Any Storm Any Port

Inspired, I re-tasted some old favourites, and few new labels, and as it happens, the results fall into two neat categories featured in today's column: late bottled vintage port and tawny port.

Before we get to what those styles are all about a quick refresher on Portuguese port is probably in order.  All port, whether crushed by man or machine, begins life with a short violent fermentation that can last as little as 30 hours.

The still fermenting grape must, with an alcoholic content of six to seven degrees, is then 'run off' into large wooden casks. At this point the winemaker blends one part neutral grape brandy for every four parts of partially fermented must, raising the alcoholic content to port's traditional 20 percent level.

The fortification proves lethal to the still active yeast cells halting the fermentation in its tracks. What is left is port - strong, sweet, and fortified. From here the ultimate style of any young port depends upon the intervention of each individual Port producer.

Broadly speaking port falls into two categories--those matured in wood and those matured in bottle. What follows is a brief description of the two port types found in today's picks.

Tawny Port is barrel or wood-aged from 5 to 50 years and displays the characteristic amber/orange color and smooth, nutty tawny flavours. The best are bottled with an indication of age and fall into four categories labelled: 10, 20, 30 and 40 year-old.

Highly aromatic, these mellow wines of great distinction are not single vintage ports but rather a blend of years, where interestingly, the blend is a statement of style not mathematics. Thus any blend of years exhibiting the color, bouquet and flavour of a 10 year-old tawny, as judged by a panel of local experts at the Port Institute, receives the 10 year-old designation and so it goes for the 20, 30 and 40 year old categories.

Late Bottled Vintage Port (LBV), as the name implies, is port from a single vintage. In the past most shippers released an LBV in years deemed less than special not up to the rigourous vintage port standards, although lately this unwritten rule is no longer the norm.

LBVs age up to 4 years in wood, but can be bottled any time between their third and sixth year. Most are filtered and sold as ready-to-drink ports with no decanting necessary. The extra time in wood softens the wine, making it easier to drink at a younger age. There are exceptions that go into the bottle early, in the forth year, unfiltered, producing a style very close to true vintage port.

We begin with the Cockburn's Tawny Porto (10 Years Matured in Wood). It has the tell tale lighter amber, orange colour and the nutty walnut, rancio, tobacco nose.  The entry is elegant and warm with creamy nutty sweet licorice and dried cherry, tea, butter and dried citrus. An attractive style for sipping any time.

Next up is the Graham's 10-Year Old Tawny with its light amber, Terra Rossa red and tea colour. The nose is a spicy mix of toffee, tea and nutty licorice root aromas. Warm and round it is slightly fat in style and a touch sweeter than the competition. A fine sipping tawny to be served with a good book and a chair by the fireside.

The Dow's 10-Year Old Tawny has the requisite peppery, spicy, licorice nose, the round mellow character with fiery, rancio, spicy, nutmeg and walnut flavours flecked some dried fruit. Its slightly drier finish calls for an almond fruitcake.

Switching gears to the richer fruiter LBVs we begin with the sweeter Graham's Late Bottled Vintage Port 2000 and its enticing floral, plum, dried fig and chocolate aromas.It's an elegant, sweet style LBV with delicious spicy, licorice, black tea, clove and black cherry fruit flavours.

The Quinta do Noval Late Bottle Vintage 1999 offers an enticing mix of black cherry, smoky, peppery, fig and nutty,  licorice coffee flavours. There is excellent fruit intensity in this youthful and still fiery LBV. Tame this with raspberry/chocolate dessert.

The handy, affordable, half-bottle format of the Ferreira Late Bottle Vintage Port 2000 gets two thumbs up from me. The style is rich and round but firm with light tannins and a fine mix of acidity and sweetness. The flavours are a mix of black cherry, plum jam, licorice and tea notes with a warm, slightly chewy, coffee finish. Fine intensity and will benefit from further aging.

PORTS FOR STORMS

COCKBURN'S TAWNY PORTO (10 YEARS MATURED IN WOOD) DOURO VALLEY, PORTUGAL
Price     $39.64
UPC     5010278026164
Score   89/100
Remarks           Attractive sipper with walnut, dried cherry, tea and butter flavours.

GRAHAM'S 10-YEAR OLD TAWNY, DOURO VALLEY, PORTUGAL
Price     $37.67
UPC     05010867410220
Score   88/100
Remarks           Sweet smoky, spicy, cedar, rancio, walnut flavours.

DOW'S 10-YEAR OLD TAWNY, DOURO VALLEY, PORTUGAL
Price     $35.84
UPC     5010867200067
Score   88/100
Remarks           Spicy, peppery, nutmeg, walnut flavours with a touch of dried fruit.

GRAHAM'S LATE BOTTLED VINTAGE PORT 2000, DOURO VALLEY, PORTUGAL
Price     $26.99
UPC     05010867400092
Score   90/100
Remarks           A sweeter creamier style port with a warm smooth finish.

QUINTA DO NOVAL LATE BOTTLE VINTAGE PORT 1999, DOURO VALLEY, PORTUGAL
Price     $31.99
UPC     05601064001962
Score   89/100
Remarks           Smoky, fiery, peppery, fig, licorice, nutty, coffee flavours.
 

FERREIRA LATE BOTTLE VINTAGE PORT 2000, DOURO VALLEY, PORTUGAl
Price     $16.44
UPC     5601007425633
Score   90/100
Remarks           Delicious plum jam, earthy, licorice, peppery, spicy, tea flavours.