210 Port anD the Douro
- John Smithes continued to work for Cockburn until the 1970s (see page 73) and
Peter Cobb retired in 1999.
In the slump that followed the Second World War, Cockburn became prey to outsiders.
The company was taken over by Harvey of Bristol in 1962, a year after Harvey had
acquired arch-rivals Martinez Gassiot. Harvey was subsequently bought by Allied-Lyons
(subsequently Allied-Domecq) making Cockburn an increasingly small cog within a very
big wheel – but with the media support afforded by a multinational, Cockburn became
the leading Port brand on the UK market. In the revolving door of takeovers and mergers,
Allied Domecq was taken over by Pernod-Ricard, leaving Cockburn with Fortune Brands
until it was bought by Symington Family Estates in 2010.
Having invested heavily in vineyards in the 1970s and 1980s, Cockburn has a number
of substantial properties in the Douro. Quinta de Santa Maria on the outskirts of Régua
relieves the pressure on the lodges in Gaia. Upstream, Cockburn has long-favoured the
Douro Superior as a source for its fruit, and in 1978 the company planted 250 hectares
of vineyard on relatively flat land at Vilariça (Quinta do Ataíde). In 1989 it added the
spectacular Quinta dos Canais to its vineyard portfolio. Wines from Canais have long
formed part of the vintage lote and are bottled as single-quinta vintage Ports in good,
interim years. Once a famous Cockburn estate, Quinta do Tua is now rebranded to
Graham and Quintas Vale Coelho and Telhada are attached to Warre.
Cockburn’s produced some superb vintage Ports in tge twentieth century, notably
1908, 1912, 1927, 1947 and 1963. But despite investing heavily in vineyards, Cockburn
neglected their winemaking over many years. Without a central winery worthy of the name,
many of Cockburn’s wines were made in bits and pieces in some fairly primitive conditions.
This goes some way to explain the inconsistency of their vintage Ports from 1975 onwards.
During this time Cockburn set their store by Special Reserve, deservedly the bestselling
brand of Port in the United Kingdom and, despite the lack of winemaking facilities, one
of the most consistent reserve Ports on the market. At the time of writing, the Symington
Family are conducting a thorough reappraisal of Cockburn. Special Reserve maintains the
same high quality even if it has moved to a younger, fresher style and there are promising
signs from recently launched LBVs, tawnies and single-quinta vintages.
castelinho
Castelinho Vinhos SA
Quinta de são domingos, apartado 140, 5054-909, Peso da Régua
tel. (351) 254 320 100
http://www.castelinho-vinhos.com
Established in 1990, Castelinho is the largest shipper of Port with its headquarters in the
Douro (as opposed to Vila Nova de Gaia). The principal shareholder is Manuel Saraiva
who made his fortune transporting Port and whose family own Quinta do Castelinho, an
A-grade property just downstream from the Valeira dam. All wine bottled with the name
Quinta do Castelinho comes from the property whereas Castelinho serves as a brand for
wines brought in from elsewhere. The company bought Quinta de São Domingos from