How Port is Becoming a Popular Drink With Young People

24 Feb How Port is Becoming a Popular Drink With Young People

Port has always suffered an image problem and most young people tend to cold-shoulder the drink and are of the opinion that it’s something only old people’s drink. Well, that may be the case, but who said that older people should have all the fun? This high quality wine has class and is versatile and many young people are sitting up and taking notice of it.

If you are on the brighter side of 50 and are still unaware of what port wine is, here is an introduction as well as some tips on exactly how you can include it to blend in with your lifestyle.

Understanding What Port Is

Port is essentially a sweet wine that’s a native of the Douro Valley in Portugal. This region is breathtakingly beautiful and an ideal holiday destination. It’s just a 2-hour drive from Porto and you can see first-hand how this wine is made.

There are a number of varieties of port wine; the red grapes are picked only after they have completely ripened and are then fermented into wine. Just before the sugars turn into alcohol, the fermentation process is stopped by adding a grape spirit to this blend. The result is a sweet wine with an alcohol percentage in the 18-20% a/v range. You can consume it in different ways, such as:

Drink it straight

You can serve premium quality wine straight up in a glass (don’t chill it). If you prefer to drink it by itself that’s good; however, the recommendation is that you serve or drink as an accompaniment to foods such as chocolates or full-flavoured cheeses. When you are serving any sweet foods with a sweet wine, ensure your wine is sweeter than the former, or else it will simply thin in comparison. The ports that you can drink straight are:

Vintage Port

When exceptional vintages are being made, the grapes are sourced from a single year and from the very best vineyards. Its tannins are mellowed by allowing it to mature in oak casks for 2 years before it is bottled. This is exactly why port wines require up to twenty years of bottling age to turn into a spectacular wine. Most producers of port wine do this aging for you, which significantly ups the price of the beverage. The older these wines, the more concentrated and heavenly their ripe berry fruit flavours.

Cocktails

Many young people are experimental with the manner in which they consume their port and the wine lends itself beautifully to cocktail blends. Get as creative as you like with the cocktails you make; you can serve a delectable Ruby Port over a wedge of pink grapefruit and some cubes of ice.

A Port Lemonade can be made with half part of Ruby port, 2 parts lemonade and & 1 and half parts of vodka citron. Serve this drink in a tall glass that’s half filled with ice cubes and use a lemon wedge to garnish it. The ports that you can use in different cocktails include:

White Port

This is made from white grapes and ranges from sweet to off-dry. This golden-coloured port is best drunk immediately and is great value.

Ruby Port

This is blend of a number of different vintages that are carefully aged in oak barrels for 3 years. These are typically fun and uncomplicated, fruit-driven ports and are available at regular stores at quite a bargain.

Cooking with port

Some beef dishes call for red wine reduction sauces; replace the red wine with port and notice how it amplifies the flavours of the dish. Vanilla bean ice cream with port poured over it, makes a delicious dessert.

For information about custom wine cellar design and installation, you can call Signature Cellars on 02 9340 7515 or use this contact form to get in touch with us. We’ll be pleased to assist you.

Thanks for reading,
Neil Smallman
Signature Cellars
1300 570 636