Port Wine remains an enigma to many consumers. The multiplicity of types of is still not totally clear, and even for those who have more knowledgeable, there are still some cryptic details. The brandy ("aguardente" in Portuguese, "eaux-de-vie" in French) is a fundamental element in Port wines, so it does not come as a surprise the care and effort dedicated to it.
In the past, the Brandies were more "dirty”.
At Taylor's, the Portuguese winemaker Tiago Machado has as one of the greatest responsibilities; the selection and negotiation of the brandies to produce the Ports recognized for their high quality around the world.
Tiago is also responsible for the testing and development of the brandies destined to each type of Port Wine. Amazingly, the brandy is not the same for all categories of Port Wine. And in a company with Taylor's history and reputation, the care required for this job is paramount.
Until 2012, there was a subsidy for distillation. When the support ended, the price of grape brandy, which had remained stable between €1 and €1,20, skyrocketed to €3,50.
The industry reacted quickly and allowed for cheaper brandy to be made for Port Wine from wine lees, which its call "wine spirit". This calmed the industry a bit, and lowered the price. From then on, the vast majority of the sector uses the "wine spirit" brandy, even if the quality is lower.
In the case of Taylor's, the company searched for the best brandy and in collaboration with different distilleries, developed the most adequate brandy for each specific type of Port wine, creating a fascinating "library".
Taylor's uses grape brandy for their standard wines, and have started to develop a brandy for LBV, in a proprietary combination of grape brandy and wine brandy, in order to maintain a more competitive style and pricing.
Here's a clear evidence to Taylor's attention to detail and compromise with quality. The Croft Pink Port (created in 2008) belongs to the "entry level" part of their portfolio. Yet, despite its price and being one of the most jovial and relaxed styles, from a production point of view, internally it is not seen as a standard product. Besides the grapes harvested at the right time for its profile, they created a more neutral brandy, obtained by triple distillation, not to interfere with the wine's fruit profile.
In other words, even the most "simple" wine in the portfolio is entitled to a special and customized brandy.
We learned that Port Wine from the "red" family (namely Ruby, LBV, Vintage) need to stabilize the color, for this reason they don't use 96% vinic alcohol, they use 77% which preserves more aldehydes and higher alcohols. Aldehydes also give character to the brandy, making it higher or lower quality, and more or less aromatic.
More innovation: Taylor's was in 2001 the first winery to make an organic Port Wine, for which they developed a brandy of organic origin, a very special blend, in partnership with their supplier. This specific brandy comes from the first distillation, and is very fruity and aromatic.
The quality of each brandy makes all the difference in the wine's final profile.
For wines aiming for the "Vintage" quality, a specific brandy was developed to be used in the lagares, with more character, combining the products from column stills and Charantais (as used in the production of Cognac in France).
But wait, there's more. For at least two decades, at the moment of fortification, Taylor's has kept all the brandies at 10ºC (32 Fahrenheit). It means, very cold.
The reason is that with the must fermenting at 30ºC, if the brandy is added at room temperature, it would "burn" ore remove some of the aromas.
We put our noses to work, and we noticed clear differences between the four brandies / aguardentes we sniffed (and tasted). Despite the differences, all were very clean and delicate, radiant in the non-impression of alcohol. The fruity perfume of the Pink Port spirit was impressive; the organic spirit was super-fine and crystalline, and the Vintage spirit was very rich and sophisticated.
Brandy is a fundamental part of a Port Wine, therefore its quality has a huge impact on its balance and profile. Ideally, when you taste a good Port Wine, the brandy should remain unknown. Like the many other secrets in Port Wines. More to come.
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