Hi João,
Thank you so much for joining us at FTLOP.
It has been very educational and a pleasure to hear from you.
My questions relate to Colheitas and Tawnies.
From one of your previous comments, you said that you are no longer bottling Colheitas and are only using those wines to blend into yourTawny Ports. I apologize, but I don't have a clear understand of your reasoning. Was it because your supplies of older Colheitas (like 1937) were too small to continue to bottle separately, or was it a marketing decision based on better consumer acceptance of Tawnies over Colheitas?
Also, after reading Roy's 3 tasting notes on the 1937 Ramos Pinto Colheita, I noticed that the 2000 bottling was significantly better (in Roy's opinion) than the 1979 or 1984 bottling. Do you think that is because Colheitas generally improve with more time in cask? Is there a point where there would no longer be improvement, or even some reduction in quality? On the flip side of the coin, do you think that Colheitas (and Tawnies too) are better with less time in the bottle? Perhaps 25 or 30 years is too much time in bottle, but 5 or 10 years is fine. I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic.
Thanks you again. I have enjoyed Ramos Pinto Tawnies very much in the past, and I hope to try some of your older Colheitas also (if I can find them).
Best Regards,
Steve