Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/97133
The Graham���s lodge. PHOTO: COURTESY OF GRAHAM���S PHOTO: COURTESY OF GRAHAM���S PHOTO: COURTESY OF GRAHAM���S package, it was a way to differentiate the brand from the pack. ���We looked at the aged tawny offerings and found that all key players used similar consumer messaging, with little explanation of tawny and no value hierarchy between variants that can have up to seven times the price difference,��� he says. ���Many consumers struggle to understand and express Port categories, and while this is one of the roles of packaging, [it] often does not do that.��� Sizaret explains. The new packaging not only enhances the bottle���s presence, but gives additional depth and warmth in a very premium way, as any 20- to 40-year-old Ports deserve. But this is not only about aesthetics; this is true innovation in that the higher body mass of the bottles keeps the liquid chilled one to two hours longer than conventional bottles���perfect for lingering over Graham���s Tawnies.��� The labels, too, have undergone subtle changes. While Graham���s kept its iconic label shape, it gave it a stylish tweak with enhanced coloring. And, for the irst time���for Graham���s or any Port house��� the labels carry the signature of those who crafted the wine, fourth-generation Master Blender Charles Symington, as well as the Cellar Master and Master Cooper and retired Master Blender Peter Symington. Say Sizaret, ���This was truly a work of precision where we looked at all details.��� Charton says the bottles are now in distribution in the U.S. and will start appearing on bars as onpremise accounts work through their existing inventories. Graham���s Tawnies now consist of wines aged exclusively inside the Graham���s lodge in Oporto. december 2012 / the tasting panel / 63