Port:
Not just an after dinner drink
One of the highlights when you visit Portugal is - of course - port!
Here are seven fun facts you might not have known about this digestif.
1. Originally created for British sailors during the end of the 1600s, large amounts of wine are
stored in big barrels and left in caves to age.
2. Port is created and exclusively produced in the Douro region, one of Portugal's 14 wine regions.
Portuguese wines still carry the label "Vinho do Porto Garantia" highlighting their authenticity with
myriad strict rules governing the use of this label.
3. Considered the oldest demarcated (defined) wine region in the world, this region was declared World
Heritage by UNESCO in 2001.
4. Port, a fortified wine, is produced by adding aguardente, sometimes referred to simply as "brandy",
to red wine. This not only increases the alcohol content to about 20% but it also preserves the natural
sugars from the grapes by stopping the fermentation process.
5. There are many different categories of Port, but most will fall under four main styles: Ruby, Tawny,
White and Rosé. Its quality and complexity varies according to: the time spent aging, how it's
aged (barrel or bottle) and the grapes used to make it.
6. Many port producers pride themselves on using wine-making processes that are the same
today as they were nearly 400 years ago. Today, some vintage port is still being made
using grapes crushed by foot.
7. The world's oldest person attributes her age (122 years) to a diet of olive oil,
port wine and 1kg of chocolate per week. Doesn't that sound like a diet
we could all enjoy!
Sources: Wine Folly, Wine Tourism Portugal,
Wikipedia, au.askmen.com
and Primer Magazine
11 | Explorer Magazine
