Vintage Port

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Overview

Vintage port is the Douro region’s flagship fortified wine and produced from a single vintage in a year when growing conditions are exceptional. The most prestigious and expensive style of port, Vintage port accounts for a fraction of all port sold (less than 1%).

Overview

Only grapes from the Douro’s best vineyards, usually Cima Corgo, and picked at optimal ripeness, are blended after spending between 18 and 36 months in wood and are then bottled without filtration. It is then the buyer/consumer’s role to “mature” Vintage port in their own cellars.

A vintage will only be “declared” if there is sufficient quantity and if it is also felt that the market is ready to support another vintage. And as such an excellent vintage has been known in the past to not be declared for commercial reasons. Although not always the case, roughly three vintages are declared in each decade.

Vintage ports usually take decades to reach maturity for drinking, although in many parts of the world they are today consumed relatively young. Generally, Vintage port is thought to reach maturity at around 10 years old, and then to develop further over 30-40 years, with the finest examples having been known to develop beyond 50 years.

Key Grape Varieties

More than 80 different grape varieties are authorised to make red port, but over the years the best varieties have been identified and today the five key varieties most often planted and spoken of when the word ‘port blend’ is employed are Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Cao.

Food Pairing

Vintage port is a classic wine for meditation and as such is often enjoyed on its own. Classic food matches include blue cheese, such as Roquefort and Stilton, dark chocolate, and desserts with dried fruits and nuts. Because it is bottled without filtration, Vintage port throws a lot of deposit and thus should be decanted before being served.