From time to time I get questions „What port should I choose?“ Or „And do you drink cold or hot?“ Yeah yeah, you’re right, the instructions on the blog are missing from the beginning, so let’s finally make it clear.
1. Buy only real port
Yes, this is certainly the most important rule. I know what I drink and what I give money for. So how to know real port wine? Only reach for a bottle that has a paper label called Selo de Garantia, called the Guarantee Label in English, through a cork cap, and after ours, let’s call it a stamp.
This guarantee is issued by the Port Wine Institute IVDP and may only be used by a port producer approved by him. Nobody else. I have written more about this in this article.
This collection on the neck of the bottle is a certainty. Warranty. And the train doesn’t pass through it.
2. Experiment with flavors and aromas
Do you like port with the taste of forest fruits or do you have a tongue more for spicy aromas and you let your floor be caressed with dried fruits and cinnamon? Choose the type of port accordingly. Look for fruit in Ruby to Vintage wines. They mature almost without access to air, in stainless steel tanks, large barrels or finally in a bottle. Therefore, they hardly take on the sensory properties of wood, moreover, their color still remains dark red.
On the contrary, Tawny-hungry sweeties are probably looking forward to wine, which has taken on the characteristics of wooden barrels, in which years and decades have rested. Their gradual oxidation changes the color to amber, not unlike cognac, and their taste is sometimes reminiscent of raisins or walnuts, depending on age and method of ripening.
My tip:
Dated Tawny Quinta to Noval 20 Years Old – deliciously balanced taste of nuts and dried almonds. Carefully selected blend of wines with an average age of 20 years. Serve with cheese and salty crackers at a temperature of 9 – 14 ° C.
3. Himself the best waiter
Like any wine, port needs the right conditions when served. One of them is temperature. Port is usually served too warm, when to the detriment of the consumer, the smell does not stand out, but on the contrary, the higher alcohol content. Some manufacturers state the recommended serving temperature on the back label, where it is not, you can follow these rules:
White wines – be sure to serve chilled, the ideal temperature is around 8 ° C. If the bottle stays out of the fridge or cellar for a longer period of time, place it in the wine cooler.
Ruby, LBV, Vintage – in order to highlight the fruity aroma of the wine, we serve these types of wines at room temperature, ie around 15 – 18 ° C, while the basic Ruby can withstand a lower temperature from this range.
Tawny, dated Tawny, Colheita – port wines aged in wood are good to cool to 13 – 16 ° C before serving. You will enjoy it more if you let the older Tawny cool longer than the younger one.
Especially Vintage wines will be good or even necessary to decant. Use a glass cutter and slowly pour the wine into it through a decanting funnel with a fine sieve. It captures natural deposits from the bottle and at the same time aerates the wine. Serve immediately, after a long time oxidation occurs and the experience of its quality quickly disappears.
What about glasses? It would be a great pity to pour port into whiskey or cognac, it is not suitable there. It has its ideal glass – it is tulip-shaped on a short stem so that the scent stays inside and does not soon disappear. But nothing much will happen if you don’t have it. It is not a complete transgression to enjoy it from a red wine glass – in the shape of a round on a higher stem.
The official glasses designed by IVDP especially for the tasting of port wine U Churchillů, however, I really liked from these higher and more rounded
4. Pair it with the delicacies
You will get an even better experience when combined with something small to eat. For Ruby wines, try chocolates or sweet muffins. I would go to Tawny again with Stilton cheese, salty sticks or crackers. A trip to the heavenly gastronomic heights is then a poached pear on port wine. In the article What port tastes with, I write more about this topic.
My tips:
On hot summer days, Port Tonic is beautifully refreshed. Put ice in a long glass first, then 1/3 of white dry port wine, add tonic, garnish at the top with lime and a sprig of mint.
But now in the winter, try Glogg – a magical port welder with mysterious effects on the human psyche and body stability.
5. Create the right atmosphere
Due to the higher alcohol content of port wine, you probably won’t just open a bottle for television, let alone look at the bottom that evening. I mean – of course I don’t want to underestimate you, they can do it too. However, he will get his opportunity especially during jubilee celebrations, before or after a good lunch or dinner and as a toast. However, its charm will also appeal to pensive single loners or couples in love. And it doesn’t matter when.
If you are not sure about the choice of port wine, write me down in the comments or e-mail, I will be happy to advise you. And when you get a taste for it, take a look at the e-shop with port wine with a large selection and affordable prices.
