Port Flashcards
In which year was the Douro valley demarcated?
- 1756
Who controls the quality of Port in Portugal?
Instituto Do Vinho Do Porto with its tasting panel called Câmara de Provadores.
What is the allowed yield for Douro?
Red grapes - 55 hl/ha
White grapes - 65 hl/ha.
What are the red grapes for Port?
- Tourigo Nacional
- Tinta Baroca
- Tinta Cao
- Tinta Roriz
- Tourigo Franca
- Trincadera aka Tinta Amarela
- Bastardo
- Mourisco Tinto.
What are the white grapes for Port?
- Arinto
- Donzelino Branca
- Gouveio aka Verdelho
- Malvasia Fino
- Rabigato
- Viosinho
- Esgana Cão
- Folgasão
What is Vinhos ao Alta?
A new planting system abandons traditional terraces in favor of planting vines in vertical rows leading directly up the slopes.
What is Patamares?
Wider terraces that can be navigated by tractor.
What is Beneficio?
The fortification process (Beneficio) of wine with spirit which occurs when approximately one-third of the sugar content has been converted to alcohol.
To what alcohol % is port fortified?
The wine is fortified to 19-22% abv by the addition of aguardente “burning water” a 77% abv neutral grape spirit.
What does beneficio do to the wine?
The process of beneficio (known to the French as mutage) halts fermentation, killing the yeasts and preserving sweetness in the Port.
What is the capacity of a “pipe”?
- 550 L
- 620 L (Vila Nova de Gaia)
Name the two major types of Port.
- Ruby Ports
- Tawny Ports
Name the various categories of Ruby ports.
- Ruby Port
- Ruby Reserve Port
- Vintage Port
- Single Quinta Vintage Port
- Late-Bottled Vintage Port
Name the various categories of Tawny ports.
- Tawny Port
- Reserve Tawny
- Tawny with Indication of Age
- Colheita Tawny
Describe Ruby port.
Ruby Port is often aged in bulk (in wood, cement, or stainless steel) for two to three years prior to bottling. The wine is uncomplicated, deeply colored, and inexpensive. Ruby Port does not carry a vintage date.
Describe Ruby Reserve port.
Ruby Reserve, or Premium Ruby, replaced the term “Vintage Character” and offers more complexity and character than a basic Ruby Port.
Describe Vintage Port.
Vintage Port is the most expensive style of Port to purchase and constitutes approximately 1-3% of production.
Who declares a vintage in Port?
A Port house will usually declare a vintage year only in exceptional harvests—often a given house will, on average, declare a vintage three years out of every decade.
What is Vintage Port?
- Made in a declared vintage
- Matured for 2 years in cask then bottled
- Aged in bottle for 10-15 years
- 20-22% ABV
- Needs to be decanted.
What is Single Quinta Vintage Port?
A single quinta Vintage Port is the product of one estate’s harvest.
Name a few Single Quinta Ports. (part 1)
- Croft - Crofts do Rôeda
- Calem - Quinta do Foz
- Cockburn’s - Quinta dos Canalis
- Delaforce - Quinta da Corte
- Dow’s - Quinta do Bomfin / Quinta do Senhora da Ribeiro.
Name a few Single Quinta Ports. (part 2)
- Ferreira - Quinta do Porto / Quinta do Seixo
- Fonseca - do Panascal
- Graham - dos Malvedos
- Niepoort - Quinta do Passadouro
- Sandeman - Quinta do Vau
- Taylor’s - Vargellas / Quinta de Terra Feita
- Quinta do Noval - Quinta do Silval
- Warre - Quinta do Cavadinha
What is Late-Bottled Vintage Port?
- Single year ports.
- Matured in wood for 4-6 years.
- Year of the vintage and year of bottling is stated on the label.
- Can be filtered or unfiltered (bottle Matured)
What is Envelhecido em Garrafa?
- Superior style LBV.
- Always reach full maturity sooner than a Vintage Port.
- Unfiltered LBV.
- Additional minimum three years of bottle aging.
What is Tawny Port?
- Multi vintage blended port.
- Commercial Tawny port - Blended white & ruby port.
What is Reserve Tawny Port?
- Multi vintage blended port.
- Aged for at least seven years prior to bottling.
What is Fine Old Tawny Port or Aged Tawny?
- Oak matured wine which causes the colour to become tawny and loose some sweetness.
- Matured for 10, 20, 30 or over 40 years.
- The number on the bottle refers to the approximate age of the wine.
What is a Colheita Tawny Port?
A Single vintage Tawny with a minimum 7 years in cask.
Name a shipper who specializes in Colheita Tawny.
Calem; will not bottle Colheita Tawny Ports until an order is received. Thus, Colheita Tawny Port from a particular vintage may vary in character from bottle to bottle.
What is the minimum residual sugar for all ports?
- 17.5 g/L.
What are the sub-regions of Porto?
- Baixo Corgo (coolest & wettest)
- Cima Corgo
- Douro Superior (hottest & driest)
Where are the best vineyards in Douro located?
Around the town of Pinhão which is 32kms upriver from Régua.
What is the soil of Douro?
- Slate and granite. Schistose soils are best for Port grapes.
What is Crusted Port?
- Blended Port (multi-vintage)
- Unfiltered and need decanting.
- Matured in bottle for min. 3 years.
List the recent vintage years for Port.
70’s - 1970, 1975, 1977
80’s - 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985
90’s - 1991, 1992, 1994, 1997
00’s - 2000, 2003, 2007, 2011
Which vintages were declared only by Quinta de Noval?
2004, 2008, 2012
