Vintner Views – May 2007

Port: From Portugal to Palisade

   There are several kinds of fortified wine.  The most well-known these days is port.  Port is a dessert wine, almost always made from VERY ripe grapes.  After destemming and crushing the grapes, the mixture of juice, skins, seeds and maybe some stems is inoculated with yeast as usual.  As the fermentation progresses, the yeast cells convert the sugar in the “must” to alcohol.

   If the fermentation is allowed to continue, the yeasts convert all the sugar to alcohol, assuming they can tolerate the alcohol produced by all that sugar.  However, ports are always sweet to some degree, so the winemaker uses high proof grape spirits to stop the fermentation, creating a wine that has both high residual sugar and high alcohol.

   Port is a very old style of wine originating in Portugal, specifically the coastal city of Porto where the wine is shipped all over the world.  It all began in the early 18th century when France and England were at war, and the English had little or no access to French wine.  Instead of going cold turkey, they began to get their wine from Portugal.  Since the wine often spoiled during the long trip, they began to boost the alcohol levels in the wine to preserve and protect the wine.  The practice stuck, and now we have all sorts of ports.

   Most port is made from red grapes, but there are white ports and tawny ports as well.  Ports are made all over the world, even though it all began in Portugal.  In the U.S., port made in Portugal must be called Oporto or Vinho do Porto.  Tawny port is barrel-aged usually at least 7 years, and is made from red grapes.  Because of the oxidative nature of barrel aging, the color turns to an amber brown.  Some tawny ports are aged more than forty years.  These wines are usually very expensive.

   Ruby port is far and away the most commonly produced port.  It is less expensive and retains the rich ruby color of the grapes.  It is usually blended from several different vintages of port, and it is traditionally aged 2-3 years in various tanks, barrels and other vessels before fining, filtering and bottling.  It is also considered not to improve particularly with age.

   The most well-known port is vintage port from Porto.  In order for a wine to be called Vintage Oporto, the producer must declare that particular harvest year to be of vintage quality.  Not all years are vintage quality, and the frequency of this declaration varies with the company.  Some producers rarely miss a year of vintage port, while others are more selective, declaring only the very best years to be of vintage quality.  On average, three out of ten years are declared vintage.  Vintage port accounts for only about 2% of the port produced, yet yields the highest prices paid.

   There are several other types of fortified wine.  Sherry is known better than the others which include Madeira, Vermouth, Malaga, Montilla, Marsala, Liqueur Muscat and Liqueur Tokay.             

   Several wineries in Colorado make port wines.  In fact, one winery specializes in them.  To sample a Colorado port, look no further than Graystone Winery in Palisade.  They produce both a Ruby Port and a white port.  Other producers with port offerings include Canyon Wind Cellars, Debeque Canyon Winery, Whitewater Hill Vineyards, Two Rivers Winery, and Grande River Vineyards, among others.

   Port is a rich, luscious treat, with intensity and strength.  Port is made to sip and best enjoyed after dinner with family and friends.  It’s usually served in small wine glasses called cordials because it doesn’t take much to be appreciated.  Conduct a little product exploration of your own to find a favorite flavorful fortified wine.

This article appeared in the May 16, 2007 edition of the Grand Junction Free Press.

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