From memory 2021 was quite a good year up until the harvest which was rather tricky. It started very early in late August but then the temperature dropped in September and there was quite a lot of rain. The impression was not of a classic vintage but for those producers who managed to pick the right grapes at the right time around the rain could produce something very interesting. Perhaps a year for some odd-ball declarations, in addition to the “declare everything” crowd?
Graham's have posted on Twitter that they have declared a 2021 Stone Terraces, as predicted by Alex. They say they will bottle 4,800 75cl bottles and 280 tappit hens (225cl).
JacobH wrote: ↑08:40 Thu 20 Apr 2023Graham's have posted on Twitter that they have declared a 2021 Stone Terraces, as predicted by Alex. They say they will bottle 4,800 75cl bottles and 280 tappit hens (225cl).
JacobH wrote: ↑08:40 Thu 20 Apr 2023Graham's have posted on Twitter that they have declared a 2021 Stone Terraces, as predicted by Alex. They say they will bottle 4,800 75cl bottles and 280 tappit hens (225cl).
Tregnums, surely.
Yes, they are the "normal" shaped bottles like they used in 2016 and 2017.
JacobH wrote:Graham's have posted on Twitter that they have declared a 2021 Stone Terraces, as predicted by Alex. They say they will bottle 4,800 75cl bottles and 280 tappit hens (225cl).
I was intrigued to see that they've only declared the Stone Terraces but no mention of a regular Graham VP. It'll be interesting to see if there's some SQVP offerings instead. I'm keeping my fingers for something interesting to purchase for my nephew who is (just) a '21 baby.
JacobH wrote:Graham's have posted on Twitter that they have declared a 2021 Stone Terraces, as predicted by Alex. They say they will bottle 4,800 75cl bottles and 280 tappit hens (225cl).
I was intrigued to see that they've only declared the Stone Terraces but no mention of a regular Graham VP. It'll be interesting to see if there's some SQVP offerings instead. I'm keeping my fingers for something interesting to purchase for my nephew who is (just) a '21 baby.
Rune posted on Portvin.nu on Facebook and said that there will be five SQVPs. I'm not sure where he got his information, but he's pretty interconnected with the Scandinavian Port Wine community so he probably got it from an importer there. Rune is also the source of the $525 price that we've seen, though there some chance that's a typo or currency conversion error since he said "UDS" as the currency on a Danish page.
Anyway, the SQVPs are:
Cockburn's Quinta dos Canais
Dow's Quinta do Bomfim
Dow's Quinta da Senora da Ribeira
Graham's Quinta dos Malvedos
Warre's Quinta da Cavadinha
There will be no Quinta do Vesuvio (again) because they have not yet re-started in-person foot treading due to the pandemic.
Below from the Symington's website - interesting that it will be the Bonfim that is released this year not Senhora da Ribeira.
We felt that the best expression of the year came from our five principal estates (Malvedos, Bomfim, Senhora da Ribeira, Cavadinha, Canais) which we will bottle as Quinta Vintage Port – and we have decided to release a small quantity of Bomfim in 2023.
Given the Fladgate Partnership’s record of announcing vintage decisions on 23rd April, has anyone seen anything? Should we take silence to mean an absence of a declaration?
Top Ports in 2022: Quinta do Noval Nacional 1931. I have never drunk such a wonderful bottle of Port. I cried with joy.
2023: Fonseca 1966. There are not many better Ports, except a good bottle of Fonseca 1927. Wow!
Alex Bridgeman wrote: ↑14:59 Thu 27 Apr 2023
Given the Fladgate Partnership’s record of announcing vintage decisions on 23rd April, has anyone seen anything? Should we take silence to mean an absence of a declaration?
I’ve had it confirmed that there are no declarations from the Fladgate Partnership for the 2021 vintage.
Top Ports in 2022: Quinta do Noval Nacional 1931. I have never drunk such a wonderful bottle of Port. I cried with joy.
2023: Fonseca 1966. There are not many better Ports, except a good bottle of Fonseca 1927. Wow!
Alex Bridgeman wrote: ↑14:59 Thu 27 Apr 2023
Given the Fladgate Partnership’s record of announcing vintage decisions on 23rd April, has anyone seen anything? Should we take silence to mean an absence of a declaration?
I’ve had it confirmed that there are no declarations from the Fladgate Partnership for the 2021 vintage.
Any suggestions of SQVPs or nothing yet on that front? I assume there would be several.
That surely can't be right from a winemaking point of view? You don't not declare a SQVP because you need the wines for tawny? Or perhaps the SQVP quality stuff is going into the LBV blends to free up wine for the tawnies?
Incidentally, looking back on recent years, are TFP declaring SQVPs a little less often in secondary years than in the past? I'm slightly surprised about some of the recent years they skipped like 2015 and now 2021.
JacobH wrote: ↑21:20 Thu 27 Apr 2023
That surely can't be right from a winemaking point of view? You don't not declare a SQVP because you need the wines for tawny? Or perhaps the SQVP quality stuff is going into the LBV blends to free up wine for the tawnies?
On re-reading this, the impression might have been given that I was arguing with AHB which was no my intention. It was just surprise! The questions were meant genuinely rather than rhetorically. Apologies for any misunderstanding caused.
JacobH wrote: ↑21:20 Thu 27 Apr 2023
That surely can't be right from a winemaking point of view? You don't not declare a SQVP because you need the wines for tawny? Or perhaps the SQVP quality stuff is going into the LBV blends to free up wine for the tawnies?
On re-reading this, the impression might have been given that I was arguing with AHB which was no my intention. It was just surprise! The questions were meant genuinely rather than rhetorically. Apologies for any misunderstanding caused.
I certainly didn’t take it that way. I thought “Hmm. Good point. Maybe that is the way it would work.” But the result would be the same. No juice being used for SQVP so more available for other products which would include going in to the first years of the tawny system.
Top Ports in 2022: Quinta do Noval Nacional 1931. I have never drunk such a wonderful bottle of Port. I cried with joy.
2023: Fonseca 1966. There are not many better Ports, except a good bottle of Fonseca 1927. Wow!
