Port Wine Masterclass

So exciting to attend a fabulous Masterclass on the Tawny style of Port wine in New York, at the famous Yale Club on Vanderbilt Avenue.

This was a special Port Wine promotion taking place in the USA aimed at specialists, journalists and opinion leaders.

The event began with a Masterclass with the theme Wood-Aged Portos called:: A Concert in Wine and Time.

The Producers

The title of the event seemed poetic, but didn’t make much sense to me until an impressed member of the audience asked how Port producers had the patience to wait over 40 years to bottle and sell their wine.

In this lies the magic of Port.

The opening remarks included a brief history of wood-aged port wine in Portugal, given by Louisa Fry.

The Port Wine Masterclass Tasting

In the Port Wine masterclass, Fry stressed that the Douro is the oldest demarcated and regulated wine region in the world, declared in 1756 and made a World Heritage by UNESCO She briefly went over the different styles of Port wine and the main areas of its production.

In her presentation, Fry spoke about the Port as a blended wine on many different levels, reminding the audience they will never find a single variety Port.

They are blends of:

– Different areas, altitudes, and expires

– a blend of different grape varieties

– most commonly a blend of different vingages

– commonly a blend of wines of different ages

– commonly a blend of different vineyards

Click here for Wine Resources

Producers Speak

Later in the Port Wine Masterclass, Louisa Fry turned the spotlight to the producers.

Each producer spoke while participants tasted examples of his or her wine.

The Port Wine Masterclass producers included:

Niepoort Colheita 2007

José Nogueira introduced this wine. He is the fourth generation of his family to pursue his art in Niepoort, having worked at the company for over 50 years.

It was a well made tawny single vintage port. Flavors include caramel, viscous texture, tinge of chocolate and caramel and serve with Crème brûlée and ice cream.

Later in the evening guests (myself included) enjoyed his wines during dinner at the Niepoort table.

Ramos Pinto

This 20-year-old Tawny, which the family calls P20 Ramos Pinto, is described as including as many as fifty different vintages. The blend includes aged wine as well as young wine for freshness.

Churchill

This 20-year-old Tawny port is made in drier style to conform with the classic family tradition. The well-spoken producer added that the Churchill brand is characterized by freshness, elegance and balance. He also added the interesting fact that they favor the native yeast as the fermentation is slower, so the wine extracts more color.

Sandeman

This delicious 20-year-old Tawny port was lighter in color and characterized by a sharper, more concentrated nose. The wine also carried intriguing aromas of spice, honey, and dried fruit.

Porto Reccua

This entry was a 30-year-old Tawny Port from a quality-oriented cooperative with 200 shareholders (grape growers). Their (female) winemaker spoke about her approach to blending. She added that the most important thing about a Port wine is to enjoy it with friends and family, as “life is fleeting.”

Older Wines in the Port Wine Masterclass

Rozes

This producer offered participants their 40-year-old Tawny port. Compared to the younger Tawny wines it was richer and more concentrated in flavor and aroma.

Kopke

Kopke brought a 50-year-old Tawny (a new category). This delicious wine offered aromas and flavors of dried figs, bitter orange, and Christmas spice.

Dalva

Dalva brought its 1963 vintage “Golden White” port made from (mostly) the white Malvasia grape. Nearly sixty years old, the wine tasted exceptionally fresh, characterized by marked acidity and rich flavors.