Port Flashcards
—— is a sweet, fortified wine hailing from the Douro region of Portugal.
Port
This wine originates from trade
wars between England and France in the 17th century, causing England to increase trade
with Portugal.
Port
Traditionally, shippers were agents that took a commission for shipping Port abroad or acquired Port from brokers in the Douro and then stored them in ‘’——” (wine cellars/warehouses) in Vila Nova de Gaia (located on opposite
side of the mouth of the River Douro to Porto), prior to onward shipment overseas.
lodges
The Douro region is located in the —– of Portugal.
north east
What is the climate of Douro?
warm continental climate
The vineyard area follows the path of the River Douro and is divided into three subregions, what are those?
Baixo Corgo, Cima Corgo and Douro Superior.
The most westerly of the regions, the
—— , is the coolest and wettest (900mm rainfall per annum), being nearest the cold Atlantic coast. With its cooler climate, it tends to produce fruit for many of the inexpensive Ruby and Tawny Ports.
Baixo Corgo
The ——- is warmer and drier (around 700mm rainfall per annum), and most of the well-known producers have vineyards in this region, which are used to produce Age-Indicated Tawny Port and Vintage Ports.
Cima Corgo
——–, which is furthest from the coast, is the hottest and driest sub region (450mm rainfall per annum) and drought is a frequent issue. The Douro Superior is still relatively sparsely planted, but as it contains some flatter land which allows mechanisation, plantings are increasing.
Douro Superior
The stony, shallow soils of the Douro are free-draining and poor in nutrients, which ———.
limits vigour
The underlying bedrock in Douro is —–, a type of rock that crumbles into layers relatively easily.
schist
Due to ———, the schist in the area splits into vertical layers (rather than the more typical horizontal) and therefore vine roots are able to penetrate deep into the bedrock to find water.
ancient tectonic movements
Three types of vineyard layout are in place in the Douro:
Socalcos
Patamares
Vinha ao Alto
——are narrow terraces, supported by walls of dry rock. They allow for planting densities of around 6,000 vines per hectare. This layout is typically not suitable for mechanisation (plus labour is required to maintain the walls), and for this reason they are not usually considered when planting a new vineyard. They are protected by UNESCO, and for that reason cannot be converted to any other layouts. The
vines can be planted at lower densities to allow for a small tractor to enter the terraces to reduce so much need for labour.
Socalcos
These are terraces supported by a steep earth ramp, rather than a stone wall. Small tractors are able to run up and down the slopes by the use of tracks that run diagonally up the slope.
——- are cheaper to implement and maintain than socalcos, however, erosion and the growth of weeds on the ramps can be problematic. Planting densities are relatively low, around 3,000 to 3,500 vines per hectare, as the ramps take up a lot of space.
Patamares
In this layout option, the vines are planted in vertical rows up the slopes. It is the least expensive option to plant and maintain and allows for relatively high-density planting (around 5,000 vines per hectare), and hence efficient use of land. However, above a 40% incline, mechanisation cannot be used, and therefore patamares are more likely to be used in these cases. Water run-off and erosion can also be significant problems. Use of this vineyard layout is currently relatively limited.
Vinha ao Alto
There are over 100 grape varieties permitted for the production of Port.
True
Since the 1980s five prescribed varieties have been the focus of replanting efforts and clonal research; those are:
Touriga Franca Black
Tinta Roriz also called Tempranillo + Aragonez
Tinta Barroca Black
Touriga Nacional Black
Tinto Cão Black
Tinta Amarela Black
Sousão Black
The key white grapes for Port production are:
Malvasia Fina – (Boal in Madeira)
Moscatel Galego Branco – (Muscat Blanc à Petit Grains)
In Port production, fermentation is stopped by the addition of grape spirit to create a sweet wine (usually 80–120 g/L residual sugar). The maceration with the skins lasts for a maximum of two days and therefore extraction techniques need to be very effective.
True
What are the key methods of
extraction during the fermentation include:
Foot treading in lagares
Modern lagares
Pumping over
Stainless-steel pistons
Autovinifiers
Port legislation states that the spirit used to fortify the wine must come from grapes or other grape-derived products and it must be of 77% abv (+/– 0.5%). This spirit is typically called aguardente. All Port is fortified to an alcoholic strength between 19–22% abv.
True
The fermentation is stopped when the wine reaches around 5–7% abv.
True
Basic Ruby and Tawny ageing
This includes fermenting in stainless steel or concrete and ageing thewines in bulk (usually in stainless steel or concrete vessels, or sometimes large old wooden vessels) for a maximum of three years.
Reserve Tawnies must be aged in wood for a minimum of six years.
True
There is no minimum ageing period for Reserve Ruby Ports
True
Tawny with an Indication of Age have been aged for long periods of time in wooden barrels. The barrels typically used are called pipes and hold 620–640 litres. These vessels permit a controlled exposure to oxygen and over time tannins soften, alcohol becomes more integrated, and primary flavours of fruit develop into tertiary flavours from fruit development (e.g. dried fruit) and oxidation (e.g. caramel, nuts).
True
