Brew Hops & Wine Stops

While I’m a Floridian at heart, there is something to be said about enjoying cool weather.  There’s something about curling up underneath a blanket with a nice glass of wine.  There is one wine in particular I save for these rare occasions: Port.

For clarification, I’m referring to the fortified wine from Portugal (specifically, the Douro region).  There are over 100 different varieties of grapes grown in the region, all used in Port production.  The process of making Port involves stopping the fermentation while still sweet with alcohol.  This gives the wine high alcohol content (19-23%) and makes it very age worthy.  There are 4 basic types of Port and knowing the differences beforehand can make staring at the rows of bottles on the shelves a bit easier.

The first type is Vintage Port.  While the most expensive, it also has the most ageing potential (up to 50 or more years!).  These are produced only in the best years and the winery must declare a vintage by sending a sample to the IVDP (Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto) for approval.  If approved, the producer officially declares the vintage.  Vintage Port only accounts for about 2% of Port production, which makes these bottles quite prized.  The ports are aged in the barrel for a maximum of 2 ½ years before bottling and then aged in the bottle for another 10-40 years.  Over time, Vintage Port gradually gains complexity and character.  

The next type of Port is Ruby Port.  While it’s the most basic port, it’s also one of the least expensive.  After fermentation, the wine is stored in stainless steel or concrete tanks.  This keeps the wine from oxidizing and preserves it’s rich, purple color.  It is sweet, grapey, and ready to drink upon release.  It does not usually benefit from prolonged bottle ageing, so drink up!

Tawny port is where things get interesting.  White wine (though made from red grapes) spends at least 2 years in barrels (though sometimes much longer).  This exposes the wine to gradual oxidation and evaporation, imparting nutty and oaky flavors into the wine and resulting in a golden brown color.  Tawny ports are blended for age profiles (indicated by a 10, 20, 30 year and so on).  These are blended Ports aimed at the profile of the age, not the actual age of the wine.  Thus a 30 year Tawny is actually blended to taste like a well-aged port, not actually aged that long.  An interesting and rarer type of Tawny Port is called Colheitas.  This is with a vintage year on the bottle that has been aged in a barrel for many years before being bottled and sold. 

The final and most confusing type of Port is, well, everything else.  These are indicated by different bottles with terms like LBV (Late bottle Vintage), Reserve, or no information at all.  These usually much less expensive than Vintage Ports, and are ready to drink when sold.  LBVs are Ports that were left in the barrel past the required time to declare a vintage.  They are usually bottled 4-6 years after the vintage and have a year on the label after the LBV.  Reserve Ports are blends of different Ports approved by the IVDP as a premium product.  Crusted ports usually have little or no information on the bottle.  These are blended Ports, usually unfiltered, and aged in the bottle for at least 3 years. So get out there and drink some Port!  It just isn’t the same when it’s hot outside! 

Bill Dahl, ABC Fine Wine & Spirits wine consultant 

Follow me on Twitter @ABCwineBillD

Over the years I’ve certainly come to appreciate many different styles of wines.  One subject that I deal with on a daily basis is that of sweet wines.  These are wines that “true wine-lovers” love to hate.  For many, anything remotely sweet is considered taboo and not “true” wine.  The sugar levels and alcohol percentage (a good judge of dryness) come up when discussing almost every single wine. 

As a wine lover myself, I have a confession to make:  I like sweet wines.  A splash of good sweet wine really hits the spot after a heavy (or spicy) meal like nothing else.  It’s cold, refreshing, and it is a good replacement for more heavy foods, such as dessert.  The key to enjoying sweet wines is to keep the portions small and focus on quality over quantity. 

One of the reasons I’ve developed a taste for sweet wines is my wife.  She detests anything dry, but also pushes away anything sweet for sweet’s sake.  White Zinfandel and Moscato, for example, are either too sweet or too sticky for her tastes.  This has led me to discover some wines that fit her tastes and that I can appreciate with her. 

Sangue di Giuda is a wonderful, slightly fizzy red, with just enough depth to appreciate and just enough sweetness to satisfy a sweet tooth.  Our favorite (Giorgi Costarosa $13.99) is a blend of Barbera, Croatina and Uva Rara from Pavese in Italy.  The grapes are crushed and fermented until an alcohol of 6% is established.  It is then chilled to stop fermentation and put into a pressurized steel tank to give it a delightful spritz.  The sugars are nicely balanced by the acidity and tannins of the grapes and the slight bubbles lighten up the wine.  It’s grapey, sweet, smooth and nicely balanced.  The crisp finish makes you want to take sip after sip until the bottle is gone.  It’s fantastic with dark chocolate.

Brachetto di A’cqui is another delightful dessert wine from the Piedmonte area of Italy.  It’s made from its own grape (brachetto) with occasional small amounts of other grapes.  Villa Baglio makes a fantastic one ($13.99), and can be found near the sparkling wines at your local ABC.  Brachetto is a sparkling red wine with many tiny bubbles and fantastic flavors of cherry, raspberry, and plum.  The alcohol is only 6.5%, so you can share a bottle and enjoy your afternoon.  The tannins in this wine balance the sweetness nicely, so it still has a nice dryness at the finish. 

So while they might not be for everyone, some sweet wines have found a home on my rack.  After all, there is nothing like enjoying a bottle of wine with a loved-one.  So take a leap and seek out a sweet wine to introduce to someone who thinks they don’t like wine.

Bill Dahl, wine consultant at ABC Fine Wine & Spirits Lakeland

Follow me on Twitter @abcwinebilld.