Port wine. Seriously?

I received a gift of a bottle of port this year. This is the second time I’ve gotten a bottle of this sort. The first time was probably 10 years ago, and the gifter included a block of cheese (gorgonzola? I don’t recall), with the instructions to eat it with the port. I did as instructed, and was promptly aware that I really, really don’t like port. But the cheese was okay.

So, here I am again, ten years later, and I was curious enough to try this test again with my new gifted bottle of port, sans cheese. The result: oy! Port is gawdawful! The flavor seems like a marriage of a) the very very vilest pot of coffee that has been left on the back burner in a cheap bar for a day or two, coupled with b) the very worst wine set in a glass to evaporate and turn sour for a couple of days, and c) mixed and left to die until it was poured into my glass. Vile, vile vile!

Does anyone seriously like this stuff? If you do, my apologies for heaping poo on Port, but wow, I just don’t get it. Please tell me what I’m missing.

There are few wines that have as wide a range of quality as Port. Any idea if it’s *good *Port?

But yeah, Port is oxidized; that may be the stale-coffee taste you discern. But good Port is orgasmic.

I don’t recall what the first bottle was. The one in front of me is “Montonico, California Port”, no vintage year, so I’d guess its not a treasured vintage.

Ha! California Port! :slight_smile:
But even a medium quality port wine should taste good. Ask your local wine cellar guy for a recommended but inexpensive tawny port, then report back. If you still hate it, then I guess you hate port.

Well, FWIW, it seems to retail for $9.99, and has no vintage. I wouldn’t give up on Port yet dude; try a good tawny vintage. Find a wine bar where you don’t have to invest in a whole bottle.

I haven’t tried that label, but I’d be pretty :dubious: at the notion of California port (or indeed, any port that’s from the US).

In general, there are three broad types of port: ruby/vintage; tawny; and white. They have very different flavor profiles, so if you don’t like one that doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t like another–for example, I love tawnies but am pretty ambivalent about vintage port.

If you’re looking for a decent intro to port, I think Porto Rocha is a good tradeoff between price and quality. If you’re looking for a very basic intro, Graham’s Six Grapes is cheap but still drinkable.

Oxidised? That’s madeira, surely. Even the rankest port I’ve ever drunk was nothing like what you’re describing. It is, however, very rich and full-flavoured with a lot of grape sugar and very high alcohol content (20% ABV is typical), and should be served in small glasses. It is robust enough to stand up to ver strong cheese or similar nibbles - the kind that would make ordinary red wine taste insipid.

I’ve drunk tawny, but prefer ruby. Late-bottled vintage is a step up from the common herd, shouldn’t cost much more, and is ready to drink when bought (doesn’t need maturing or decanting). Also look for Dow’s or Warres.

Port is oxidized.

Even the smell of port or any fortified wine makes me want to hurl.

I almost always have Port wine at my place, even though I rarely drink some.

I can understand not liking Port, like anything else, but I can’t comprehend finding the taste as vile as you described it.
Wait a minute…
Hmm… Nope, it definitely doesn’t taste anything like you describe.

Sure, tawny port is oxidized, but if you’re claiming that white and/or ruby port is oxidized I’d like to see a cite.

Some is, apparently, which suggests a cultural difference: most of what I’ve drunk has been bottle-matured, unoxidised, and that’s by far the more common over here.

Are you sure you aren’t thinking of sherry? Sherry is always oxidized but I didn’t think port was. Also, I’ve never had any port that tasted as if it was oxidized, but then again I haven’t had every port that there is.

Regarding the OP, I’m surprised that he described the port as sour. Port is supposed to be sweet; if it was sour there must have been something very wrong with it.

**squeegee **- Port tastes like sophisticated cough syrup - I love it! I prefer mine to be both an antihistimine AND a decongestant.

:wink:

(Seriously, good port is a wonderful, wonderful thing - often more viscous than wine, with a plummy scent and flavor. The tawnies aren’t as rich and full, so are easier for newbies to take on…)

In the UK port usually goes with Stilton cheese. I’m not a fan of Stilton but port is okay in the prescribed small quantities.

I love ports! In fact I find them Much more palatable than most normal reds, and nearly all whites. Quinta de Noval makes a decent ruby that retails at about 15.99, Fonseca bin 27 is also nice for a few dollars more.

You got a bad bottle. Although Port is often too sweet for my tastes, it has never tasted like you describe. But if you don’t like it, I see no reason for you to keep trying.

Yes, the cheese most likely was Stilton. I’ve enjoyed Stilton with port at wine tastings, but Mr. S hated Stilton, so I could never buy the cheese in a quantity small enough for just me. But I have my very own bottle of port on the counter. I like it with dark chocolate. I’m told it’s also good over ice cream, but haven’t tried that yet.

Port with Stilton and walnuts was our dessert New Years Eve. Delicious stuff, but in limited quantities.

Although not for the weak of wallet, the ultimate in port is vintage. Generally speaking, unlike most other wines, it’s only made in good years and by reputable port houses. It can last decades, becoming less fiery and drier as time goes by. One of the best vintages of the last century which is still good to drink is 1977. More recently, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1991 and 1992 are good. Anything more recent, depending on your tastes, is probably a bit young.

If money is literally unimportant, look for the 1945 and 1955 vintages, and the legendary Quinta da Noval 1927. I’ve just had a bottle of Croft 1960 for Xmas. It was getting a bit weary, but perked up after breathing for a while.

As I said nearly all vintage port is made by reputable house. Names to look out for are Taylor, Warre, Dow and Graham. Second tier (and more affordable) names include Sandeman, Gould Campbell and Smith Woodhouse.