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port

Jean Blanchard

By Jean Blanchard
in Wine

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Busboy

Busboy

Posted
Posted
I need to buy a decent bottle of port and I'm clueless.  In the range of $60.00, can I get something good?  Recommendations?

Jean

Other may know better but I think you might have trouble getting a full bottle of vintage port that's not way too young to drink for $60.

On the other hand Graham's makes a non-vintage blended Port called 6 Grapes which I find quite tasty, and it retails for about $25. Makes a fine accompaniment to a wedge of Stilton.

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eje

eje

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Could you be more specific what you are looking for?

A gift? To drink now? To accompany a specific dish?

Under that price range, you could get a fine Tawny Port, any one of the Non-Vintage ports, (like the 6 Grapes busboy mentions,) from the major producers, or a Late Bottled Vintage Port.

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Erik Ellestad

If the ocean was whiskey and I was a duck...

Bernal Heights, SF, CA

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MGLloyd

MGLloyd

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In terms of a readily-available port that many people like, I often recommend Fonseca Bin 27. I have discovered that a lot of people prefer ruby to a tawny port. So when I am taking a bottle of port to an event, and I don't know the tastes of the people there, Bin 27 is my usual choice.

Edited by MGLloyd (log)

Regards,

Michael Lloyd

Mill Creek, Washington USA

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Jean Blanchard

Jean Blanchard

Posted
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Posted
Could you be more specific what you are looking for?

A gift?  To drink now?  To accompany a specific dish?

Under that price range, you could get a fine Tawny Port, any one of the Non-Vintage ports, (like the 6 Grapes busboy mentions,) from the major producers, or a Late Bottled Vintage Port.

This is a gift for my husband and he'll want to drink now. He's had some port, dining in restaurants but basically, it's a newly acquired taste. So what would you recommend for someone who is enjoying port but hasn't had much experience with it yet. Thanks for all of your input.

jb

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jayt90

jayt90

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Posted (edited)

I like the LBV's (late bottled vintage port) but only those that are bottled 4 years after vintage, such as Warre's or Smith Woodhouse. $25 is typical. They throw a deposit and may need decanting. The other LBV's are filtered and bottled after six years, and are not usually as good.

If you need to spend $60, get a tawny rather vintage.

Edited by jayt90 (log)
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Brad Ballinger

Brad Ballinger

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Get a 20-year Tawny Port. Many consider that the best age for tawny port. And many are very good (and habit-forming). In your price range, consider Taylor Fladgate's 20-year Tawny.

We cannot employ the mind to advantage when we are filled with excessive food and drink - Cicero

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Dana

Dana

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I second the Taylor's Fladgate. I went to a wine paring last fall where it was served with a flourless chocolate cake. It was incredibly good. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. It is about $45 at my discount wine store.

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doviakw

doviakw

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Get a 20-year Tawny Port.  Many consider that the best age for tawny port.  And many are very good (and habit-forming).  In your price range, consider Taylor Fladgate's 20-year Tawny.

In addition to the "habit-forming" aspect, a Tawny Port is generally forgiving if you choose not to finish the whole bottle at once.

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Brad Ballinger

Brad Ballinger

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Once a port is opened, how long does it last?

Opinions vary, but if stored somewhere cellar-like, about a month. Some will say as much as three months, but I think you'll detect a change in it by that time.

We cannot employ the mind to advantage when we are filled with excessive food and drink - Cicero

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Peter the eater

Peter the eater

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For $60 US I can get five litres (1.3 gallons) of my go-to fortified wine Andres Private Stock Ruby Port which in my estimation is an outstanding value. Unfortunately I doubt its available outside of Canada, so I guess thats not too helpful. I can say that there are tons of affordable ports out there and one ought not ignore those $10-20 US Portuguese Portos.

Peter Gamble aka "Peter the eater"

I just made a cornish game hen with chestnut stuffing. . .

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JasonZ

JasonZ

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Brad B is right ... for a non-vintage port, once opened about a month under OK storage conditions. If you have a VacuVan or some other device to suck air out of the bottle, you can easily get 3 months. Tawny ports are pretty forgiving in this aspect, since they've done most of their oxidizing in the vat for their 6 years or so.

LBV (Late Bottled Vintage) is another choice ... these are ports from a single year's harvest that are of vintage or subvintage quality, but usually in a year where a vintage is not declared (vintages are declared about 3 times in a decade), and since vintage port must (by law) be bottled 2 years after the vintage is harvested, wine for LBV is stored in cask longer (usually 4-6 years), then bottled (hence the "late" in LBV). LBVs are ready for drinking when they're bottled or they can be aged for a short while (up to 10 years, nothing like the 40-70 years of a great vintage port).

The tawnies, like the Taylor Fladgate, are blends of ports of varying ages, so a "20 year" old tawny will have mostly 20 year old port, but also a mix of some very old stuff and some very young stuff. Here, the blender's art is what counts in creating the flavor.

JasonZ

Philadelphia, PA, USA and Sandwich, Kent, UK

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JasonZ

JasonZ

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BTW, if your husband is becoming interested, there are all sorts of wonderful books and websites devoted to port ... and you should plan a vacation to Portugal!!

JasonZ

Philadelphia, PA, USA and Sandwich, Kent, UK

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Jean Blanchard

Jean Blanchard

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BTW, if your husband is becoming interested, there are all sorts of wonderful books and websites devoted to port ... and you should plan a vacation to Portugal!!

A trip to Portugal is definitely in the near future. He is very much enjoying his port and sharing with friends after dinner and I'm thinking that I need to pair it with a dessert. We were planning on Spain/Portugal next year anyway but this just adds a new dimension. Thanks to everybody for all of your advice.

Jean

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