portwine World-famous dessertwine from portugal, known as "Vinho do Porto" or simply "Porto", is named not after its region of origin douro, but after the port city porto, from where it is shipped. The English were significantly involved in its creation in connection with their trade wars with france. In the 17th century, the import of French wines to england was banned for a time and later burdened with high tariffs. This led to a supply bottleneck. In 1678, a winemerchant from Liverpool sent his two sons to Viano do Castello near the city of Porto to buy wine. In Lamego, they came to a monastery, where the abbot served them a wine they were enthusiastic about. The clergyman revealed to them the secret of why this wine was so pleasantly sweet and soft, namely by adding brandy, that is, spirits during the fermentation. Subsequently, the two bought up the entire stock, sent the shipment to England, and the triumph of the port wine, initially referred to as "Red Portugal", began. British influence was crucial for the port wine boom, which was facilitated by the Methuen Treaty concluded in 1703, which provided for tariff concessions for the import of Portuguese wines into England. At that time, port wine was almost exclusively intended for export to England, which is why it is still referred to today as "Englishmen Wine". Back then, it was still common to add red elderberry juice as a coloring agent. From the beginning of the 18th century, English, German, and Dutch families settled in Porto to market port wine. Among them were names that still play a decisive role in production and/or trade today, such as Cockburn, Croft, Ferreira, Niepoort, Sandeman, Taylor’s, as well as the companies Dow, Graham, and Warre, which were later taken over by Symington. The British trading houses built the Factory House in Porto in 1790, which initially served as a factory and then from 1811 to the present as a gentlemen's club and meeting place. The English practically acquired a monopoly on marketing. Under Prime Minister Marquês de Pombal (1699-1782), owner of a wine estate in Carcavelos, the area Douro was defined in its boundaries in 1756 to protect port wine. Only the best vineyards were included. Of the approximately 250,000 hectares of land, only about one-eighth is suitable for port wine vines. The area is thus one of the oldest legally demarcated wine-growing regions in the world, alongside Chianti in Tuscany (Italy). Pombal issued further measures to protect port wine. As an important measure to break the English monopoly, he founded the "Real Companhia Velha". Furthermore, he prohibited the addition of elderberry juice and the fertilizing with manure. This reduced the yield, but increased the quality. The defined boundary applied exclusively to port wine for over two centuries. The name "Vinho do Porto" is derived from the city of Porto at the lower reaches of the Douro. It was not until 1979 that the DOC classification was extended to unfortified red and white wines. However, the best soil is reserved for port wine, which is mainly the most suitable slate soils on mostly terraced slopes. The region is located in the northwest of Portugal and includes the valleys of the Douro River and its tributaries up to the Spanish border. These waters have a positive effect on viticulture or create the conditions through the formation of valley slopes. The zone "Baixa Corgo" (lower Corgo) in the west includes the area north of the Douro between Barqueiros and the west bank of the Corgo and south of the Douro to Armamar. The coolest and wettest zone produces lighter wines. The largest zone "Cima Corgo" (upper Corgo) lies north and south of the Douro between Baixa Corgo in the west to Cachão da Valeira in the east. The area centrally located around the city of Pinhão is considered the best, where most port wine houses have their quintas (wineries). The zone "Douro Superior" lies in the east and extends to the Spanish border in the north. This is the smallest and driest area, and partly still not fully utilized. On approximately 33,000 hectares of vineyard area, 30,000 grape growers cultivate around 80,000 classified sites using a complex system. The evaluation criteria are location, slope (the steeper, the better), exposure, altitude, microclimate, training method, grape variety, planting density, general condition of the vineyard, age of the vines, soil type (slate, granite, stone content), and yield. There are six levels from A (from 1,200 points) to F (below 400 points). This results in the yield amount that the winery (Quinta) is allowed to produce. The better the rating, the higher the grape price. There are over 80 grape varieties categorized as recommended, allowed, and tolerated. The IVDP (Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto) regulates the cultivation, processing, and trade of wine from the Douro region, especially port wine. Among other things, it is determined annually which quantities of grapes may be processed into port wine. About 40% are used for port wine production. The most important port wine grape is the red Touriga Nacional, other reds are Tinta Amarela (Trincadeira Preta), Rufete, Tinta Barroca, Tinto Cão, Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), and Touriga Franca. The most important whites are Códega (Síria), Encruzado, Esgana Cão (Sercial), Folgasão, Gouveio (Verdello), Malvasia Fina, and Viosinho. The grapes are hand-picked and then transported in baskets to the wineries. Port wine requires the tannin- and pigment-rich skins. However, since it only undergoes a short fermentation, this is forced by crushing the mash with wooden pestles (macaos) or traditionally also with bare feet in lagares (stone troughs). The fermentation of the maximum half-fermented wine is stopped by the addition of high-proof aguardente (in contrast to sherry, where it is fortified only after fermentation). The colorless and flavorless spirit (ethanol) with 77% vol contributes only alcohol content, but no flavor or smell. It is distilled from wines from southern Portugal or also from surplus wines from the Douro itself. On average, 440 liters of wine are added to 110 liters of spirit (a quarter), resulting in a total of 550 liters of the pipes, the traditional Douro barrels. The base wines are still completed in the cellars in the Douro Valley. They are stored in large concrete tanks in the vineyards and then transported in spring to the port city Vila Nova de Gaia on the opposite riverbank. In the past, special boats called Rabelos were used for this purpose. Only there are the wines matured in the cellars on the northern slope and in the lodges (warehouses) of the local port wine houses during a long aging period and through skillful blending into dessert wine. The warehouses are arranged in steps from the riverbank up the hillside. Until Portugal's EU accession in 1986, all port wines had to mature in the lodges, be bottled, and delivered. Today, this is allowed everywhere in the Douro Valley in the quintas. The best port wines have an alcohol content between 19 and 22% vol and a residual sugar content of 40 to 60 g/l. The wines are classified through taste tests in groups, which determines the future port wine type. The majority undergoes a blending cycle, which ensures consistent quality. An important criterion is the number of years the port wine matures in the bottle after barrel aging. There is a distinction between a "British port wine style" with dark, sweet and fruity wines (Vintage Port), and a "Portuguese port wine style" with elegant, soft wines (Tawny). The color variety is large; there are red, white, and now also rosé port wines, although these have little in common with the types of "normal wines". The bottling date only needs to be indicated on the bottle label for the 10, 20, 30, or even 40-year-aged port wine types Tawny and Colheita, but not for the standard Tawny, Ruby, or Late Bottled Vintage. The name for this port wine type is derived from the Portuguese word for "harvest" and in a broader sense "vintage". It is a vintage port, one could also call it an old Tawny or vintage Tawny. It matures for at least seven years in oak barrels, often ten years or longer. The label must contain the vintage, bottling date, and the fact of barrel aging. Compared to a Vintage, a Colheita is ready to drink immediately. The great vintages of the last century were basically Colheita types because they were bottled only after longer barrel aging as today. With the Vintage, the Colheita is counted among the qualitatively best types. A blend of good vintages that do not reach the quality of a Vintage. The wine is bottled relatively young, usually without filtration after a maximum of three years, where it continues to mature for a few years and forms a deposit at the bottom of the bottle and possibly a crust on the bottle wall. It must therefore be decanted. This type is a more affordable variant of Vintage Port made from grapes of a vintage that matures for at least four to six years in barrel and/or tank. The name derives from the "late" bottling compared to the real Vintage. The black-red wine is slightly lighter than its big brother, full-bodied and fruity. It usually has no deposit; otherwise, this is usually declared on the label as "traditional". Filtered LBV is ready to drink immediately, while the rarer unfiltered ones develop for another five to six years in the bottle. A pink to bright pink type first produced in 2008 by the port wine house Croft. It is produced like a rosé wine until the fortification. Just a year later, it was approved as an official type by the IVDP. The light, fruity wine tastes between a White Port and Ruby. The simplest and cheapest type. The strong ruby to cherry red color results from the low oxidation and short aging time. The dark ruby, sweet, and fruity wine is blended from several vintages of younger wines and matures in barrel or steel tank for two to three years. Filtration occurs before bottling. The immediately drinkable Ruby makes up the largest production share. A black-red, tannin-rich, and fruity type. The old designation Vintage Character was banned in 2002 to avoid confusion with the real Vintage Port. It is also a blend of several vintages (which is why the old name was confusing). Compared to the Ruby, it matures for four to five years longer in barrel. Filtration occurs before bottling. General designation for a type that usually matures for up to three years in barrel. It develops with longer aging the color from amber to mahogany (tawny = tawny). This results (compared to the usually reddish-black color of all other types) also because the Tawny is produced from mostly lighter wines with weaker color intensity and because a larger proportion of white wines is also included. It is a blend from several vintages. Occasionally, small parts of a 20 to 40-year-old port are blended in. The older wines are referred to as "Fine Tawny" or "Fine Old Tawny" or "Aged Tawny". In the past, they were marketed under the name "Dated Port". The average age of the wines used is indicated on the label (10, 20, 30 years and more). Traditionally, Tawnys are served as a digestif. The "vintage port" is the best port from a special vintage. This occurs best three times in ten years, with a production share of only 1%. The decision is made individually by each producer; not all produce a Vintage in the same year. The following vintages have been declared excellent by most renowned cellars: 1970, 1977, 1985, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2007, and 2011. This wine is produced reductively from a vintage. It matures for two to a maximum of three years in barrel and is then bottled. A Vintage is ready to drink after at least 10 to 12 years. But only after at least 20, 30, and even more years of bottle aging does it reach its highest perfection with incomparable oiliness, fragrance, fullness, and delicacy. However, since the wine comes to market immediately after bottling, the "responsibility" for the drinking maturity lies with the consumer. During bottle aging, a strong deposit forms at the bottom of the bottle and possibly also in the form of a crust on the bottle wall. It must therefore be decanted. This is made from white grape varieties. The production is similar to that of red port wine, but the maceration time is significantly shorter or omitted altogether. It matures for two to three years, usually in tank, and has a relatively low alcohol content of about 15% vol. Only with White Port are there sweetness levels from dry to sweet (extra seco, seco, meio seco, doce, muito doce). Those aged longer in oak barrels develop a golden yellow color and a nutty flavor and can be durable for decades. The production share is around 15%. The additional designations Reserva and Garrafeira are only used for certain port wine types for qualitatively better variants (especially longer aging). They are common in Portugal, especially with normal DOC wines with corresponding production rules (grape varieties, aging time, alcohol content, etc.). Indicates a higher quality. However, the term is not regulated and is handled differently by each producer. It can be a Crusted, Ruby, Tawny, or White. This outstanding quality must mature for three to six years in barrel (similar to LBV) and at least another eight years in the bottle. The wine is produced only by very few producers; the first was Niepoort. The term is also found on the label of old Vintage Port, which may not necessarily comply with today's regulations. The term refers to the fact that this port wine comes from a single estate. In principle, it can be any of the types, but it is usually Colheita, LBV, and Vintage.
