The True Purpose of Port Wine
Have you ever drank port wine? If you have never tried or if you’ve read my novel, The True Purpose of Vines, and are curious to hear more, this blog post is for you! Here, I will share the wine history, ways to pair it with foods, and a delicious recipe. Hopefully, you can use this Wine and Romance advice to better your happily ever after.
I’ve always drank port. During winter, my grandma gave us a tiny chalice for a warmth boost and used it on her delicious recipes. But it was after a visit to the Douro Valley that I fell in love with this delightful drink. The sweet, ruby-colored dessert wine has such a rich background, it begged to be told! What better way to tell this story than with the love of a Portuguese woman and an Englishman? After all, the friendship of these countries made port into the famous style we have today.
For starters, what is port, and why is it different from other wines? Port receives an addition of spirits before the end of the fermentation. This kills the yeast before it can complete the transformation of grape sugar into alcohol. That is why port is sweet and has higher alcohol content.
I will quote Julia, my heroine of The True Purpose of Vines, to explain it better:
“After three days fermenting, the liquid inside the shallow tanks is neither juice nor yet port—just a whiff of warm alcohol and flashes of deep violet, whirled by wispy spoons. The Englishman would call her whimsical, but vintage after vintage, wine never failed to wonder her. For as long as men crushed grapes with their feet, they worshipped the Gods for whipping grapes into wine. Now they knew the precious liquid wasn’t a gift of divine intervention, but the work of wild yeasts. For me, it is magic—the grape, threaded by feet into pulpy black must; the must, fermented by yeast into wine; the wine, now ready to receive brandy and change into port. Even later, in the oak barrels, the magic would not wane. Port will continue to evolve, breathing inside the wood, attaining balance, body, soul.”
Julia Costa, The True Purpose of Vines
But why add spirits to the wine? The answer is in Europe’s history. Portugal and England had friendly relations that date back to the crusades (What a perfect subject for another post!). Still, the British preferred to buy wine from Bourdeaux. When Napoleon’s blockage kept France’s clarets from the English table, they started sending Portuguese wine back to their homeland. But the way from Oporto to Liverpool was much longer than crossing the British Chanel, and bouncing in the Atlantic ruined Portuguese reds. The solution was to add brandy to the wine, fortifying it to reach its destination. What started as a way to thwart Napoleon’s tyranny and proclaim sides in a war soon became an ingrained taste. The world fell in love with the tawny and rubies, and port wine became businessmen and aristocrats’ drink of choice.
With the rise of sales, production grew haphazardly, and other regions started labeling their wine as port. To end the mess, the Marquis of Pombal raised over three hundred stone pillars in the Douro, creating the first DOC region in the world. To this day, port wine can only be produced in the Douro Valley. The vineyards are planted on terraces carved directly from the hill’s granite. These ancient structures are a majestic sight, a genuine wonder of human labor and nature. In 2001, UNESCO labeled it a heritage site.
There are several styles of port, but the most famous are tawny and ruby. The major difference comes from aging. I will let Julia explain because, as a native and best winemaker in the region, she understands it much better than me.
“Tawny Port is like men. Males are expected to evolve with age, becoming more complex, adding notes of spice, smoke, and nuts. To do that, we age the port in oak barrels, a minimum of ten years. Ruby port is like a woman. Women are expected to do the impossible. Stay the same, maintain the same color and sweetness and fruit. To achieve that, the Ruby doesn’t need wood. It ages inside huge, ancient vats, where oxidation is minimum.”
Julia Costa, The True Purppose of Vines
Try both to see which one you prefer. I promise you the tasting won’t be a hardship. I prefer tawny, as I love the smoky notes. Port wine is perfect with chocolate desserts, pastries, and cakes. It is an excellent companion for wintry days when you need a warmth boost.
Here is my grandma’s chocolate Pave recipe. It is super easy and delicious:
I hope you enjoy the recipe with your loved ones, and it helps bring more romance to your life. See you soon in Wine and romance to better our happily ever afters.
