DAVID GUIMARAENS - December's Forum Guest Corner Host

[Roy Hersh]

Will be named in the special edition of the newsletter you will all receive on Nov. 20th.

But as we've now had an author, importer and marketer of Port ... it is time to present our 1st Portmaker.

He's on board for December 14th-20th ... so stay tuned.

Here's a hint, he's never participated on FTLOP before.

[Frederick Blais]

Here's a hint, he's never participated on FTLOP before.

Does he have internet access?

[Eric Ifune]

Dirk?!

[Glenn E.]

Oscar's sister Claudia?

[Andy Velebil]

Outstanding to get a Port maker that's never posted at before! I can't wait.

[oscarquevedo]

Oscar's sister Claudia?

I can't help Glenn, I didn't see any strange activity in my sister's email. But not sure if Roy and Claudia could manage to do it in my back...

Anyways is great to have more winemakers joining FTLOP.

[Roy Hersh]

OK, enough of the guessing games and fun.

I am here to announce that our Guest Corner Host is the only person that I know of with the middle name Fonseca. Good guess. So in a few weeks, David Fonseca Guimaraens will be here to join us.

A little more information on our renowned guest of honor:

David Guimaraens is sixth generation descendant of the founder of Fonseca Guimaraens. David formalized his education in oenology at Roseworthy Agricultural College in South Australia. Both during his academic training and at the start of his career he worked at several wineries in Australia and America before returning to Portugal in 1990.

As a Director of The Fladgate Partnership, David oversees viticulture, winemaking and the ageing of the Ports in Vila Nova de Gaia.

Supported by his viticulture team, David has focused his efforts on the evolution of sustainable mountain viticulture models, by combining traditional, empirical practices with modern viticultural techniques.

In the winemaking arena, David was a pioneer in the modernization of fermentation technology for Port Wine in the 1990’s, practices which now sit side by side with the traditional methods of making Vintage Port. He is particularly focused on the quality of the spirit used to fortify the wines and in the use of a broad range of traditional grape varieties.

David is responsible for the winemaking of Taylor’s, Fonseca and Croft, spearheading a team of winemakers, blenders and tasters, whose passion is to maintain the continuity of the individual house styles.

I can tell you that he is very excited to join us here and looks forward to sharing information and responding to your question. Please hold off any questions, until right before David comes on line to join us.

[Eric Ifune]

This is GREAT!

[Derek T.]

Excellent - this should be a very interesting thread.

Please hold off any questions, until right before David comes on line to join us.

OK - I won't mention 1991/92 just yet

[Julian D. A. Wiseman]

I won't mention 1991/92 just yet

In which case I won’t ask why Fonseca declared 1934 rather than ’35.

[Roy Hersh]

Just a quick reminder, David will be here starting on Monday. We were in touch and he is looking forward to joining us.


David!


OK, please do bring forth your questions, as tomorrow will be here ... shortly!

[Andy Velebil]

David,

First I want to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to join us here at .

I'll start out with a question that some of us have talked about some time ago and one that I've often wondered about.

Many of us started out our early Port years drinking Bin 27. A nice well-priced bottle that is surely to blame, in a good way, for our current love of Port. But many of us have felt that there was a stylistic change to Bin 27 somewhere around 2003 or 2004. I've yet to hear if this was the case and am quite curious.

[Roy Hersh]

Good morning David, (although it is approaching late afternoon for you now)

I have an initial question as well. Several years ago, I remember discussing my friendship with your father and you had talked about doing a book about his life. Are you still planning to do a book on the life of Bruce Guimaraens?

[Guimaraens]

Just a quick reminder, David will be here starting on Monday. We were in touch and he is looking forward to joining us.


David!


OK, please do bring forth your questions, as tomorrow will be here ... shortly!

Good afternoon,

thankyou Roy for the invitation to be participate in your forum. I hope over the next few days to answer questions as many questions as I can, and help to give a better understanding to what we do behind the scenes, and make your enjoyment of Port even greater.

Don't forget, the best way to turn a normal occasion into a great occasion is to open a bottle of Port, but I guess most of you who participate in this Forum already know that.

I will now refer to some of the questions,
David

[Andy Velebil]

David,
What would you consider to be your proudest moment working in the Port industry?

And conversely, what would be the hardest thing you've had to deal with working in the Port industry?

Thanks
Andy

[Guimaraens]

David,

I'll start out with a question that some of us have talked about some time ago and one that I've often wondered about.

Many of us started out our early Port years drinking Bin 27. A nice well-priced bottle that is surely to blame, in a good way, for our current love of Port. But many of us have felt that there was a stylistic change to Bin 27 somewhere around 2003 or 2004. I've yet to hear if this was the case and am quite curious.

Andy,

thankyou for your question. Bin 27 is particularly close to my heart for many reasons. I was seven years old when my father Bruce created Bin 27, and I have great memories of helping my father at home with the first mok up of the original design, which had the lettering "Fonseca Bin 27 Port" painted on the bottle. Also, Bin 27 to me has always represented a Port which has the wonderfull characteristics of a young vintage Port, intense fresh fruit and lots of vibrant structure, all ready for drinking at a very accessible price.
The style change that you refer to I believe is a result of the development in the fortifying spirit we use, and the positive contribution the piston fermenters have had on the production of our base Ports for Bin 27. The spirit we use further enhances the freshness of fruit that is so characteristic of a young vintage, and the piston fermenters ensure we get Ports with great extraction, but still keeping the tannins in balance.

David

[Guimaraens]

Good morning David, (although it is approaching late afternoon for you now)

I have an initial question as well. Several years ago, I remember discussing my friendship with your father and you had talked about doing a book about his life. Are you still planning to do a book on the life of Bruce Guimaraens?

Roy,
I have the incredible hounour of my father being one of those wine industry personalities, in every sense of the word, and someone who mastered all aspects of the buisness from the vineyard to the market. His lifetime covered an extraordinary period and there is a huge amount of stories around him. We as a family have a good number of these, and I am sure there are many more still to be collected and compilled. Any contributions will be most appreciated. There is nothing at present being put together, however the idea has not gone away.

David

[Guimaraens]

David,
What would you consider to be your proudest moment working in the Port industry?

And conversely, what would be the hardest thing you've had to deal with working in the Port industry?

Thanks
Andy

Andy,

probably one of my proudest moments was the way the Croft 2003 Vintage was received. When we purchased Croft in 2001, its Quinta da Roeda, and the way these grapes were being transformed into Port had nothing to do with the greatness of the Croft House, and the potential they had. Straight away we gave the proper attention to the vineyards, and we built new granite lagars, applying exactly the same Vintage Port filosofy to Croft that we do with the Fonseca and Taylor Quintas.
The result was magnificent, and represents a wonderfull tribute to a mindset that all of us have towards the production of Vintage Port.


Your second question is not an easy question to answer, however undoubtedly the worst part of our industry is having to work around the outdated regulamentation regarding the production in the Douro, and how it is contributing to many Port shippers either giving up or turning to other wine styles.

David

[Jeff B.]

Thank you for all the wonderful things you are doing for us port lovers! I'm curious about the foods you enjoy while drinking port. What have you found works the best with them? Do you find that different foods work with younger ports than with older ports? Any exotic or unexpected food combinations that work well? Do you have favorites you enjoy more with food and others that you enjoy by themselves?
Jeff

[Glenn E.]

Hi David, and

We all know that there are many grape varieties authorized for use in making Port, but we're also all familiar with the fact that only 5-7 or so of those varieties tend to make up the bulk of most Port. Typically that list includes Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Amarela, Tinta Roriz and Tinto Cão, though I've also occasionally seen Souzão listed.

As a Portmaker, you can provide us with insight that most others can't. Without giving up too many of your Port making secrets, can you give us a basic understanding of what the main grape varieties bring to the blend in Port? I have heard the roles of Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca in Port compared to the roles of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux wines, is that a comparison that you feel makes sense?