For The Love Of Port

How often do you find a handwritten neck label on a bottle of Port, either Colheita or VP? They are usually in pencil and with a string knot slipped over the neck of the bottle.

What has been your experience in terms of quality and has the bottle actually contained the Port that was written?on the label.

For old bottles, so far from what I've experienced they tend to be fairly accurate as to what the cork says it is. But I've also experienced bottles where the neck tag didn't match the cork/contents of the bottle. While as long as the bottle appears to match the vintage period and it was from a reputable cellar/retailer, and they would stand behind the product if it turned out not to be, I'd not have a problem buying it.

The problem arises when its listed "believed to be" or a "?" on the neck tag. That always scares me, because its someone's guessing what they believe it is. In that case the price would have to be heavily discounted from what the "known" vintage is, as it's really is a crap shoot if the bottle contents actually match the neck tag.