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Please recommend a starter Port

Seth

Seth

Nooblerette
Joined
Apr 6, 2007
Messages
1,072
I usually drink Scotch ( or mineral water ) with cigars but at a wine tasting with my girlfriend the CAO table also had some Scotch and Port. I am sure the port was cheap, the scotch was Macallen 10. The port was way to sweet but I could see how the right one would go well with a cigar.

I do not care for dry wine, or much wine at all really. I do like fruity champagne and of course scotch. I do not know if a tawney would be to much like dry wine or a ruby to sweet.

This give any idea about what I might like?


Seth
 
Seth said:
I usually drink Scotch ( or mineral water ) with cigars but at a wine tasting with my girlfriend the CAO table also had some Scotch and Port. I am sure the port was cheap, the scotch was Macallen 10. The port was way to sweet but I could see how the right one would go well with a cigar.

I do not care for dry wine, or much wine at all really. I do like fruity champagne and of course scotch. I do not know if a tawney would be to much like dry wine or a ruby to sweet.

This give any idea about what I might like?


Seth
Click to expand...


I am still enjoying Hardy's Whiskers Blake tawny port -

Many hits if you search. Here is a bit of a review. Here is another request. And another.

Many more if you don't find something that suits you.
 
Not sure what you mean by "starter" port, but I sure like the Six Grapes. I'm sure it's no where near the top of the list, but I like it, and for about $20 a bottle, it's reasonable.
 
I'd second the Whiskers Blake and add Warre's Warrior for a ruby.
Port is great with a cigar. If only I could afford the good stuff!
 
How sweet is a ruby? This is one of the things throwing me off. Sweet like a sweet red wine or sweet like Amaretto?

Not liking dry wines, nor sweet " girlie drinks " I am trying got get a feel for where a normal port is on that scale. The only one I had was way up on the girlie drink side. I am trying to find if I need to go ruby or tawny. Sweet to a dry wine drinker means something very different than sweet to a soda pop drinker.

I know I am being a bit of a pain, nor am I communicating very well.

Thank you all for your input.



Seth


EDIT: punctuation
 
I believe Taylor Flaggate (or something like that) has a pretty decent bottle in the $17-20 range. What I like to do with ports in particular is take advantage of the various half bottle sizes - more variety :)
 
And this isn't in the "Wine / Champagne / Cognac / Port -If it's got grapes it, discuss it here..." forum because ???
 
AVB said:
And this isn't in the "Wine / Champagne / Cognac / Port -If it's got grapes it, discuss it here..." forum because ???
Click to expand...


A. I am not a smart man Jenny
B. I did not realize that ports should only be discussed in the Grapes SubForum
C. All of the above

I go with C

Sorry.


Seth
 
Bin 27 is a good inexpensive port, that goes nicely with a cigar. There is an Aussie port, Clocktower, that is also very good, and inexpensive. I usually keep a bottle of each at my house.
 
I recommend starting with a 10 or 20 year old tawny. Many can be found in the $25 range. There is definitely a difference the older the wine.
 
Quinta de Noval Late bottled vintages are a great place to start. The 1999 and 1998 are both wonderful and can be had at less than $30. They embody the great woody and sweet earthy flavors you find in vintage ports. Lots of raisin and prune flavors. A great start.
 
I just had a great lesson in Port from a guy who's an expert. He owns a liquor store in New Preston.

Tawnys are gold in color and are considered "rubys." Churchill is a very good one, about $25.00. I bought another one to try but I haven't opened it yet. I forgot the brand and I left it at my sweetie's house in New Preston. I'm going there Saturday for a Yule party so I'll look at the bottle to see what brand it was.

I had a great LBV (late bottle vintage) which is a ruby. I can't remember the name, I'll track it down this weekend and post back.

There are a few el-cheapo rubys which personally, I would avoid.

The "vingate" ports (not to be confused with the LBVs) are expensive and you really need to lay them down for five to ten years. You then need to decant them and pretty much drink the whole bottle in one sitting with friends.

Lemme check back with my "guy" and I'll try and remember as much as I can and post back.

I really like port. Sherry is another "fortified" but I don't like Sherry as much as Port.
 
coventrycat86 said:
I just had a great lesson in Port from a guy who's an expert. He owns a liquor store in New Preston.

Tawnys are gold in color and are considered "rubys." Churchill is a very good one, about $25.00. I bought another one to try but I haven't opened it yet. I forgot the brand and I left it at my sweetie's house in New Preston. I'm going there Saturday for a Yule party so I'll look at the bottle to see what brand it was.

I had a great LBV (late bottle vintage) which is a ruby. I can't remember the name, I'll track it down this weekend and post back.

There are a few el-cheapo rubys which personally, I would avoid.

The "vingate" ports (not to be confused with the LBVs) are expensive and you really need to lay them down for five to ten years. You then need to decant them and pretty much drink the whole bottle in one sitting with friends.

Lemme check back with my "guy" and I'll try and remember as much as I can and post back.

I really like port. Sherry is another "fortified" but I don't like Sherry as much as Port.
Click to expand...

If you like port but not sherry (Like me aswell) you should try a bottle of Alvear. It tastes like a blend of a ruby and a tawny, very interesting. This is the best price I have found on it http://winelibrary.com/reviewwine.asp?item=2881
 
Any inexpensive (not cheap) "tawny" will work to start with. Stay away from ruby unless you like sweet syrupy drinks. I don't think Clocktower is still available but if you can find a bottle it's only about $10 and it is very good.

After you see if you like it in general, you can work your way up.
 
A GREAT, cheap port is R L Bullers Tawny Port; it runs about $10 and WA gave it a 94, and in this case it is well deserved.
 
Port is my regular drink when smoking cigars.
My fav is this one.

Mazurans

But is probably hard for you guys to get over there. If you see it buy it. You will not be disappointed

Anything from these guys is excellent.

Brown Bros

Most Aussie ports are usually pretty good and are exported worldwide.
And of course the Portuguese make some of the worlds best ports.
You do not have to spend a lot of money to get something that is drinkable and enjoyable.

Edited for my spelling(to much Port last night)
 
Hey All

In general just be careful about getting the "cheapest" out there...its kinda like buying white owl's when you know what else is out there :D
True port from Portugal will usually be a little more pricey than the equivalent styles available from Australia or the States...and for reference sake...Australia "should" be phasing out the names "port", "sherry" and other trademarked names from their bottles...so if you see something like Australian Tawny and such thats just their new name for port.

Ruby port would be good...if you want something Very fruity/sweet...goes well with dessert and is quite affordable...they are bottled soon after harvesting(the reason its soo fruity) and Does not age.

Tawny port...now here's where it gets a lil more complicated(and pricier)....there's your absolute basic "Tawny" port, then there are Tawny's with an indication of age (ie. 10 year, 20 yr, 30yr)...they are aged in a barrel for those time periods and allowed to oxidize(key to the taste difference)...definitely MUCH more complex than ruby port...can also be sweet but dried and more balanced depending on the producer

They are slightly more expensive than most Ruby ports, specially the 20yr and up....the "sweet spot" for tawnies is the 10yr types...they are MUCH improved over any normal "Tawny" with only a slight'ish increase in price... they wont age but the 10yr-40yr ones can sorta "improve" or mellow out over time

Vintage character port & LBV(late bottled vintage)...these 2 are another "sweet spot" in the porto world... LBV's are 4yr cask aged port that can age (if its unfiltered) and its the closest you can get to true Vintage Port(VP) without paying the $$
Vintage character port...is a ruby port blend that is made to "try" to give the depth and complexity of VP...at the price point of Ruby's...surprisingly decent...sweet but not the uncontrolled up in your face like normal Ruby port...slightly more expensive than Ruby, similar'ish to 10yr Tawny prices

I would say...stick with the major houses...at least in the beginning so as not to be too dissapointed. In no particular order....Fonseca, Dow, Warre, Graham's, Croft, Taylor Fladgate, Quinta do Noval, Gould Campbell, Smith Woodhouse, Quinta do Vesuvio....and Ramos Pinto & Sandeman

-The first 7 are the biggest/oldest port houses and you can not go wrong with Any of their offerings, they all have the styles listed above and flavor/taste is different for each house but they are all consistent in their Quality...their Vintage Port is to die for
-The next 3...GC,SW and vesuvio are a lot harder to find depending on where you live but are worth it if you see them...they don't offer as many styles as the other houses
-The last 2...I hate to single them out but...they are major producers and can be found quite commonly and offer all different styles(specially Sandeman) but their very low end is kinda inconsistent in quality and I've been disappointed a few times
On a side note...if you happen to see Madeira...that "might" be something you might want to check out also... its also one of the classic great fortified wines made only on the small island of Madeira...and its indestructable :laugh:

Anyway hope all of that made some kind of sense and hope it helps someone pick out something good :)
 
Nice response Gizzy.

I still highly recommend a 10yr or older port. I personally like the Warre's 10 yr old port for every day drinking. You can find it at BevMo usually between $20-$27.

FYI - The Kirkland (aka Costco) brand is actually a Fonsesca port.
 
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