The Date and Time: Monday, October 19, 2015 3PM to 6PM
The Event: Port and Douro Wines; a taste of origin.
The Venue: Ritz-Carlton Hotel
The Target Audience: wine writers and sommeliers
The Availability/Catalogue:
The Quote/Background: This is an annual wine tasting that started out as just a port tasting but expanded to include table wines as well. Over the years the catalogue has been erratic. This time they delivered a huge book, with one page per wine plus some notes. Very valuable, except there was nothing about availability and price. You had to ask, and many on the other side of the table did not know. I could get a few FOB prices in Euros. This can be frustrating after awhile for the serious wine writer who needs to inform his audience.
The Wines: I did not try the table wines, unfortunately. But then over the years in the past, I have rarely tried the table wines. There were over 125 wines listed in the book.
**** BEST -- Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Ramos Pinto RP20 Tawny 20 years
-Ramos Pinto Vintage 1983
-C. Da Silva Dalva Porto 20 Years Old, $46.95
-C. Da Silva Dalva Porto Colheita 1985
-Sogevinus Burmester Porto 40 Years Old
-Sogevinus Calem Porto 20 Years Old
-Kopke Porto 30 Years Old White
-Kopke Porto Colheita 1941
-Kopke Porto Colheita 1965
-Sandeman Porto Tawny 20 Years Old
***1/2 BETTER -- Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Ramos Pinto RP10 Tawny 10 years
-Pocas Porto Colheita 1992
-Sogevinus Burmester Porto Colheita 1989
-Sogevinus Barros Porto Colheita 1974
-Niepoort Porto Colheita 1999
-Sogevinus Calem Porto Colheita 2000
-Sandeman Porto Tawny 10 Years Old
-Sandeman Porto Vintage 2000
-Dona Matilde Porto Colheita 2008
*** GOOD -- Three Stars (85 – 87 in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Pocas 10 Years Old Tawny
-Dalva Douro Colheita 2012
-Dalva Porto Vintage 2012
-Bulas Porto 20 Years Old Tawny
The Food: breads and cheeses. And for dinner that night we sat with winery principals as they poured their wines. 80 people sat down to a complex salad of fava beans, tomatoes, pickled fennel, shallots, black olive soil with (for my table) a delicious Dina Matilde Douro 2014 white (88, 4E FOB). The grilled swordfish and veggies came with the CARM Maria de Lourdes Douro 2011 White (89, $35 FWP). The braised beef cheek (there was so much I had to take it home) had the Dina Matilde Douro Red Reserva 2011 (89, 9E FOB) and the CARM Maria de Lourdes Douro 2011 Red (89, $40 FWP). I did not stay for dessert nor the various ports that came out: I was beat and there were both a Blue Jay game and an election that night. I heard later that our table had a Dona Matilde Colheita 2008 Port.
The Downside: too many activities this day made me selective in my tastings.
The Upside: I was invited to dinner a few weeks back, and decided to come despite the election.
The Contact Person: Daniel St. Germaine <dstgermaine@artscom.ca>
The Event's Marketing Effectiveness and Execution (numerical grade): 86.
Chimo! www.deantudor.com
