Symington invests in land and brands

Despite the challenges facing the Port industry, Symington Family Estates has invested in a new vineyard, visitor centres and an advertising campaign for Cockburn’s.

Paul Symington said his family has bought a further 40 hectares of grade A vineyard in the Douro

In a discussion with the drinks business earlier this month, Paul Symington, co-chairman of Symington Family Estates, said the company, which owns Graham’s, Cockburn’s, Dow’s and Warre’s port brands, had “just bought” a 40 hectare ‘A’-grade vineyard in the Douro.

“We have agreed the price and paid the deposit but we haven’t closed the deal,” he said, explaining that he would announce the exact location of the land when all the papers had been signed.

He said that the vineyard was “important” and adjoined existing Symington land, before telling db that the deal would cost the Symington family €1 million and take the company’s total landholding in the Douro to over 1,000 hectares from its current 964ha total.

He also commented, “When the vineyard is renovated it will be a really important contributor to the quality of our grapes.”

Meanwhile, he recorded the advent of a new advertising campaign in the UK for the Cockburn’s port brand, which the Symington family bought in October 2010, and repackaged in September 2011.

Symington said such expenditure on marketing was the next step in “the recovery of this great name”, while pointing out that “there are few companies left who continue to invest in Port, but my family and I are absolutely convinced that there is a great future for this, the greatest of all fortified wines.”

He also recorded the success of the Symington’s first restaurant, called Vinum at Graham’s newly refurbished Port lodge and visitor centre in Porto.

Raising as much as €500,000 in turnover since opening in March this year, Symington said the restaurant and visitor centre had required an additional 20 staff to handle the high number of locals and tourists coming to the new attraction.

“One million tourists come to Porto each year and Vinum and the Graham’s lodge are increasingly high on the list of things to do when they come here,” he said.

The Symington’s first restaurant is called Vinum, and housed within the refurbished Graham’s visitor centre in Porto

Symington Family Estates has also opened a visitor centre at the Cockburn’s lodge and, outside Porto, the group is currently renovating the winery at Dow’s Quinta do Bomfim, where Symington said there would also soon be a visitor centre, taking the family’s number of tourist facilities to a total of three.

However, speaking to db about the general state of the Port trade, Symington stressed the need to adapt to a changing market for the fortified wine.

“Producers need to focus on premium Port and adding value… there are a lot even in Portugal who still don’t understand that Port is not an everyday drink.”

Continuing he said, “The days of Port being a prerequisite on any wine list has gone… Port is an occasional drink and it needs to be a special occasion drink.”

For more on the challenges facing the Port trade click here.