For The Love Of Port

In a recent Squires thread, Roy stated to me that he never buy's port via auction. So I was wondering where board members buy their ports. And how do we know that retailers don't buy their ports thru auctions?

Steve Saxon wrote:how do we know that retailers don't buy their ports thru auctions?

I buy at auction, and your above point is just the one that I ask myself. When you buy an old port from most retailers, the likelihood is that he has bought it from auction anyway, so why pay the extra?

I would add the caveat, though, that here in England there are some retailers who sell old port that was bought by them new and they guarantee it has never been moved - for example the Wine Society. I suspect that top places like Berry Bros. and Justerinis sell only what they bought new, but I'm not sure. Presumably there are some in the US like that that Roy can recommend?

Some retailers (I've seen this on Farr Vintners for example) buy up big surplus stocks from places that are selling old port they bought for their own use, but have just never used - such as the cellars of university colleges or city institutions and livery companies. There is a high chance that these places are telling the truth and the offers are worth looking out for. If 60 cases (i.e. a whole pipe) suddenly appears I'd be pretty certain it was not kept in someone's kitchen, loft or garage but had been kept by an institution in their own cellar.

When I do buy at auction I do so with care and don't spend a lot unless I've a reasonable idea it is O.K. There can be clues in the description. I supose we're also lucky here that we know it hasn't made a trans-atlantic crossing.

I think that the point that other people were making on this site was that if you buy on release and pay for storage you can be 100% sure it is OK. I think the answer, if you can afford it, is to do a bit of both.

Steve likes to misquote me. I never said "never" but I very rarely buy Port at auction. I prefer to buy in the USA, but have purchased in the UK for many years, as well. Auctions are a crap shoot. Provenance to me, is worth paying for.

I've started to buy from Sokolin in New York though their "brokerage" operation (you use the same sales guys who answer the phones). They seem to be selling from enormous stocks in what are called "bonded" warehouses in the UK. Obviously, not all warehouses are the same, but the Sokolin sources are clearly first rate; by now I've purchased bottles of all sorts of ages and they have without exception been flawless.

You can also buy online from sources in the UK that have access to the same sources. The downside is that they end up fed-exing the wine to you and it can be delayed by customs. Sokolin eliminates that risk and shipping from them is also a bit cheaper. Sees safer to me, all in all.

Ken,

Do you wind up having to pay the fat VAT taxes when utilizing Sokolin?

One of the obvious puzzles with port, is why some people buy it in quantity, pay for it to be stored and then sell it again 20 years later at a price that barely leaves them in profit.

I don't believe the wine merchants are bankrolling this, although big names like Farr and Berry manage huge stocks.

The answer (I think) lies in British charity and tax law.

If you run a non-profit making business that has charitable status (such as a university college) the law requires that any cash reserves (including equities and bonds) are held for a specific purpose. A general contingency fund is OK, provided it is proportionate to the scale of your operation.

Many of the old institutions are cash rich, and prefer to have a rather larger "rainy day" fund than that which the charity commissioners would sanction as "proportionate".

Deliberately over-stocking on port for the top table seems to be a way round the problem.

Charities also have to be careful to dispose of assets in a manner that is beyond suspicion, and selling by auction is generally regarded as the best way to achieve this.

So when British auction catalogues include large lots that are lying at places like Octavian or EHD, you are normally on very safe territory.

The buyer also gets a very good deal!

Tom,

That is an interesting post. Thank you for sharing.

uncle tom wrote: So when British auction catalogues include large lots that are lying at places like Octavian or EHD, you are normally on very safe territory.

The buyer also gets a very good deal!

Exactly my view. I suspect the British auction market is different from that in the US - hence the difference in opinion/misunderstanding here. However, I hope that the anti-auction brigade stay in their barracks as it suits me and means I pay much less than them. Choose carefully from the catalogue and it is at least as reliable as retail. I'd even say that port that has been stored in the damp cellars of an old institution, like those U. Tom mentions, tends to be in better condition than that from modern controlled warehouses (provided your are not squeamish about rotten/missing labels that do tend to suffer).

The Alan Clark cellar to be sold next week looks v. interesting. However, no port! He seemed to prefer sauternes

Ken - with the expection of one rather bizarre slightly pushed out cork condition in a 1940 Malaga, I ha'ved excellent experiences with Sokolin.

Roy - their prices are all inclusive with the exception of shipping from NY to your locale.

Sorry, didn't notice the question; at any rate, Limestoned answered it. Their prices are inclusive of everything except NYS tax if you live in the state and shipping -- about 4 dollars a bottle for me, via 2nd day UPS.

They often quote lower prices than the ones on the web site, but for this you need to call their salespeople.