With cold spells still coming, the groundhog might have something to say about the end of winter. As with most people, I am pretty seasonal with my wine preferences. Summertime makes me thirst for cool and refreshing white wines, while fall and winter turns the focus toward red. So what do we do with port? Because of its many styles and uses, Port has no season. Port or Porto is named after Portugal, the country it was created in, but most have English names like: Warres, Dow, Taylor, Croft, Graham & Sandeman. How did it get there?
Port is a study of History. Established in 1756, the Port wine-producing region of the Douro is the third oldest protected wine region in the world after the Tokaj region in Hungary (1730) and Chianti in Italy (1716). It had to be protected because of England and its need for wine. In this moment in history, England and France would go to war periodically and when this happened, where would England go? Portugal. The wines discovered were put into barrels, loaded onto ships and sent to England, but the long trip would often make the wines spoil or oxidize. What to do? They fortified the wine or simply put high alcohol spirits such as brandy into the still red wines. This improved the shipping and shelf life of the wine. While this took many years to perfect, a neat thing happened. The brandy put into the wines killed the yeast and natural grape sugars were left. This is the reason for the subtle sweetness and rich power of one of the world’s best dessert wines.
There are some specific styles to Port offering a unique experience for different occasions, seasons and the most important, budget. There are also over 100 approved grapes from which Port can be made, but Touriga Nacional is considered the grape of Port. Port is divided into two main categories: bottle-aged and barrel-aged. This is a pretty simple breakdown and I would like to go a few steps further.
White Port: Made from white grapes; they are usually served chilled and very good on hot summer days. My favorite is made by Ramos Pinto called “Lagrima” ($18-$22) which means “Christ Tears”. Lagrima is subtly sweet and is very refreshing
Tawny Port: My favorite! These are barrel-aged ports which exposes them to gradual oxidation and evaporation. The oxidation makes the dark red color turn into a brick or tawny color. The evaporation makes the wine more viscous or thicker. These will be labeled according to their barrel age (10yr, 20yr) Tawny ports have a candied style with caramel and honey notes. If you’ve ever had a Bit-O-Honey candy, its close! Try Warres Otima 20-year Tawny ($35-$45)
Ruby Ports: These bottle-aged ports are non-vintage and usually very price friendly with most being from $13 to $20. They are simple but very tasty with a nice rich dark color. Quinta do Noval has just come out with a new ruby port called “Noval Black” ($18-$20) Awesome! It’s the best ruby I have had in a long while. Just tie a gold ribbon around it and you have a black and gold Saints gift. Don’t tell the NFL.
Late Bottled Vintage Port: Usually labeled LBV, these bottle-aged ports originally came from port that was meant for the top vintage port, but from lack of demand, hung around too long and hence, sold off at a cheaper price. They are meant to drink in the now and usually are made from grapes that don’t make the cut for the higher quality vintage wines. Try 1999 Warres LBV ($25-$30)
Single Quinta Vintage Port: These bottle-aged ports are vintage ports coming from a single Quinta or vineyard. These are sometimes bottled when a certain house does not make a vintage wine but will bottle their best vineyard site. For instance, in 1989 Warres did not make a vintage port, but did make 1989 Warres Quinta de Cavadinha ($45-$50). This port has all the quality of the vintage port without the price.
Vintage Port: These bottle-aged ports are at the top of the food chain. Usually made in only the best years, most recommend that vintage port only be opened after twenty or thirty years of vintage age. Because of this, many have a tradition of buying port in the year of a child’s birth with the intention of consuming it when he turns 21. Some examples are 50 to 100 years old. Try 2000 Warres Vintage ($60). Considering wine prices, vintage port is relatively affordable. 100 Point rated 1994 Taylor Fladgate can be bought for under $300. Conversely, 100 point rated 1994 Harlan Estate Cabernet Sauvignon goes for upward of $1000.
Port is not strictly the product of Portugal. Pontchartrain Vineyards makes one called Port of New Orleans ($25 for 375ml). Those who have traveled to wine country in California and other states will discover that a lot of wineries make Port. Made in small quantities, they are usually very good.
Port can be very bold in flavor so I like to match it with rich foods such as dark chocolate and blue cheese. Tawny, with its caramel and nutty flavors, goes great with pecan pie, fresh fruit. My favorite food match is Foie Gras.
Cooking is fun with port:
Simply put 3 cups Ruby Port into a small saucepan with 2 tablespoons sugar and reduce into a syrup for steak or lamb.
Here is a recipe for a shallot and port sauce:
Sautee ⅓ cup shallots and 1 tablespoon garlic in some olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add 1 cup ruby Port and 1 teaspoon sugar. Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. Then add 3 cups beef or chicken stock, reduce heat and cover for 20 minutes. Serve hot
Enjoy!