For The Love Of Port

I visited with an old friend when I was in Arizona and he has long been a Port lover but an odd one in my book. He does not participate here, lurk here (sadly) or even enjoy computers. However, he is a big wine enthusiast with a solid knack for obtaining Port trophies.

This is not to say he is not generous and since he will never read this, I am not worried he'd take this the wrong way anyway. But when I looked around his cellar and chatted with him, he seemed to have all the right bottles in his display, yet he admittedly never opens his best bottles. I guess you could call that the essence of a collector mentaility?!?

Then today at a Port tasting seminar a somewhat less experienced person (to Port) asked about collecting specific vintages and producers. It got me to thinking on my flight home (once I woke up):

When it comes down to your cellaring of Port ... is there a part of you that likes to buy Port to look at in your cellar scheme? Or are you far more pedestrian in your Port pursuits and prefer consumption and appreciation of palatizing Port?

An interesting question and one which I sometimes ask myself.

First, I guess that my definition of a trophy bottle might be different from that of others. I tend to think of a trophy bottle as being a port that is very hard to come by and is expensive when you do find one. However, to me there is a range of trophy bottles that range from something that some might consider mundane (such as Fonseca 1963 or Croft 1945) through to bottles that may well be one of the last handful remaining unopened anywhere in the world (such as ports from the 1800s, 1931 Nacional). My trophy bottle may only be special to me and may be regarded as everyday to someone else.

I'm lucky enough to have been in the right place at the right time to pick up a tiny number of "trophy bottles" at sensible prices. However, I buy these with the intention of opening them and probably sharing them one day with other port lovers. An example would be the two 1815 ports that we had in July for Roy's 50th birthday bash.

The difficulty that I admit to having is the finding of the right occasion to open bottles which I don't think I will ever be able to replace. I want them to be opened with people who will appreciate them and be able to open them in a suitable context - the two 1815s were opened as part of a tasting of a large number of 19th century ports. So, I would summarise to say that all bottles of port in my cellar are there to be drunk and are bought with the intention of drinking them on the right occasion. Finding the right occasion is a challenge and it may well be that when I move on from this Earth that my children will have to be passed the problem of trying to figure out the right time to open some of these rare bottles. Rest assured, I will do my best to make sure that they do not have to cope with this difficulty.

Alex

Since Alex wrote such an elegant reply that is almost the same as mine would be, I'll just add a couple things to his.

I buy Ports to drink at some point in time. Sometimes that is soon after purchase and sometimes to lay down to age with the anticipation of opening it down the road when it is good and ready. I see no point in buying bottles that you really have no intention of drinking, but just want them for the trophy wall. I think that short-changes everyone...one less bottle for someone else to buy that really wants to drink it or you end up with a bottle so old and over the hill by the time it gets opened the experience is not a good as it should have been.

Like Alex, I may hold those really special bottles for a time as I wait for the right occasion to open them and for people I know will enjoy AND understand it.

I do hate the use of the word collector.

To me it implies someone who wants to look at the bottles rather than drink them.

What the point in that.

When I purchase any wine it is with the intension to drink it with good friends.

There are certain bottles which I would like to share with special people, but beyond that there no bottles which are off limites except the ones which are not mature.

It is always fun to pull an unexpected bottle out of the cellar and see the look on my friends faces when they see something unique.

As the saying goes "life is too short to drink bad wine".

I suppose it comes down to your definition of a collector or trophy hunter. I have and still do enjoy building up a collection and look out for rare and different ports. I do enjoy laying them down to sleep and looking at them occasionally, gawking at the label and anticipating the enjoyment of when it will be drunk. I also intend to drink my wines and those that are left I know my daughter will drink and appreciate. I am also collecting and laying down wine so I can drink fine wine when I perhaps might not be able to afford to do so. So I am a collector but a collection of port I feel should evolve, you drink some and replace them with others maintaining and growing your collection.

Like most people it is identifying a suitable occasion to open your precious babies. Recently I have just gone for the "todays been ok, I am still breathing so lets have a good port" and then it comes down which bottle to choose. This is the tricky bit for me. At present I have only one bottle of Nacional. I do not think I would open this until I have at least one more bottle.

So I am a collector but I will drink them. However if we did not have people who just collected and did not drink we may not have the chance to buy and taste old rare ports in the future-they may be essential to our future fun and enjoyment of port.

Paul.

We had this discussion about opening the finer bottles at a wine tasting group this week. Andy V. expresses my sentiments almost perfectly. I buy port to drink but finding the right occasion and company is the key.

I think that folks have one of 2 perspectives , if I might sound like a motivational speaker--scarcity or abundance. SOme folks, no matter how much they have have a fear of running out, of lacking something. Many folks , survivors of the U.S. economic Depression have this attitude.

Others, live life with a feeling of abundance even if they don't have a lot.
There is a joy in anticipation not diminshed by the experience and fond memories of an empty bottle. There is always another bottle with another cork to pull!

Does anybody remember the yellow Page ad about Arnold's Rug? If Arnold were to advertise and sell the rug ( He had just one in stock) he would not have the rug and there would be no more Arnold's Rug!

Roy-

A good question.....

My acquisition of any wine is always done because it is a wine that I want to drink. I can't see any of the wine in my cellar (Vinotheque cabinet with solid doors, so there's not much in the way of a visual), and just looking at the bottles doesn't do much for me (other than get me thinking about what they offer in the way of drinking pleasure.

As someone else mentioned (I think it was Andy), there are some wines that I have that I intend to not touch for quite some time, but that is because they are age-worthy, and I prefer them more mature. Not having much experience with port, I have been buying some to drink now (get a feel for them young), and some to drink later. I have also acquired some older ones (though limited by budget, so I live vicariously through you and others here.....) so that I can gauge my preference for young vs. mature, and for producers different styles.

I don't gain any pleasure from telling anyone what wines I have in my cellar, only from sharing them, and, hopefully, serving wines that others enjoy as much as I do. I have some friends for whom their wine collections are much more of a status symbol, just not my thing.

Rich

I think that one's trophy bottles might sometime be just another's house VP. Some of my probably rather ordinary VP's that I have drunk have become empty "trophy bottles" on various display shelves simply because I don't get to drink them often, and they usually remind me of the special occassion and gathering of friends with whom they were shared.

I hope someday to drink each VP that I have and will have in due time.

I sort of fall into the "collector" mentality when I'm down to the last bottle of a lot that I'm particularly fond off. I"m happy to drink them up when there's others left, but it's hard to give up the last one.

The port collectors are more of a "drinker" type than the the wine collector (in the most general sense). Anyone with money can buy wine and show off their 1st growths all day long with no intention of ever drinking them. To them, it's a sign of status to talk about their wines, and they see it as an investment rather than something to enjoy. Port on the other hand, is more about enjoying, and the status of a bottle is only important to a select few; typically others that enjoy port.

I too often find that the right occasion to enjoy a special bottle more rare than the port itself. Dinner is the warm up and port is the main event.

Some bottles are surly trophies, to me those are the double mag's, as an American, bigger is better, and the double mag just looks like a shrine.

I agree with Eric, if there are a number of bottles in my cellar of a particular wine (or if its readily available) then I don't mind popping a cork or two. If I'm down to my last bottle of a great wine then I typically wait until a special occasion to open it. IMHO, wine is made for drinking, although a dusty old bottle of port is quite the conversation piece, at some point it really needs to be enjoyed.

Many good points raised by all (some on the side of the port 'collector' as just that - collecting with no intention of drinking, perhaps seeing it as an investment (less collecting than investing) or perhaps a status symbol.

I am definitely a collector... of empty bottles! My trophy bottles are the few that are up on my shelf, empty, with cork sitting next to them. They tell a story, and even if that story only means something to me (a special occasion, a GREAT bottle, etc) it still makes as much a trophy as that 5-pin bowling trophy that I won as a 14 year old.

I do have a couple (stress COUPLE) of trophy bottles in the cellar, but as with the majority who have weighed in here, I fully intend to drink these. Some need a couple years (or decades) more maturity. Some, just are waiting for that right occasion or proper person to be shared with.

Todd

Some very well thought out posts above. I'd love to hear more opinions on this topic.

My cellar is stacked full of cardboard boxes and styro cases lying on their sides, wire racks with consstantly shifting bottles, and chrome shelf racks with bottles piled every which way on them. The place is a mess. There are no bottles in my cellar just to look at. For me, the fun is in the chase. Get on a waiting list and then send emails to the owner trying to get upgraded to the mailing list. Calling the importer to find every bottle of 1922 Madeira brought into the US in the past 2 years and then calling stores until I find the last bottle still in the retail distribution chain in the US and then buying it for my mother's 85th birthday. If I want to look at a bottle, I drink it first and look at the empty one. They're just as pretty. I have a beautiful double magnum of 1997 La Chapelle and I have the bottle of 1922 Madeira, which I will save. But full bottles are for drinking.

PS - The double magnum is empty!

Funny that. I just happened to drink that same 1922 this evening. One of the best examples of this particular bottling, I have had. I mentioned that you had opened a bottle for your mother's birthday and the person who brought the bottle decided to use the last few ounces for his mother-in-law's upcoming birthday.

I'll have to owe you the tasting note.

I don't buy vintage Port to re-sell, I'm not saying it would never happen but I have never purchased with the intention of making money on my collection. I just don't like to open a super rare bottle of Port unless I am among people who truly "know" or appreciate vintage Port or even better, have a similar bottle to contribute to the tasting. An occasion isn't necessary because the rare bottle can be the "occasion". I do however have a problem with opening my last bottle of any vintage! I like to get doubles of any rare bottle before I drink one...that may be the sick collector in me! I know it is not possible to ever find a second bottle of some of the Port in my cellar and I fully plan on opening those bottles. I don't think it matters which wine one collects, every collector has a bottle that is special to him for whatever reason. It is a problem when someone simply collects wine just to collect it and does not really enjoy the "collection". I know some people who are like that ..they buy every rare wine and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars and never really appreciate or drink half of the stuff!

I think I fall into both camps here.

I buy port to drink but I also buy some very rare bottles just because I want to own them them. Anything in my cellar that is likely to be worth drinking should be very nervous, but I also have some bottles that have little chance of giving a good drinking experience but are very nice to own. An example is a bottle of Sandeman Ruby in imaculate condition with seal and labels intact that pre-dates 1936. Would it taste good? Unlikely. Is it fabulous to own and look at? Absolutely. Fonseca 30 yr old Tawny bottled 30 years ago - drinkable? Who knows. Nice to have? Yes.

The only bottle of VP that I own that I am not convinced I will ever have the nerve to open is a Nacional 1963.

Derek

Derek T. wrote:The only bottle of VP that I own that I am not convinced I will ever have the nerve to open is a Nacional 1963.

Derek

Quite a connundrum Derek. I see how this is both a bottle that SHOULD be drunk, yet one that should be cherished as a trophy (particularly given the price!)

Tell you what... I'll help make it easy on you. Give me 5 minutes alone in your cellar with a corkscrew and I'll take all the stress about opening it off your shoulders. You can enjoy the bottle without the stress of actually making that decision to OPEN it! Hey, I'll help out where I can!

Todd

SEAN C. wrote:not really enjoy the "collection". I know some people who are like that ..they buy every rare wine and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars and never really appreciate or drink half of the stuff!

I agree - this seems like a shame.

I suppose if one were to completely remove the magic, the emotion and the humanity out of the collecting of wine/Port and do it simply as an investment, I can almost understand that - some guys collect gold, some precious stones, some oil company stocks, others, fine wines. If it is JUST for the investment, it is understandable, if not disappointing to me. The ones who collect just for the bragging rights or the sake of collecting, while enjoying neither the consumption nor the profit-turn of the investment, well, I just can't wrap my head around it.

Todd

Whilst agreeing with many of the comments above, including those by AHB, the difference between ‘trophy’ and ‘drinking’ bottles isn’t entirely clear to me. The anticipation of future drinking is part of the pleasure of these things. Some bottles are too young, so the anticipation will last awhile. Others are sufficiently old that waiting a decade or few won’t make much difference. So much of the pleasure will happen before drinking. Does that make these trophy bottles? Hmmm: that’s a matter of definition.