It's been since 2005 (the 2003 vintage) since Portugal's Douro Valley declared a vintage port but Wine Spectator reports that the 2007 growing season's cool summer and sunny fall produced a superior product. The Port industry has made its biggest Vintage Port declaration. The Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto is in the process of approving 50 different wines. The 2007 Vintage Ports will be bottled in a few months and will be shipped to the trade this fall but futures are already being sold. Top names should sell for $65-$85 per bottle.

The declaring of a Port vintage may bring some attention back to the fortified wine which has been suffering declining numbers over the last few years. In February it was announced that Port exports had hit a five-year low. It's not the best time economically to declare a vintage but in the Wine Spectator article Paul Symington of the Symington Port Group compared the situation to the 1931 declaration saying that it is "mad to declare in the midst of a recession like this, but mad not to bottle such a lovely wine."

Colder weather always makes me crave Port, the sweet fortified wine from Portugal has a natural affinity for cold weather, fireplaces and rich desserts. One of the venerable Port producers, the House of Sandeman releasing a collection of Ports including the Ten-Years Old, Twenty-Years Old, Thirty-Years Old, and Forty-Years Old, creating A Century of Tawny Ports. Each additional decade of aging gives the Port its own distinctive flavor. The collection of four bottles in a wood box sells for $349.

Lots of us have been put off by port's connotations of crusty vintages and even crustier connoisseurs. You don't actually need an English country house, a kennel full of fox hounds and a gouty leg to enjoy it, however.

Ironically, it fell to Warre's, the oldest British-owned port producer dating to 1670, to give the storied fortified wine a facelift. With the introduction of their Otima bottlings, Warre's managed to modernize the drink without turning it into some kind of silly snake oil marketed to wannabe rap stars.

Otima is a premium tawny (the best of port's non-vintage iterations) with a "lighter, more contemporary style," available in 10 and 20-year-old versions.

The "contemporary" vibe is admirably captured by the clean, elegant clear glass bottle and minimalist labeling, making for an aesthetically pleasing addition to your bar without sacrificing any of the wine's sophistication. On the palate it presents pleasing notes of honey, raisins, nuts and dried fruit. If you've never tried port before we suggest starting here.

The field of organic wines and spirits is getting larger and larger. Rum,vodka and gin all have organic options and the field of organic wine continues to grow at an impressive rate, providing excellent wines that are also green. Now Dr. Vino brings good news for Port lovers, the Fladgate Partnership has announced they will be making an organic Port. The vineyard used had been farmed organically since 1992 but since Port is made also adding brandy the quest was on to find an organic distilled spirit. The Port cannot be labeled as organic in the U.S. because it contains naturally occurring sulfites and instead will be labeled as being "made with organically grown grapes." Dr. Vino reports that the ruby Port has aromas of dark cherries and blackberries and that the process of organic viticulture is much healthier for vineyard workers. The port will be sold in the U.S. starting in June for around $22 per bottle. It looks like it is already available in England.

You are probably well aware that Port wine is available in both ruby and tawny styles but there is also white port from white grapes. The white Port from Wiens Family Cellars in Temecula, California is full of citrusy, pineapple and butterscotch flavors, a decadent combination that the winery suggests pairing with a white chocolate dessert. I think it would be amazing with a creme brulee too, especially the ginger creme brulee served by one of my favorite restaurants. The 2004 white Port sells for $32.

In Atlantic City, you can eat dessert or you can eat Dessert. The dessert-centered restaurant Brulee at the Tropicana offers three pricey selections off their crystal menu. Each dessert is the centerpiece of a three part menu that includes an amuse sucree, the dessert and petit fours. The desserts include an arabesque and a mille-nuits each served on Baccarat crystal. The most decadent dish might be the Brownie Extraordinaire with Saint Louis which sells for $1,000. It is a chocolate brownie with Italian hazelnuts, ice cream and a St. Louis crystal atomizer containing 1996 Quinta do Noval Nacional Port. It sells for $1,000 and you get to keep the atomizer. Personally, I'd just rather have a full bottle of the Port which can be found for half that.

[via AP]

When I told a man at the ZAP festival that I was focusing on late harvest Zinfandels and port-style wines he blanched as if I had casually said that I prefered licking the floor of the Fort Mason pavillion to tasting Zin. "I'm trying to stay away from that stuff," he said.

I explained that I had tasted other wines first but I felt a bit of censure. When I went to the tasting booths people often looked a bit surprised when I informed them I was there for the Port or the late harvest Zinfandel. In general people tend to stay away from these wines at tastings perhaps in order to not get too tipsy, perhaps because they think the sugar might mute the palate. I think they are really missing out. The chance to taste a wide variety of dessert wines is a rare and precious experience.

One of my favorite things in the world is to bring my deep dark chocolate cake and a Port-style dessert wine to a dinner party, I always delight in finding new sweet wines that are not just a big dose of sugar but also capture the complexities of the grapes used. I've heard the argument befofre that most dessert wines are all alike but I disagree.

My favorite of the day has to be the Matzin from Vino Con Brio because to me it represents the quailities I associate with zin, the big blackberry and pepper notes, the sense of brambly wildness, while still having sensuous sweetness that makes it a great dessert wine. If I were showing up somewhere with a bottle, I might spring for the EOS Port which has a lovely pewter label and is just as lovely on the inside. After the jump, my favorites of the sweet stuff.

Often when I talk about wine auctions I tend to just focus on the top of the sale, what's going for the truly astronomical sums. The real finds however, are often buried a bit further down the lot list. Take for example an auction coming up on Saturday, December 9 in New York at Sotheby's. This auction, "An Important New England Cellar" offers the usual suspects such as the Chateau Petrus and multiple fabulous vintages of Domaine De La Romanee-Conti but as Serena Sutcliffe points out in the auction catalog it is also a treasure trove of Ports and other wines to serve at the end of a meal.

The sellers, according to the catalog, are putting part of their cellar on the block to make room for more wines. Among the treats they are giving up are Ports from producers including Graham, Fonseca, Taylor and Dow spanning from the 1960s through the 1980s including several lots featuring the prized 1977 vintage. A lot of 12 bottles of the Fonseca 1977 is estimated to sell for $1,400 to $1,800.

An extra bottle of wine is always welcome around the holidays. It can be just another bottle to add to the crowded table or it can be truly blockbuster. The fun of selecting these wines would be only beaten by the ability to sample all of them or buy more of them for my personal use, especially the last one on my list... But let's began with one that I drank just a couple of days ago.

What: Four Vines 2002 Zin-Syrah Port
Where: I brought this to a Thanksgiving dinner with my homemade pecan pie but it would be even more decadent with a flourless chocolate cake or a box of truffles to be opened at the end of dinner party. This Port-style dessert wine has raspberry and plum notes and a jammy sweetness.
How Much: $25 (plus shipping) from the vineyard

It looks like 2006 is not going to be a good year for port wine or that the 2006 vintage could be pricey. The AP reports that storms have damaged up to 80 percent of Portugal's port grapes in some areas.  The storms, which included hail the size of quail eggs, devastated thousands of acres in the most important port-producing regions. The loss could be equivalent to more than 580,000 gallons of wine. Could this be part of the overall effect of global warming on wine?

The Independent has a fun feature on Britain's hidden wine cellars. Not only does the government keep a private stash of 40,000 bottles but other private cellars offer rare treats. The monarchy and the government, of course have large cellars for state dinners and other grand affairs. London's clubs including the Garrick and the Carlton also have renowned cellars. Other places to find rare wines including banks and city houses, the Oxbridge colleges,some Army regiments, some professional institutions, and the city livery companies. With the leisurely, boozy lunch on the wane, stockbrokers are not doing as much buying as they used to. The Bank of England's cellar contains about 2,800 bottles and the really big cellars are kept by the 12 original livery companies of the City of London and the Oxbridge colleges.  In the article, Warren Benbow, assistant clerk at the Goldsmiths, says they have 18 bottles of Madeira dating from 1835 (so rare as to be considered priceless) and a collection of ports, some of which date back to 1948. Some of the Oxbridge colleges sell surplus wine to raise funds which might be your only chance to get your hands on some of the rare vintages.

As Matt pointed out yesterday, it's a great time to be a yacht owner, there are so many lovely places to play. For those looking for a new place to berth in Italy there is the Marina Genova Aeroporto. Marina Genova Aeroporto is located in Sestri Ponente, a short hop from Genoa, Italy. The port which will be officially opened  in December 2006, will be home to up to 1000 boats up to 230 feet. The port will include a large amount of parking spaces, private garages, boathouses and private parking on the docks for some customers. There will be a complete repair facility and a clubhouse with accommodations, restaurants, shops and other services. There is also an apartment complex with private berths. According to a recent article on the new marine superports, the International Herald Tribune reported that the cost of the larger ports is $3.1 million for a 45-year term.

Sotheby's wine sale on February 22 in London offers a chance to pick up the usual Petrus, Cheval Blancs and Latours but also offers some vintage ports including Croft 1966, Warre's 1970, Graham's 1975 and Taylor's 1977.  The sale also includes rare  and mature Claret recently removed from a private London residence including Château La Mission Haut Brion 1945 in magnum , Château Lafite Rothschild 1959 in double magnum and First Growths from the 1934 vintage. And though there isn't a Sauternes as old as the one that sold for $90,000 last week you can pick up a 1941 for a very reasonable $340-$520. 

If you like Zinfandel then you should know about Zin Alley, a small winery in Templeton, California. They specialize in Red Zinfandel and Zinfandel port. They do not ship to stores and their wine is only available in restaurants in the Paso Robles area. They are happy to sell to individuals and people who have made the trek to the winery rave about the experience. The Red Zinfandel sells for $42 and the Port costs $40.