IntroductionLiqueur or fortified wines are produced by two main techniques:
a)Fortifying the light wine before the grape must is fully fermented to a sweet style of wine. An example of this type of fortified wine is Port.
b)Fortifying the light wine after fermentation is complete. An example of this type of fortified wine is Sherry.
The wines are fortified with grape spirit and are fortified to between 15.5% to 20% alcohol by volume depending on the style.
The three most famous liqueur wines are Port, Sherry and Madeira but most other wine producing countries, particularly France and Italy, produce fortified wines.
1) Port
Port originates from the upper Douro valley in Portugal and its name is protected. The method of production is also controlled by an appellation system. The Douro valley is extremely hot in the summer and the vineyards are situated on steep slopes of slate and granite with hardly any soil. The vineyards are classified according to their soil composition, altitude, exposure to the sun and the degree of slope amongst other factors.
Port is produced by stopping the fermentation of the grape must, by fortification with brandy or alcoholic spirit, this leaves a sweet wine with at least half of the sugar of the original grapes. Before fortification the wine is fermented to about 6% to 8% alcohol at a high temperature of around 32 degrees Celsius. The wine is fortified using grape spirit and port wine has an alcoholic strength of around 20% by volume. Most Port is produced from black grapes. Because the fermentation is stopped early, there is a shortened time to extract pigments from the grape so traditionally the grapes were trodden in stone trough like lagars to release the pigments, tannins and flavour. The lagars where the wine is fermented are now being replaced by auto-vinifiers or closed vats or even robotic rather than human feet. The best wines are still made from grapes trodden by human feet.
The wine is stored on the “quinta” the vineyard or estate until the following spring when it is transported to wine lodges in Vila Nova de Gaia which is opposite Oporto at the mouth of the river Douro. Here the wines are matured in wooden casks or pipes which hold 600 litres. Some Ports are now matured on the Quinta.
Red port is made from a number of varieties of black grapes such as Touriga Nacional. White port is made from white grapes such as Malvasia.
Ruby Port is blended from young red wines and it is very fruity and sweet.
Tawny Port has matured for at least 8 years before blending and bottling. Usually they are released at 10, 20 30 or even forty years. Whilst maturing they lose their sweetness and turn browner in colour.
Vintage Port is made in a single notable year and is only matured in the cask for two years before bottling. It must be allowed to age for 10 to 30 years in the bottle it throws sediment and must be decanted before drinking. Most vintage Ports are considered to be of exceptionally fine quality which is reflected in their expensive price.
Late Bottled Vintage Port (LBV) is made in a single year from wine not considered good enough to be bottle as vintage Port and are matured in the cask for 4 to 6 years before bottling and should be dunk within another five years or so. They do not need decanting when the bottle is opened.
White Port is of lower quality and is matured for two years in the cask.
2) Sherry
Sherry originates from Andalucia in southern Spain and its official name is DO, Jerez-Xeres-Sherry and like Port its name and method of production is protected. Sherry is named after the town of Jerez de la Frontera where the major warehouses or Bodegas and Sherry houses originated. Jerez de la Frontera is situated North East of the town of Cadiz. Sherry Bodegas are also located in the towns of Puerto de Santa Maria and Sanlucar de Barrameda.
The hot sub-tropical climate is very dry in the summer but the region receives substantial rainfall, driven by westerly winds from the Atlantic, between the months of October and May. The climate is almost perfectly suited for quality wine production.
There are three major types of grape used in the production of Sherry – Palomino Fino, Pedro Ximenez and Moscatel .
By far the most important is the Palomino which is matched to the chalky Albariza soils in the heart of the region. The Pedro Ximenez (PX) grape is grown on Arena (sandy) and Barro (clay) soils in the lower lying areas of the region. PX grapes are usually left to dry out on mats in the sun to concentrate the sugars after the picking. The sweet wine which they produce is then used as a sweetener or is sold as a fine very sweet dessert wine in its own right. The Moscatel is also grown on the poorer quality Barro and Arena soils. Moscatel Sherry is rarely exported but is drunk locally.
Sherry is classified into two major styles of wine, Fino and Oloroso, depending on the classification and subsequent method of production. After the initial wine has completed fermentation it is stored in casks or butts, the winemaker then samples and tastes the wines and decides whether the wine in that particular cask is destined to be a Fino style wine or an Oloroso style. When the decision is made the wines are fortified to around 15.5% in the case of wine destined to become Fino style and to around 18% for Oloroso styles.
Nature then takes a hand in the production of Fino style wines. Fino wines develop a covering of yeast, which is termed Flor, on the surface of the wine within the casks. The Flor prevents the ingress of oxygen into the wine and feeds off the alcohol and glycerine components in the wine to produce acetaldehyde which gives Fino style wines their distinctive taste. The Flor is most active in Spring and Autumn when temperatures are optimum for its growth. The Flor develops best at an alcohol level of 15.5% and above that it ceases to grow. It should be noted that whilst the Flor inhibits the oxidation of the wine by atmospheric oxygen, acetaldehyde is still one of the chemical by- products of the oxidation process; this is why faulty light wines which have been exposed to oxygen before or after bottling can often acquire a Sherry like aroma.
Oloroso style sherries are deliberately exposed to oxygen whilst they mature in the cask and quite often the casks are stored outside and exposed to the heat of summer sun to augment the oxidation process.
Both styles of wine are racked and matured under the Solera system which adds to the distinctive style of the Sherry method of production. This involves the partial blending of new wines which older ones before the wine is finally drawn off from the Solera prior to bottling. This combines the youthfulness of the new wines which the character of older wines in a long maturation process before bottling. A Solera may run for decades. Because of the blending process there is no such thing as a vintage Sherry.
A diagrammatic representation is shown below (please click to enlarge.
The classification of Sherries
1) Fino Styles
Fino - This is very dry wine which is very pale in colour. It is best drunk very soon after bottling as it loses its freshness. It should be chilled before drinking and consumed as an aperitif or with Tapas. Fino has a distinctive nutty taste combined with the slight taste and aroma of acetaldehyde.
Manzanilla – This is a Fino wine which has been matured in the Bodegas located in the seaside town of Sanlucar de Barrameda and because of the more temperate climate the Flor stays active longer during the year, thus the character of the wine is slightly different. Some commentators say that it has a salty tang but I have not noticed it. Like Fino it should be drunk as soon as possible after bottling and consumed as an aperitif or with Tapas.
Amontillado this is a more mature Fino which is more strongly fortified and where the wine in the cask has lost its Flor covering. The wines are fuller flavoured than Fino with a distinctive nutty taste. They are pale brown in colour they are naturally dry but for some reason sweetened varieties have become popular especially in the UK.
2) Oloroso Styles
Oloroso - This is full bodied wine as opposed to Finos and Amontillados which are light to medium bodied. It is deeper in colour than Amontillado and ages well. It has a rich nutty flavour. Once again the wine is best consumed as an aperitif or which Spanish food. Although it is of a dry style it is often sweetened to produce Amoroso or Cream Sherry. The dry wine is usually sweetened with PX or Moscatel.
Palo Cortado – This is a full bodied wine which is reminiscent of Amontillado on the nose. Because of its rarity it is rather expensive.
PX or Pedro Ximenez this is a fine dessert wine made from PX grapes which have been sun-dried on mats to concentrate the sugar levels. PX is best consumed with a dessert such as vanilla ice cream or chocolate ice cream.
Many commercial Sherries are sweetened with grape must and their quality is lower in comparison to the dry styles of wines with the brave exception of PX.
Questions
What system is used to mature Sherry wines?
What is the name of the yeast which covers the surface of Fino wines in the cask or butt?
What are the two main styles of Sherry?
What is the name of the valley where Port is produced?
What method of fortification is used to produce Port?
What method of Fortification is used to produce sherry?
What is the name of the stone like troughs which are used to produce Port?
What are the components of the soil used in the vineyards of the Douro valley?
Name the three types of soil used in the vineyards to produce grapes for Sherry.
Name one of the grapes used to produce Sherry.
Name one of the grapes used to Port.
What process is used to concentrate the sugars in the PX grape after picking?
