What is Fortified Wine?

When asked what Port he liked to drink, he replied, “That which belongs to another”.

For every wine enthusiast there comes a time when he or she discovers fortified wines: Sherry, Port, Madiera, Marsala and Vermouth. What does “fortified wine” mean? Does it mean that they have more booze? Correct! But how does it get there? And what’s the point? Isn’t wine good enough the way it is?

As the saying goes: “Necessity is the mother of all invention.” What’s the one thing you need when you’re about to sail across the Atlantic Ocean in a boat for months on end in search of new land and people to exploit? Booze.  Lots of it and for plenty of reasons.

Fortunately, the early explorers were aware of wine spoilage issues that were especially prevalent back then. The screw-cap was still a few hundred years away, and preservative technology sometimes involved lead seals or pine tar. Somewhere and somehow, someone realized that adding booze to the wine made it last longer! Today, fortified wines offer a wide array of styles, flavors, complexity and history.

Be a good wine explorer and check ‘em out.

Sherry

Believe it or not, sherry is stored in someone’s butt!  Until the 1970s Sherry was shipped in export butts with a capacity of 500 litres for bottling in Britain and the empty butts went to the Whisky industry for re-use.

Sherry is one of the oldest known fortified wines, originating in Jerez de la Frontera. Typically made from the Palomino, Pedro Ximénez and Moscatel grapes, Sherry begins as a still white wine that has been fermented totally dry. After fermentation is complete, brandy is added to get the alcohol levels up to between 15-18%. Sherry takes this whole process to another level.

Sherry is classified into many styles, as we learned at our recent Sherry tasting, and it’s aged in different ways, with various levels of oxidation. It’s a bit confusing, but an amazing process.

• Fino - This is the salty Spanish ideal for every pinxtos, or tapa, and fares very well with fish and shellfish. Try a chilled glass of fino with fresh cracked walnuts.
• Manzanilla - Manzanilla is the ideal partner for fish and shellfish and sardines in particular. As is the case with Fino, it also makes an excellent match for cured meats.
• Amontillado and Palo Cortado - Due to its multifaceted aging process, these wines can multitask extremely well with numerous dishes. Poultry is great (especially quail), or try with smoked fish, aged sharp cheeses or tuna. Also, mushroom risotto or chestnut soup.
• Oloroso - Break out the scented olorosos with the main course: thick pork chops or any game meat. For after dinner, pair with mature cheese.
• Pale Cream - These are great as an aperitif or with brunch, chilled. Try with fresh tropical fruit.
• Cream - Of course you can pair with pastries, cakes and fresh fruit flan, but why not go try glazed ham. For starters, try chilled with soft, creamy cheeses and nuts. The cool kids are serving this on the rocks with a slice of orange.
• Pedro Ximenez - The ice cream thing actually works, especially if you have real vanilla bean flecked, with fresh cracked black pepper, and drizzle PX over the top. You can also break out the most potent blue cheeses or dark chocolate here. The bitterness can temper some of the intense sweetness of the wine.

1.      If it swims drink Fino

2.      If it flies drink Amontillado

3.      If it runs drink Oloroso

Port

Port is another fortified wine that is fairly common, especially as an after-dinner drink. Unlike Sherry, the grapes are allowed to ferment about 50% of the way, so that there is still natural sugar remaining when the spirit is added. Yeasts happily consume the grapes’ natural sugars and convert them to alcohol, but they simply cannot survive once the spirit is thrown into the mix. Thus, fermentation stops.

The wine was known as Oporto wine, since that was the town from where the wine was shipped to England.  Port comes largely from the Duoro region of Portugal and is made from native red varieties such as Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz and Tinta Cåo.

This famous dessert wine also has a large range of styles and aging processes, but all Port must age for a minimum of two years in barrel before release. It’s a rich treat that will also take your next attempt at a steak sauce up a few notches.

• White Port - White port typically is chilled as an aperitif, or poured over ice, and paired with olives, nuts, gouda and similar cheeses, or even seafood.
• Ruby Port - In addition to the milder types of blue cheese, ruby port pairs well with red fruits and desserts.
• Tawny Port -Try stronger blue cheeses, various nuts, dried fruits and desserts such as pecan pie, caramel apple desserts, etc. with tawnies.
• Late Bottled Vintage - Pairings are similar to those for Vintage port, and include strong blues (e.g., Stilton and Cabrales), dark chocolates and nuts, especially walnuts.
• Vintage Port - For a fine old vintage port, sipping it in front of a fire is a fine pairing.

Madiera

Did you know that Madeira was poured during Thomas Jefferson’s toast at the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, or that it was served at the inauguration of George Washington shortly thereafter?

It's made with red or white grapes, but mostly red grapes. Color isn't really important because the wine is deliberately oxidized and heated so that it has an amber or tawny color. It’s a sweet wine, but the levels of sweetness change.  You can have dry Madeira, which has a touch of sweetness, or you can have sweet Madeira, which is in fact quite rich and sweet. It always has a caramel, nutty flavor whether it's a young wine or a very old wine.

• Sercial – Serve this style of Madeira as an aperitif with salty foods, almonds, walnuts, assorted olives, soups that are heavy on broth and the like.
• Verdelho – Serve a Verdelho with richer appetizers like prosciutto, mushroom dishes or caviar.
• Bual - Consider serving Bual as a dessert wine with fruit-based or caramel desserts.
• Malmsey – Pair a Malmsey Madeira with cheesecake, tiramisu, crème brulee or dark chocolate-based desserts.
• Madeira - It will typically come with a label "hint" as to whether you can expect it to be sweet (doce), dry (seco) or somewhere in between (meio doce - "medium sweet"). Try Madiera with a Reese’s peanut butter cup!

Marsala

Nothing against your grandma's chicken Marsala, but the time has come to learn about a Sicilian wine that deserves better than being reduced to poultry sauce. Marsala wine comes from western Sicily and its name derives from the town. Marsala is the oldest Italian DOC wine, with an average alcohol content of about 18%.

The aromatic and sugary richness of the grapes used to make Marsala comes from the method of growing them in a ‘sapling’ style, a very ancient method, dating back to the culture of wine itself. All types of Marsala should be served in a ‘tulip’ glass, with tall stem. It is an excellent meditation wine and can also be enjoyed before or after dinner, especially the ‘Superiore Riserva’.

There are actually a lot of flavors that Marsala can have. The most common among those are vanilla, tamarind, brown sugar, and stewed apricot. It can range from a dry style to a sweet one and it is served around 55-degrees.

• Marsala is traditionally served between the first and second courses of a meal. It is best served on its own, or with tasty cheeses.

Vermouth

Technically, vermouth is not a “fortified” wine in the same sense that the others are.  Taking its name from the German word "Wermut," meaning wormwood, vermouth is an aromatic fortified wine flavored with herbs, roots, bark, flowers and other botanicals. It comes in two basic styles: sweet and dry, each with different cocktail uses.

The earliest commercial vermouth came out of late 18th Century Italy (Martini & Rossi was a famous maker of the time who's still a giant in the market today), and for that reason any sweet, red vermouth made in this tradition now, regardless of its country of origin, is known as "Italian vermouth."

In the early 19th Century, French winemaker, Joseph Noilly, arrived on the scene with his own style of vermouth, which was pale in color and much drier. Noilly Prat is still a leading maker of this style of aromatic fortified wine, which is still referred to as "French vermouth" regardless of where it was made.

In Europe Vermouth is traditionally drunk before a meal, like the alcoholic version of an appetizer, but we Americans prefer ours in cocktails.

• Pair red vermouth with cheese drizzled with honey.
• Pair white vermouth with, what else, OLIVES!

P.S. Yes, Thunderbird is a fortified wine!

Don't forget to check for more tips and wine news on the blog!

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