ThePortForum.com

Its time to educate me again!

I've just read somewhere that the terms Shipper and Producer, mean what they say. I was beginning to think Port 'Suppliers' were just quaintly refered to as Shippers.
Now I'm told that if a Port House makes the Port itself, it should be refered to as a Producer. If it just buys the Product off a Producer, bottles it, labels it, and sends it to be sold under its name, they are Shippers.

So if I'm not getting tangled up. Of the Main Houses, who's who. Are they all really just Producers? I seem to remember Calem being refered to as only buying Port in, before they slap the Calem brand on it. So are they only Shippers?

I'm all ears?

Alan

Alan,

Most of the big names in the trade are both Producer's and Shipper's as most have their own Quinta's, winemaking and storage facilities (Producing) whilst also bottling and selling their wines under their own brand name(s) (Shipping).

However, there are many more Producers than Shippers, and even more Growers than Producers.

Can you guess who makes the most money out of all of this? Yes, you got it, it's the Distributor

Derek

Thanks for that, up to a point. It was a Maderia article I was reading, and it suggested that 'Producer' is the dominant title, and only if you didn't produce, were you called a Shipper. It may be pedantic, or just the thoughts of the Author. (I've lost the link.) But it stopped me thinking of them all as Shippers.

Alan

Alan,

It can be quite confusing, I know I get confused. But to use Sandeman as an example. Back in the very late 1700's when they started they were a shipper. They bought port and shipped it back to England and were a shipper only. Shortly thereafter, they started their own operations in Spain and Portugal and became a Producer/Shipper.

Can you guess who makes the most money out of all of this? Yes, you got it, it's the Distributor

Yet none of the producers/shippers makes a serious attempt to cut out the middle man and trade directly with the consumer, (other than overcharging visiting tourists.. )

It must be quite tough for the smallest players to find a market for their wines - I wonder what sort of trade prices could be negotiated for five or ten case lots of the 2005 SQ's 'ex quinta'?

Driving a van down to Portugal and loading up might not be terribly economic, but it would be quite fun!

Tom

uncle tom wrote:

Driving a van down to Portugal and loading up might not be terribly economic, but it would be quite fun!

If we're having a van can I be BA Baracus? - Pity the fool who steels my port

Derek