Artisan Cheeses By Wine Type: Port
White Port is made from a selection of white grape varieties, and is then aged and fortified. It is typically a simple multi-year blend of vintages, can be sweet or dry depending on the house style.
Ruby Port is the most basic of port styles. This is made with a blend of red grape varieties and is blended from several years. It should not be aged, and tends to taste of berries, with light tannins.
Tawny Port is a ruby port that has been aged for several years in small oak barrels. This gives the port a tawny color, as well as a buttery, nutty caramel flavor. If a tawny port is listed as being "10 years" or "20 years", this means that the *average* vintages used in the blend is that number. A 10 year tawny might include some wine from 8 years old, and some from 12 years old, and so on. These are usually sweet.
Late Bottled Vintage was created specifically for the restaurant market, to give them a vintage type port that did not have a sediment and could last a while after being opened. The winemaker filters and fines this port and then pre-ages it for the consumer, usually for 6 or more years. When you buy your LBV port, you should drink it soon - it is not meant for aging. When you open this bottle, though, you can expect it to last for a full month before starting to lose its flavor.
Vintage Port is the high end of port releases. Only the best years are declared a vintage and used for this purpose. All of the grapes from a single harvest are used in a given wine. A 2000 vintage port contains only grapes from the 2000 harvest. This wine is aged in oak and then aged in the bottle. When you buy a vintage port, often YOU must then age it for another 10-30 years before it is at its best drinking flavor. This is the type of port you find in expensive cellars, waiting for decades to be enjoyed.
|
|
|
