Fortified Wine Production Flashcards
What does fortified mean with regard to “fortified wines”?
A wine which has had its alcohol level raised through the addition of a neutral grape spirit to a point at which the yeast and bacteria can’t survive.
What made fortified wines popular during the days of sailing ships and colonization?
It kept the wines stable for long voyages to the New World; they lasted longer/didn’t spoil.
The main differences among the numerous fortified wines come from three things. What are they?
1) The grape varieties used
2) How far the fermentation is allowed to progress before the high-alcohol spirits are added
3) The aging regime after fortification
What is the minimum alcohol level of a fortified wine required to prevent additional refermentation?
15%. Typically fortified wines are 15-18% alcohol
What is the essential difference between sweet and dry style fortified wines?
Sweet styles are fortified during fermentation while dry styles are fortified after fermentation is complete and all the sugar has been converted to alcohol.
Define mutage
One of the primary ways to make a sweet wine is to add alcohol to the wine before or while it is still fermenting and has a significant amount of sugar in it. This process is known as mutage.
What is the most renowned sweet fortified wine? Where is it produced and with what grapes?
Port, produced in the Douro Valley of Portugal, using primarily Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca, and Tinto Cao.
What is a sweet style fortified wine other than Port that comes from Portugal? What grapes are used?
Setubal and some Madeiras. Setubal uses muscat. Sweet Madeiras come primarily from Malvasia, Boal, and Tinta Negra Mole
What is a sweet style fortified wine from Spain? What grapes are used?
Malaga which comes from Pedro Ximenez and Muscat
What is a dry and sweet fortified wine from Italy? What part of Italy and what grapes are used?
Marsala from the island of Sicily. Catarrato, Inzolia, and Grillo are used.
What are the three types of Marsala?
Oro (golden), Ambra (amber), and Rubino (ruby red)
What are the 3 levels of sweetness in Marsala?
Secco (dry; maximum 4% residual sugar), Semiecco (semidry; 4-10% residual sugar), or dolce (sweet; more than 10% residual sugar)
What are the 5 variations of Marsala that are based on aging?
Marsala Fine (aged for a minimum of one year), Marsala Superiore (two years), Marsala Superiore Riserva (four years or more), Marsala Vergine or Marsala Soleras (aged in a cask for a minimum of five years in a solera system like that of Sherry)
What is the most highly esteemed version of Marsala?
Vergine Stravecchio Riserva; a dry marsala that requires a minimum of ten years aging in a cask.
What is a sweet fortified wine from Greece? What grapes are used?
Mavrodaphne of Patras using Mavrodaphne grape (red from the Peloponnese region)