For The Love Of Port

H & H hit the jackpot this year: International award for their 15 year old Verdelho.
When describing the product the panel wrote about the ageing process: 'Aged in cask in warm in sunlit lodges etc, etc. Very nice, very poetic.
Did not mention the fact that this wine, solid, good, earnest not prodigious also gets the dreaded Estufa treatment, which is no very poetic.
John Cossart, and all of us who knew the man cared a lot about him, wrote about his wine: 'We heat this wine at 45 degrees for three months,
and if this is done gently ( i don't know if the 45 degree treatment falls under that category), carefully, this will produce a wine of quality etc,etc.
I wished Richard Mayson and his group would have, for the sake of transparency made the point. I'll drop a note to Decanter; i've kicked the can before......

Philippe,

Bonjour mon ami.


Nice to have you rejoin us again!!!

I hope you and Katherine are doing well and that her book was a huge success.

You are absolutely right, there is no comparison to Canteiro aging vs. the estufagem process when it comes to quality. The latter is relegated to less expensive bottlings and although that varies by producer, any top end product is always done with the former. I for one, miss John Cossart and have never met nor had any contact with his successor.

If you want to get in touch with Richard directly, email me and I will send on his contact info.

Best regards!

Thank you for taking the time to write Roy. I know how busy you are.
Kathryn is negotiating for the movie rights. If it happens i wonder who will wind up playing the 'old man'......
I dropped a note to the Decanter further to which Richard's committee will probably resign for having been exposed....
Let's get back on topic. Another International Award winner was the Moscatel de Setubal 04 from Balcahôa.
The MDS is, i think, a close cousin of Madeiras.
Tight, bright, precise, with electric acidity. Long life ahead and delicious today.
Vauthier sells his Ausone 2010 en primeure here for $2,495 per bottle.
This amount will get you well over 200 bottles (yes 200) of the Balcahôa.......
Cheers!
Philippe