Any port in a storm

Cheese and port

Cheese and port - it's a winning combination. After we've over indulged on Christmas starter, turkey and desert out comes the cheeseboard and hopefully some port.

The problem is we are usually too full to appreciate the cheese and potentially won't remember the port. However, a great cheese board, in my opinion, must be married with a good port to complete the feast. Its sweetness works beautifully with salty Stilton, Roquefort and with many other cheese too.

So what is port?

As most people know it originates from Portugal, and specifically from the Duoro valley, but takes its name from the area that it is shipped from, Porto.

Wine has been made in this area for hundreds of years, indeed the Romans were planting vines back in the 7th century.

Opportunity arose in the 17th century when a trade dispute took place between France and England. Traders were tasked to find another country where they could import their beloved wines. One of the countries found was Portugal.

To stop the wine from spoiling they fortified it with brandy to help it keep during the long journey back to England. This has changed considerably over the years where alcoholic grape juice is added to the blend of northern province grapes. Typically only four local varieties (although mainly two) are blended together according to each vineyard's style.

There are four main types of port, ruby, tawny, LBV (late bottle vintage) and vintage. Each one represents a different character due to the process.

The vast majority of port is sold as a ruby.

These wines are made to be drunk young. They are harvested and sealed in large concrete or stainless steel vats. This preserves the richness and colour of the wine as no air can mix with the juice. Ruby is the least expensive but make up the vast majority of port sold today.

If you are looking for a different experience then tawny is the way to go. These are honey coloured port that are aged in wooden barrels. Air seeps through the porous wood and mixes with the juice altering its character and colour and delivering a golden coloured, nutty, sweet or medium dry port. Aged for a minimum of two years, these ports can be kept for 10, 20 or 30 years.

Vintage ports are those that are destined to be the cream of the crop. Harvested only when vintage quality has been deemed they will come from a single year's production. Barrel aged for only two and a half years they are then bottled and will require ten or more years to start to show their real potential. Prices of vintage port can regularly be in the hundreds and even in the thousands of pounds.

However, if you want to try a vintage port but don't have the deep pockets, consider an LBV (late bottled vintage). These are wines that where destined to be vintage but due to lack of demand or over production have been kept in the barrels for a longer period. They show some of the characteristics of a vintage port but at a fraction of the price and can be consumed straight away. Choose the unfiltered variety if you get a chance as this will again be closer to the vintage style. It will, however, need decanting to remove the sediment.

Whatever variety you choose it is sure to complement your cheese board and give you that Christmas warmth inside. 

Food & Wine by Paul Sheerin
Pshearse@gmail.com