Single Quinta VPs vs. Regular VPs

[John M.]

I was wondering why single quinta VPs are generally considered inferior to regular VPs (or at least they are cheaper). I understand the single quinta versus various quintas combined--but what makes the latter generally better?

[Roy Hersh]

In some ways this is a myth. What better Ports are there than 1931 Quinta do Noval or their 1994 or 1963 Nacional? Few and far between if any. Quinta do Noval is just one example of a Single Quinta. There is an old tradition with Port in which the generally declared vintage, seems to trump the quality of the SQVPs that are released in "lesser" years. That was probably more true in the past, but since around the early-to-mid-1990's it is less so. The distinction between the nearly annual regular releases of SQVPs and the 3 times per decade "generally declared" years has blurred markedly in recent years.

To be more specific in answering your question: a lot of it has to do with the Port trade's marketing efforts where they put a lot more emphasis into what they consider to be the truly great vintages vs. the also rans.

I am sure others will chime in with greater detail.

[Russ K]

I agree with the myth status...to me single quintas are akin to single malt scotches vs blended whiskeys being tawnies, and vintage being the best of both worlds....but it seems like the highest quality single quintas are put out on the market more often, so maybe just a bit of supply and demand forces on the price as well. The "romance" of the generally declared years probably has something to do with it as well. I actually have enjoyed taylors Vargellas and Grahams Malvedos (can anyone get me a bottle of 88 Malvedos??) more than almost anything out there, and I am stocking up on Roriz...

[Andy Velebil]

To add a little to what Roy and Russ already stated, Prior to the regulation changes that required you to store and ship Ports from Gaia a producer had to have a Lodge there. As you could imagine that added significant overhead for a small Quinta to afford, of which most could not and simply chose to sell their grapes and Port to larger companies. Don't forget the costs of publicity, marketing, distributing, etc. as well.

Also keep in mind many of the largest producers for centuries were British owned companies, who didn't own any Quinta's themselves and simply bought grapes and finished Port from their many suppliers. So in effect, for decades, if not centuries, the major companies always used a blend of grapes from many Quintas. They had the money for publicity and like anything else, history is written by those who won. That's not a bad thing, but over many many decades the assumption that a "generally declared" VP is better than SQVP's has become de facto.

As already mentioned, there were some larger SQVP producers back then and probably one of the most widely known, and still as a Single Quinta today, is Quinta do Noval. So some did go it alone and were very successful in making some great Ports. However, since the mid 1980's when producers no longer had to have a presence in Gaia things have dramatically changed. There are far more people going it alone as Single Quinta's and they are making some fantastic juice that equals or beats many VP's in a "Generally declared year." I would me remiss if I also didn't talk about how even the larger producers are now making more SQVP's than ever and some of those are pretty darn good stuff. I just had a bottle of 2005 Quinta da Roeda SQVP that was a rock star and would blow the doors off many "generally declared" VP's I've had. And look at Quinta do Vesuvio, which makes some fantastic VP's year in and year out. Or as Russ mentioned, Quinta dos Malvedos (which wasn't really a "Single Quinta" VP until the early 1990's*).

So as already mentioned, the lines are now more blurred than ever. The Douro is a huge place and now even in a poor overall year there always seems to be a few smaller producers that seem to make some excellent SQVP's. So don't give up on them, search out the great ones to put away and age for many decades, and enjoy the "lesser" ones for more earlier drinking like you would for the top end VP's and the middle or the road VP's. With the added bonus that SQVP's are typically quite a bit cheaper in price than their "generally declared" VP counterpart.



*(Sorry Russ, but your 1988 was a blend from other quintas and not a SQVP. Check out my article from a couple newsletters ago about a massive Malvedos tasting I attended in London. It has some little known facts about Malvedos included that explains more about this majestic property)

[John M.]

Glad I asked...not the answer I expected from all of you, but excellent ones at that. I appreciate the info. So what broke the Gaia stranglehold in the 1980s?

I've had a number of SQVPs and cheaper--yet the most reverence here is for the older ports so I was curious. Now it makes sense as the SQVPs are reaching that 20-30 year mark after being freed in the 80s (glad to see there was a lot more than skinny ties, mohawk hairdos and shoulder pads to that era)

As to the 2005 Roeda, a local store has some and thanks to your TN from a few days ago I'm going to get one/some. Thanks.

[Marc J.]

From what I understand, when Portugal joined the European Union in 1986 there were certain rules and regulations that came into effect. As a result of aforementioned as well as additional legislation that was passed that same year, single quintas were now are to ship their wines directly without having to maintain in lodge in Vila Nova de Gaia. I do believe that the availablity of single quinta VPs has really added to the diversity of VP that can be found on the shelf and some SQVPs outperform some full blown generally declared VPs.

[Russ K]

however that 1988 was made, it was damn good...

[Andy Velebil]

Russ,

I hope this helps explain about Malvedos...from my article;

There is sometimes a bit of confusion about why older labels simply state “Malvedos” on them and the newer vintages state “Quinta dos Malvedos.” It’s actually quite simple as laws prevent the term “Quinta …” to be used on a label unless all the grapes used in that particular Port come from one single Quinta. Originally Quinta dos Malvedos was much smaller in size than it is today. When sold in 1890 the Quinta was only 43.9 hectares (108 acres), and it used grapes from the adjoining three vineyards (Valdossa, Albano, and Assuncao). Over the years these three vineyards were purchased and incorporated into what is the present day Quinta dos Malvedos. This more than doubled the size of Quinta dos Malvedos to its current 108 hectares (266 acres), of which 70 hectares (173 acres) is planted with vines. It wasn’t until the mid-1990’s where all the grapes finally came from the Quinta, and in 1998 the label was changed to “Quinta dos Malvedos” to reflex that.

[Russ K]

learn something new everyday!

[Derek T.]

I agree with what Andy says above but also want to cast a vote for the classic VP.

It is very true that excellent wines can be produced from a single quinta. But it is equally true that the more grapes and different vineyards a producer has to choose from will enable him to produce a better, more complex wine. The more choice he has in terms of altitude, aspect and proximity to the river the more choices he has available to him when it comes to developing the perfect blend.

The large producers have many quintas in the prime spots in the Douro. These face east, west, north and south; are high and low, bone dry or close to the flow of the river. The choices are endless. So, when it comes to a "great" vinatge year the juice available for a "classic blend" is far greater than most sole quintas could provide. Noteable exceptions to that rule, due to their topography and location, are Quinta do Noval and Quinta do Vesuvio, both of which have a huge variance of aspect and altitude within their boundaries. Coincidence?

[Roy Hersh]

In addition to those two SQVPs that Derek mentioned, Quinta da Romaneira, Quinta de Vargellas and especially Quinta da Roeda ... have extraordinarily different terroirs on their properties and I'd also have to add Crasto. But of all, it would be Noval and Roeda for the greatest diversity within huge properties.