Hello from Chicago

[Bryan H.]

Hello all. This is my first post here. I first found FTLOP in December 08. My wife and I have always enjoyed wine and Port, and we have a modest wine collection that varies around 150-175 bottles. Likely because we have spent the past 6 years in the stage of having new and young children (we are are still in but starting to come out of that), we were totally off drinking Port, and very much wine. Our Port knowledge is limited, and we really only had simple tawnies, fairly infrequently, before that long hiatus. It is actually a bit odd, because we, except for 08 and 09, have been traveling to Portugal every year since the early 2000s, although not to Porto.

Right after the new year in 09 we had good friends in to visit for a few days (friends who we have taken to Portugal with us), and for some reason decided to have Port instead of just champagne and wine. I bought a few bottles for their visit, having poked around this site to find some recommendations, and everything changed, and somewhat dramatically. I had never heard of a Colheita before reading the Port basics here. But after doing so, I decided to buy one for this visit with friends to see what that was like, among a few 10 and 20 year tawnies.

I track my wine on vinfolio, and it had a 1987 Barros Colheita for sale that I grabbed. I don't know how it compares to the many other Colheita's or VPs or other forms that you folks have had, but I will say that the four of us were completely blown away by how good it was. I don't know if it is that good, or if it is just that good in comparison to the simple stuff the four of us had had limited exposure to, but either way, my friend and I have gotten somewhat obsessed (to the dismay of our wives and detriment to the pocketbook...).

So in December 08 I had zero bottles of Port in my collection, and now have about 15. Between my friend and I, we own all of the remaining 87 Barros Colheita that vinfolio had (some other interloper--no offense if you are here--did manage to get ahold of a few of them in the interim), but we have about 10 between us.

I've never yet had a VP, but now own several from 94 and have been watching for and picking up a few here and there that seem to get good recommendations (for example, 2003 Vesuvio, 2003 Noval, 2000 Fonseca).

So there's the story--thanks to the 87 Barros for bringing us in. I have been lurking (alot recently) and trying to absorb small bits of the vast knowlege here. I am trying to develop a collection, and will certainly be watching and trying to participate in the threads here about collection building strategies and good Ports to buy for now and for later (I'm 37, so we hopefully have plenty of years ahead of us). I finally subscribed to Roy's newsletter, having been enticed by the prospect of another deal like the one that Roy put toghether in March that folks were raving about, as this fits nicely with my objective of growing a collection. Another objective is to get ahold of some "everyday" Ports, i.e., the ones you can have around to open regularly without breaking the bank, so any advice there would be welcomed.

I've found the site and commentary most informative and enjoyable.

Regards to all and I look forward to this adventure.

Bryan

[Alan Gardner]

Welcome Bryan.
I find this the most hospitable wine site I've found. Differing views are tolerated without getting personal and all questions (whether from 'experts' or 'newbies' ) are taken seriously.
Maybe well even get to meet you at one of the events that Roy runs - or some private ones.
Chicago's only a day away for me!
Alan

[Glenn E.]

Hi Bryan, welcome to FTLOP!

The 1987 Barros Colheita that you discovered is absolutely a good one, and I'm sure that it was pretty amazing compared to the simpler stuff you'd had in the past. I had a similar experience when I started drinking Port a few years ago, and I still have several bottles of the 1977 Porto Rocha Colheita that I purchased back then.

I really enjoy the 2003 Noval that you mentioned, too. You have great taste in Port!

[Luc Gauthier]

Salut Bryan ,
Dont stop at Barros .
If you get the chance , try Kopke , Krohn for starters .
As you've probably noticed , everyone throws their
Everyone learns a little something .
Hell , I even learned not to mix VP and peanut butter . . . ( It's a long story )

Bienvenue :hello:

[Andy Velebil]

Brian,
A great introduction, thanks for taking the time to share it. A big kudos for no longer being a lurker and joining in the fray here on the forum. I am extremely happy to hear that through the forum you were able to try a new type of Port that you ended up loving. Trust me when I say the wonderful members here will have you and your wife buying and drinking Port by the tons in no time flat...something none of us here seem to have a problem with You've bought some really nice Ports already and thats a great way to get the cellar rolling. I hope your stay here is long and please don't hesitate to post a question or to add your to a discussion. As Alan mentioned, this is one of the friendliest wine forums there is IMO.