Timing is everything with vintage ports
Spring's awakening brings renewed energy to vines and vignerons in every wine-growing region. Sap rises in advance of the first green shoots, and the new growing season miraculously unfolds.
In Portugal, highly anticipated vintage port declarations only heighten the excitement. Vintage ports contain wine from only a single year, unlike most ports that blend wines of several harvests. Such declarations occur typically only two or three times per decade, so the stakes are high.
"Vintage ports being one of the world's longest-lived wines means our reputation rests in every bottle," says Rupert Symington, joint managing director of Symington Family Estates, which oversees eight long-established port houses including Graham's, Dow's and Warre's.
"Choosing the right vintages becomes critical," says Symington, who recently made news by declaring 2007 as a vintage. "2007 was fabulous. The vines provided beautifully balanced fruit harvested under the finest conditions possible."
Understanding the process of declaring vintage ports traces back to the vineyards and terroir. In this case, unusual varieties such as Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesca, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Barroca grow on steep hillsides along the Douro River's snaking course to the sea in northern Portugal.
"We have hybrids of vines brought by the Roman soldiers over 2,000 years ago to the Douro," Symington says with a laugh. Extreme growing conditions contribute to the grapes' special character.
"The Douro Valley combines well-drained, stony soils with drought conditions," Symington says. "So the vines go down deep in the rocks for the collected rains. This gives the grapes terrific mineral qualities."
In addition, the grapes' unusual thick skins resist the drought to produce naturally low yields with distinctive aromas and flavors. According to Symington, this contributes to port wines' natural fruity concentration and complexity.
Gentle fermentation extracts the grapes' fruity essence and distinct character. A portion of the harvest still receives time-honored treading under human foot in stone "lagares." But Symington Estates also uses modern robotic machines mimicking the crucial gentle treading during fermentation.
After fermenting briefly for three days, introducing natural grape spirits into the must curtails fermentation while preserving fruity lushness. The spirits also create port's trademark high alcohol content, around 20 percent.
The wines then rest in huge, seasoned oak barrels to "settle" for 18 months or so. If they measure up in the second spring after fermentation, the vintage declaration goes forth with much fanfare. Bottling occurs without fining or filtering, says Symington, "so all the goodness goes into the bottle."
Being quite fiery in their youth, vintage ports typically benefit from patient, horizontal cellar aging for at least 20 years. As they mellow, the wines throw heavy sediments, necessitating careful decanting before serving.
A rest in the decanter for an hour also allows the wine to open with full aromas prior to enjoyment. Vintage ports make a superb match with strong cheeses such as Roquefort served with nuts and fruit after a fine dinner.
Alternatively, enjoying "vintage-style" ports such as "Late Bottled Vintage" (LBV) and "Reserve" wines can be fun. Neither requires decanting prior to serving.
LBVs contain wine from only one very good, but not necessarily fabulous, vintage. Typically, aging in neutral wood for several years before bottling and several more years in the bottle before release mellows the wines. Possessing less power and concentration than vintage ports, LBVs resemble vintage ports by offering "ruby" color along with forward, fresh fruitiness, lively acidity and mineral notes.
"Reserve" ports blend wines from several vintages aged for about three or four years in wood before bottling. Again, they lack vintage port's profound complexity and concentration, but still deliver lovely aromas and lush fruitiness.
Try the following ready for enjoyment:
Graham's Six Grapes "Reserve" Porto (8173; $23.99): The dark ruby color offers ripe, dark fruit aromas and flavors beautifully balanced thorough a robust finish. Recommended.
Smith Woodhouse, 1995 Late Bottle Vintage Porto (Specialty 29728; $27.99): Bottled without filtering and released after extra-long bottle aging, this outstanding wine's dark garnet color offers ripe, lush fruit and complex, delicious chocolate notes balancing spicy tannins. Highly Recommended.
Smith Woodhouse, 1991 Vintage Porto (Specialty 29730; $71.99): This fully resolved, ruby-colored wine offers profound yet mellow fruit and beautiful balance. Recommended.
