mosesbotbol]

See if a local liquor store or restaurant might want to buy it off of you. You can also try posting an ad on Craigslist or the like. Since it's only one case, it should be easy to sell. If you were near me in Boston, I'd buy it off you no problem. Good luck!

[Warby]

Hi, I also received a crate of port on my birth and was wondering if I should just keep it or what it was worth. Not being an expert I leave this to the members of this forum to debate and advise, it was a crate of twelve Richard hoopers Gaia port vintage 1985 . Any feedback would be great.

[JacobH]

Welcome to the forum! Hoopers 1985 is quite an unusual Port; I don't think I've ever tried anything from this shipper. That said, 1985 is probably the best year of the 80s so it's got a good chance of being good.

In terms of whether to sell or keep it, my advice would be to open one, see if you like it and then work out a strategy for drinking the rest based on how mature it is (e.g. over the next year, one every year, one every five years etc.). I'm not sure it will have massive resale value since it is so unusual but it could be an option if you really don't like it!

[Alex Bridgeman]

Hoopers 1985 - as Jacob says, very unusual. While you would certainly be able to sell the case at auction, Hoopers does not have a great reputation for quality ports. My guess is that you would probably be able to sell for around £15 per bottle.

[Warby]

Indeed I did consider cracking open the crate but it is still nailed shut. My theory is I may try and buy a bottle from somewhere to see if I like it first, one so I can drink it and two so I know how much it may be worth for if I decided I didn't enjoy the taste and sold the crate as an unopened package of possible joy for someone. But I suppose it depends how easy it is to find a bottle of the stuff. Thanks for the replies.

[DRT]

Warby,

I don't think it will harm the value of your case if you open it as many collectors, wine merchants, auction houses or professional wine storage facilities would do that as a matter of course in order to check that the bottles are not leaking. However, your plan to buy an additional bottle to taste it before deciding whether or not to sell is a good one as lots of 11 bottles can be viewed with some suspicion when they come up at auction as it is a fairly sure sign that whoever opened the first bottle wasn't happy with what they found.

I think your main difficulty will be in finding a bottle for sale at a reasonable price, if at all.

Derek

[JacobH]

I agree with Derek; it may be worth opening the case just to check all the bottles are in good condition.

In terms of trying a bottle, Vin Vino (I company I have previous not heard of) is selling Hooper’s 1985 for £30 which isn’t an unreasonable retail price for it. Remember, though, that since this wine has been in a bottle for about 25 years, there could be a bit of variation, depending on how it was stored.

[Warby]

Ok cheers for the advise and yes I can understand that under different conditions the port may have different tastes etc hopefully it will work out and I may have to drink the lot my self due it's awesome taste but if not it may be bye bye to the. Case and a few quid in my pocket, either way thanks guys

[JacobH]

One further thought; if you haven’t drunk much Vintage Port before and so aren’t sure whether you’d like Port that much, why not try getting a Warre ‟Bottle Matured” Late-Bottled Vintage Port, a Croft Quinta da Roêda Single-Quinta Vintage Port or Taylor Quinta de Vargellas Single-Quinta Vintage Port? All three should be available from most bigger supermarkets. The Warre usually costs about £18/19 and the others between £25 and £30 and would be a good introduction to Port (albeit that they will be a bit more vibrant and less subtle than the 1985).