1 bottle of 1974 Dow's Single Harvest Port Wine Bottled in 2014 Original case include. Bottle in perfect condition stored in underground cellar. - the house of Dow's In 1798 a Portuguese merchant called Bruno da Silva arrived in London to see what business he might be able to open up with his native city of Porto, and so started the wine-importing company which fifty years later became Silva & Cosens when William Cosens of London joined the partnership. In the early part of the 19th century when England and France were continually at war, Bruno da Silva applied for ‘letters of Marque’, equipped a privateer carrying nine guns, and carried safely many consignments of wines from Porto to Bristol and London. In 1868 George A. Warre, from one of the most established British families in Oporto, became a partner and was subsequently joined by James Ramsay Dow in 1877, when the firm of Dow & Co. was merged with Silva & Cosens (the firm of Messrs. Dow & Co). Today Silva & Cosens forms part of the Symington group. The single biggest part being shipped under the Dow's name. In 1998, the Bicentenary of the founding of the company, a new milestone was reached with the re-acquisition of Quinta da Senhora da Ribeira. This outstanding property was originally acquired by Dow's in 1890, but was sold in 1954 when the Port trade was at its lowest point and when many Port companies either closed down or were sold. Dow's wines are made in a drier style which is not to everyone's taste, but have magnificent ageing potential and they do need to be aged in order to appreciate their real potential. PLEASE NOTE: This is a recurring auction. Therefore, the ​seal number(s) you see in the photos might differ from the one(s) on your bottle(s).