Colheitas - need for an image makeover?

[Tom Archer]

For the shippers, a Colheita is probably the easiest wine to make - harvest your grapes, make your wine, barrel it, stick it in your lodge, rack it from time to time, leave it for at least seven years - and then bottle it.

My very limited experiance of Colheitas has been entirely satisfactory, but it is very limited because the wines are so rarely offered for sale here.

Why?

As a product class, the Colheita is a marketing man's nightmare.

Firstly, very few people outside Portugal know what a Colheita is, and if they do, they are probably unsure as to how to pronounce it.

Secondly, the endless permutations of vintage and bottling date make any sort of comparative tasting very hard to arrange. A consequence is that the trade have very little idea as to the proper value of the product, and shy away from it for that reason.

So the shippers are producing a product that the trade don't want because they (and their customers) don't understand it.

I can see two remedies to this problem.

1) Consign the word colheita to the small print on the label. Ask the IVDP to recognise the phrase Vintage Tawny as an acceptable English language description.

2) Ask the IVDP to limit the bottling year to set intervals after the original harvest.

Avoiding conflicts with the blended Tawny time lines, these might be:

7yr
12yr
18yr
25yr
- plus a special category for wine that has lain in wood for more than 30years, which (as at present) can be bottled at any time of the shipper's choosing.

If this had been adopted, we might today be discussing the relative merits of the 12yr '94's or the 18yr '88's

Both the trade and consumer would gain an understanding and a confidence in the product. Export sales would (I think!) soar.

Tom

[Frederick Blais]

Tom, you bring some interesting points. For me Colheita is as great as Vintage Port. I do not agree with you when you say that it is easy to produce. Also the quantities for colheita are about the same as for Vintage.

To make Colheita is just as easy as to make Vintage. But to make a great Colheita is just as hard as to make a great VP. Compared to a tawny port that you can blend barels from several years, Colheita can only get grapes from one year. So normally if a year is really bad, the grapes will normally end into blending young tawnies. Good Colheita can only be producedf from good grapes in favorable Colheita vintages.

As for the word Vintage Tawny, forget it. They removed the "vintage character" because it was too confusing so I don't think a Vintage Tawny could appear. I don't think too that the IDVP or any other organisms will spend money marketing for a category that hold for 2% of Port production.

I'd spend money where my mouth is, meaning I'd put money to train wine clerk to better advise the customers.

[Tom Archer]

Good Colheita can only be produced from good grapes in favorable Colheita vintages

Of course. If the wine does not drink well on it's own, then it is not suitable for sale as a Colheita, and needs to be blended with wine from other years. But if it is good, then the shipper has had very little work to do.

As for the word Vintage Tawny, forget it. They removed the "vintage character" because it was too confusing so I don't think a Vintage Tawny could appear

'Vintage Character' was a very crude attempt to dress mutton as lamb - the wine was neither vintage nor like vintage, so the outlawing of the term was fully justified.

'Vintage Tawny' is a factually accurate way of describing a Colheita - the wine IS of a single vintage and IS tawny. No-one could seriously argue that the words were an attempt to mislead.

I don't think too that the IDVP or any other organisms will spend money marketing for a category that hold for 2% of Port production

&

I'd spend money where my mouth is, meaning I'd put money to train wine clerk to better advise the customers

The fact that Colheitas reflect only 2% of production reinforces my point that the wine sells badly because the trade don't understand it.

Spending money on an awareness campaign would be like flogging a lame horse - by improving the presentation of the product, sales will increase without additional marketing.

Tom

[*John Trombley]

Coudn't it just be called 'Tawny' with a vintage date attached? Such as YourAveragePortHouse Tawny Port 2006? This couldn't be confused with an age or a bottling date.

[Tom Archer]

Unlike the blended tawny's, where only the approximate amount of time spent in wood is indicated, both the vintage date and the time spent in wood are important.

For example, an 1988 wine bottled in 2000 would be very different to the same wine bottled in 2006, after spending a further six years in wood.

Tom

[Roy Hersh]

A good topic and premise Tom. However, I agree more with Fred on this one.

Here is my read on your 2 suggestions:

I can see two remedies to this problem.

1) Consign the word colheita to the small print on the label. Ask the IVDP to recognise the phrase Vintage Tawny as an acceptable English language description.

Colheita is a Portuguese word that actually translates to "harvest" and IMHO should remain on bottles of wine from this IVDP approved category. The REAL reason (and one that is swept under the rug), that so little of it appears is that in the UK, the VAST majority of Port offerings are from the British Shippers. Not a real surprise given the centuries of traditional connections between the two. But the British were reluctant to utilize the Portuguese word "Colheita" on their labels. This is fact, not opinion ... although it is not one that will be admitted to, nor will it win Roy Hersh any favors or friends from certain Port houses. Nor will you see "this" in writing elsewhere, but rock the boat I will, when it is important in responding to an important question.

If you look at who the traditional Colheita producers were and still are today, it is the Dutch, German and Portuguese producers ... NOT the British. Of course there are certainly exceptions to this rule (but can you name two or three?), but again, the VAST majority of Colheita is not from the British Shippers. Now here in the USA unlike the UK, there is a broad selection of Colheita Ports available.
In Washington State where I live, there are actually more Colheitas on the shelves than VPs! I will admit that is because the W. Coast importer of Rocha/Kopke is right here in the area and does a great job with more than 60% market share in the Seattle area. But throughout the USA, it is not hard to come by Colheita from a wide assortment of producers.

IF anything, VINTAGE-DATED TAWNY would have been used before Vintage Tawny and had even been talked about at one time ... as had "Classic Vintage Port" to seperate it from SQVP etc... But the IVDP is all about lessening the use of the word VINTAGE on bottles of Port and that is why Vintage Character went away. Too much confusion for the consumer was ultimately the rationale for that move. So, I doubt that we'll see a change anytime soon, considering that in 2005 the nomenclature was changed for all Special Categories of Port. I'd almost guarantee there won't be ANY new change in nomenclature on bottles for the balance of this decade, unless there is a change of the President of the IVDP. Don't hold your breath; Jorge Monteiro is not going anywhere.

2) Ask the IVDP to limit the bottling year to set intervals after the original harvest.

Avoiding conflicts with the blended Tawny time lines, these might be:

7yr
12yr
18yr
25yr
- plus a special category for wine that has lain in wood for more than 30years, which (as at present) can be bottled at any time of the shipper's choosing.

I am 100% against this idea which would put producers inside a box and take away their freedom and creativity. There are already 10, 20, 30, and 40 year old Tawny Ports "with an indication of age." To further categorize Colheitas would change the excellent tradition for those that have special ways of blending their Ports. Garrafeira would go away. I just had the Niepoort 1948 Garrafeira a week ago and would hate to see this category disappear into further obscurity. But more importantly ... there is NO GOOD ENOUGH REASON for creating specific periods in which the bottlings must neatly take place.

[Andy Velebil]

I agree with Roy and Fred 100% on this one. I think it should stay as it is.

Garrafeira would go away. I just had the Niepoort 1948 Garrafeira

One day I will find one of these gems and finally get to try them. I love the pic Fred sent me of Niepoort's cellar and all those glass demijons. Matter of fact that pic is part of my computer's desktop slide show. 8)

[Tom Archer]

I can fully understand why those who know these wines well are somewhat loathe to see any change to the status quo. I can also see why the British contingent gave them a wide berth, for being unmarketable.

But why should it spell the demise of the Garrafeira - that I don't follow

I'm looking at this from the point of view of the shippers, and the product range as a whole.

There is a noticeable gap in the port price spectrum - around the £15 - £18 retail mark (per bottle) - that these wines could fill (at moderate age).

This is at the higher end of the supermarket price spectrum, and a potentially very profitable volume market.

But until the product is better presented, there is a little prospect of Tesco, Waitrose - et al - taking them on board, and the wines will remain confined to the rarefied world of the specialist wine merchant, with pitifully small sales.

Until then, they're missing a trick

Tom

[John Conwell]

I don't have near the experience and knowledge that so many others on this forum do. I just speak from my limited travels and exposure. As Roy pointed out, the distribution problem of Colheita seems to be a UK one alone, and not one with the US. I live in Seattle and have had a wonderful time working my way through Kopke and Rocha Colheita's since they are so readily available here. I started in the late 90's and have been methodically working my way back. I'm now enjoying selections from the late 70's.

I have also recently visited Tulsa Oklahoma, Kansas City Missouri, Dallas Texas and Detroit Michigan, and each of these cities also carry a fine selection of Colheita as well. This might not mean anything to those of you in the UK, but if Colheita can make its way into Tulsa, Ok (middle of nowhere!) then obviously there isn't too bad a distribution problem

The problem sounds more like something that needs to be worked out with the UK shippers vs. changing the name. In my opinion, homogenizing the title of a product that has a wonderful tradition seems very drastic measure, just to satisfy the ego(?) of the UK shippers.

One question. Does the rest of Europe also have the same distribution problem that the UK is experiencing?

[simon Lisle]

I live in the uk and import my colheitas from Germany mostly and some from France

[Derek T.]

I have purchased Colheita from Portugal (obviously :? ), Germany, Netherlands and France so I don't think there is a distribution or marketing problem in Europe. However, I don't think Tom has suggested that distribution is the problem. Shippers could send bottles to the north pole if they wanted to - as evidenced by the existence of Colheita in Tulsa - the issue here is whether or not they could sell them when they get there.

I think by far the biggest issue here is a complete lack of knowledge and awareness of the product here in the UK, both in the trade and amongst consumers.

I agree with the view that the product itself, including the name, should be preserved. I don't like seeing the word Vintage being used on anything other than VP - I would even support removing it from LBV and SQVP's but that's another thread altogether.

I think what is required here is some clever packaging. I don't think the white painted text on the bottle works in the UK. To me, it somehow looks cheap and uninviting. At this point I will openly admit to being a marketing man's dream - a complete sucker for good "lifestyle" packaging. My suggestion for breaking into he UK market would be something similar to the Warre's Otima 50cl bottle with a nice classy label and a relatively low price. As Tom has already said this needs to be in the middle to upper price range in the average supermarket - £15-20 max otherwise only very few will try it. If there were some relatively young Noval or Krohn Colheita's in 50cl bottles at £10-12 I'm quite sure many would be tempted.

However, the next problem we would have is the proliferation of 50% off deals on LBV's and Reserve's - it is virtually impossible to walk into to Tesco or Sainsbury and not find one of these at a heavily discounted price - anywhere from £5-8. If these are on the shelf then few will pick up any bottle over £10.

I writing this posting I think I have convinced myself that the idea of marketing Colheita in the UK is a lost cause. For me, I am content with this because I can get it from Europe if I want it.

Derek

[John Conwell]

Great points Derek!

I have to agree with you about the marketing of Colheita. They should definitly do something with the lable to make it much more understandable as to what the bottle contains.

When I was first getting into wine, I remember going to the wine store and seeing a selection of hand painted brown bottles, and thinking to my self..."self, that winery must be pretty crappy to be only able to afford white paint instead of a paper label."

I'm serious, thats exactly what I thought! I had no idea what wonders lay inside those bottles, and nothing on the bottle gave me any clue. It wasnt until I came to this forum that I even learned what a Colheita was. To the uneducated, the current labeling on a bottle of Colheita is very stand off'ish.

[Roy Hersh]

I saw this thread and felt that we have so many new people since this was written. Some or even many of whom probably had never even tried a Colheita when Tom first posted this.

So what do you think ... time for a makeover?

[Glenn E.]

The only change I would support in the labeling of Colheitas would be to increase the prominence of the bottling date. Sometimes it's on the back label. Sometimes it's on the front label. In seemingly all cases it is in small type and difficult to find. Bottling date is just as important as the vintage for Colheitas. You could make a decent argument that it's actually more important.

Rather than changing the packaging to support the one country/region that doesn't "get it," I think it would be wiser to educate the residents of that country/region. I volunteer to serve on the UK Colheita Indoctrination Board!

[Brian C.]

I would market the mystique of colheita. Pay homage to tradition and history, and above all, teach people how to pronounce colheita. The forgotten port, rediscovered, the beginning of a new journey into liquid dessert. Only one year's harvest goes into a colheita. Only when the year's harvest meets our exacting standards can it be worthy of the name colheita.

I wish I saw colheitas more often in Chicago, having said all that.

[Moses Botbol]

I don't see what the fuss with the consumer is really. People understand barrel aging when it comes to Single Malt Scotch, Colheita is basically the same thing. Colheita has an actual year SMS has years in barrel. Colheita runs from specific pipes is what port makers should get into. Talk about having an aire of exclusitivity...

If you’re in a market that sells it, it’s all a bunch of nothing; it’s already selling.

Internet is full of learning tools for consumers unsure as is reviews on just about every wine known. The only British house I see with Colheita regularly is Dow.

[Daniel R.]

Colheitas are made in very small quantities. I do not see the need for a makeover as I do not see how it could become a fast selling product (there simply is not enough of it). They are and will remain a niche product.

I do not agree with the comment that Colheitas are easy to make. In order to make them, a lot of space is needed as casks will remain "busy" for decades and a lot of care is required (correcting spirit, refreshing, when to "trasfegar", etc.). Decision when to bottle is very important: the reputation of the house will pretty much depend on making these decisions. Only a few houses make Colheitas...

I do agree that bottling date is very important and more attention should be given to it in labels.

[Lamont Huxley]

I have mixed feelings about this topic...

I was quite surprised to read the comments from those who feel that colheitas are readily available in the US market. I've been searching out and buying port for over 12 years now and I have always had pretty much the opposite impression. I've spent some short stints living on the west coast (Oakland, CA and Portland, OR) and also done some port shopping while visiting the Boulder, CO area and although there are a couple of producers that seem to have a good presence there (Rocha/Kopke in particular) I certainly never felt that they were all that easy to find (Maybe WA is a different story?).

Most of my time has been spent in the NY area (where I am now) and I've had an even harder time searching them out here. Sure, if you're persistent and don't mind doing a lot of legwork to seek them out you can certainly find them, but I can't tell you how many times I've visited shops with very large selections of port that don't carry a single colheita, and very often shop owners have no idea what I'm talking about when I inquire about them. Perhaps relative to the UK market it's easier to find them here - I don't know because I've never been to the UK - but I've always felt a bit frustrated by how seldom I find colheitas in shops here in the US. If it's true that the overall percentage of port production is about the same for VP as it is for colheita, then colheitas are definitely vastly under-represented in the retail market here.

That being said, I've come to appreciate that fact for two reasons:

a) Part of the fun of buying and drinking port is in the seeking out of special bottles that are not so easy to find just anywhere. In that respect, when I come across an interesting colheita in a store it makes the whole experience that much more special. There is something about that obscurity that adds to the allure for me.

b) With so little demand for, and understanding of, colheitas in general, the prices for these ports are bound to stay quite reasonable in relation to other more well known wines of comparable quality (It seems that this is true of port in general but colheita in particular). For instance, not that many years ago I bought a fantastic '63 colheita for $100. Had it been a wine of that age with a more prestigious reputation, say a Sauternes, I easily could have paid 5 times that amount or much more.

Although from a financial standpoint it might make sense for the shippers to make some changes in the way that they market colheita as a product, I'm pretty content with being one of a relatively small following of such a little-understood but very special category of wine. I agree that making some changes to the labeling on the bottles could potentially clear up some confusion and maybe even steer more people towards buying colheitas, but it may also have some undesirable consequences for those of us who already know and appreciate them...

And as a side note, I happen to love the Kopke/Rocha style bottles with the simple, painted-on lettering.

[Moses Botbol]

b) With so little demand for, and understanding of, colheitas in general, the prices for these ports are bound to stay quite reasonable in relation to other more well known wines of comparable quality (It seems that this is true of port in general but colheita in particular).

That is true. I saw a 1950 Barros Colheita 375 ml for $80 the other day...

[Glenn E.]

b) With so little demand for, and understanding of, colheitas in general, the prices for these ports are bound to stay quite reasonable in relation to other more well known wines of comparable quality (It seems that this is true of port in general but colheita in particular).

That is true. I saw a 1950 Barros Colheita 375 ml for $80 the other day...

I hope you bought it!!!