Porto Flashcards
Port
the famous fortified wine of Portugal’s Douro Valley
Porto DOP location
-within The Duriense IGP a slender region that encompasses the eastern, mountainous Douro River Valley south of Transmontano
Porto DOP climate
-warm to hot climate
Port basics
- fortified during fermentation
- occurs when approximately one-third of the sugar content has been converted to alcohol. The wine is fortified to 19-22% abv by the addition of aguardente a 77% abv neutral grape spirit
- bottled-aged or wood-aged
What is Beneficio?
- the fortification of wine with spirit
- known to the French as mutage
- halts fermentation, killing the yeasts and preserving sweetness in the Port
what is a Pipe when talking about Port?
The traditional barrel used for both aging and shipping Port wine,
- pipes used in the Douro Valley usually hold 550 liters
- pipes in Vila Nova de Gaia may often contain 620 liters.
- for shipping Port is set at 534.24 liters, although pipes used for shipping Madeira or Marsala are smaller.
The preferred red grapes are for Porto are?
Touriga Nacional Touriga Francesa Tinta Roriz Tinta Cão Tinta Barroca Tinta Amarela Tinta Francisca Bastardo Mourisco Tinto -They must constitute a minimum 60% of the blend
Preferred white Port grapes include?
Gouveio Malvasia Fina Viosinho Rabigato Esgana Cão Folgasão
Styles of Port
- Ruby
- Tawny
Ruby Ports
-Vintage Ports
-bottle-aged
With the exception of well-aged, venerable Vintage Ports, Ruby Port wines will display darker color, more youthful fruit and spice tones, and a more aggressive, fiery character.
Tawny ports
- cask-aged
- develop more complex, mature tones of toffee, dried fruits, and toasted nuts with time.
- Tawny Port, naturally, develops lighter, amber tones of color as it ages in wood.
Ruby port styles
- Ruby Port
- Ruby Reserve Port
- Vintage Port
- Single Quinta Vintage Port
- Late-Bottled Vintage Port
Ruby Port
- 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.
Ruby Reserve Port:
-Ruby Reserve, or Premium Ruby, replaced the term “Vintage Character” and offers more complexity and character than a basic Ruby Port.
Vintage Port
- the most expensive style of Port to purchase and constitutes approximately 1-3% of production.
- 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.
- Vintage Port must be authorized by the IVDP, and is aged in cask before being bottled by July 30 of the third year after harvest.
- Mature Vintage Port requires decanting
- Quality is a chief factor in determining a vintage year, and a house will utilize the best vineyards available to it when creating a vintage blend, yet market concerns also play a role.
- Back-to-back, or “split” vintages are rare, as few shippers want to flood the market lest prices plunge.