Robert Oster DPS 2026 Love Letters — 4ml Fountain Pen Ink Sample

Hue: A deep cherry red that leans wine-dark. Robert Oster and the Dutch Pen Show describe it as a rich, romantic red, and in writing that holds up — the handwriting sample is a clear crimson. My swatches show it running noticeably darker and more burgundy than "red" suggests once it pools, with a cool magenta-pink edge visible where the swab runs thin. Treat it as a burgundy-red rather than a bright postbox red.

Shading: Moderate to strong. The writing sample shifts from crimson in thin strokes to a much darker wine in the down-strokes and loops, and the swab bar shows clear tonal variation across a single pass.

Sheen: Subtle bronze, reported in show coverage and consistent with what my swatches do — heavy pools band with a dark bronze-brown at the edges. It is a pooling effect rather than a writing one; don't expect it in normal use with a fine or medium nib.

Shimmer: None.

Flow: Wet.

The interesting bit: Love Letters was the official show ink for the Dutch Pen Show 2026, made by Robert Oster for that year's show theme of the same name — handwritten correspondence, the thing the whole hobby quietly exists to serve. It was released alongside matching Love Letters exclusive pens from Monteverde, Leonardo and Scribo, and the bottles were sold on behalf of the show organisers with the proceeds going back into running the show. Robert Oster himself makes his inks in Coonawarra, South Australia, better known for its red wine — which, looking at this one in a pool, tracks.

This is a hand-decanted 4ml sample vial from my own bottle.

Photos are my own swatches on Tomoe River Paper.

I'm a collector and I'm always happy to talk ink, so please message me if you have any questions.