Port!

From the 1st of January 2012 no new bottlings of South African port may be labelled as port. Instead of being labelled port, future labels will read Cape Pink, Cape Ruby, Cape Tawny, Cape Vintage to describe the style.

The Cape Port Producers have issued a statement whereby all port bottles befor 1 January, may still be labelled as port.

Many local and international wine fundi’s say that South African port is by far the best in the New World, and just as good as the best in Portugal.

Did you know that there are over 8,000 grape varieties harvested in the world, however, only a select few appear in our stores?  

There are 48 authorized grape varieties which can go into a port. The most common are 8 red and 8 white, with tinta rariz, tinta francisca, touriga nacional and touriga francesca topping the list. Port is kept in oak for a relatively short time, and depending on the quality of the year, is blended with other years for a consistant taste. It is then fortified and aged in bottles.

Ports should be stored differently depending on their type. The Standard port, including Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) ports, have a stopper-with-plastic-top seal. These are not meant to be aged, and should be stored upright, so the cork does not have any contact with the liquid within. The plastic seal is not meant to hold in the liquid on its side. Vintage ports, on the other hand, are meant to be aged and have a traditional, "normal" wine-type cork. These should be stored on their sides like any other wine.

A few facts about port:
White Port is made from a selection of white grape varieties, and is then aged and fortified. It is typically a simple multi-year blend of vintages and can be sweet or dry depending on the house style.

Ruby Port is the most basic of port styles. This is made with a blend of red grape varieties and is blended from several years. It should not be aged, and tends to taste of berries, with light tannins.

Tawny Port is a ruby port that has been aged for several years in small oak barrels. This gives the port a tawny colour, as well as a buttery, nutty caramel flavour. If a tawny port is listed as being "10 years" or "20 years", this means that the average vintages used in the blend is that number. A 10 year tawny might include some wine from 8 years old, and some from 12 years old, and so on. These are usually sweet.

Late Bottled Vintage was created specifically for the restaurant market, to give them a vintage type port that did not have sediment and could last a while after being opened. The winemaker filters and fines this port and then pre-ages it for the consumer, usually for 6 or more years. When you buy your LBV port, you should drink it soon - it is not meant for aging. When you open this bottle, though, you can expect it to last for a full month before starting to lose its flavour.

Vintage Port is the high end of port releases. Only the best years are declared a vintage and used for this purpose. All of the grapes from a single harvest are used in a given wine. A 2000 vintage port contains only grapes from the 2000 harvest. This wine is aged in oak and then aged in the bottle. When you buy a vintage port, often you must then age it for another 10-30 years before it is at its best drinking flavour. This is the type of port you find in expensive cellars, waiting for decades to be enjoyed.

Boplaas and De Krans came up with a decadent Pink Port which is a must if you haven’t had the privilege to taste it yet.  De Krans also released the Espresso. Although it is not a port, it has been produced using the classic port varietals Touriga Naçional and Tinta Barocca. It’s not coffee, although it has sweet aromas of freshly ground coffee, perfect for dessert.

Email us for more information about the port we have in stock.