Fortified Wines

Fortified wines or Vin de liqueur are

strengthened with the addition of alcohol usually

grape spirit.

Sherry (Spain) - 16-21%

Port (Portugal) - 18 - 22%

Madeira (Portuguese Island of Madeira) - 18%

Marsala (Sicily) 18%

Malaga (Spain) 18%

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Spain

SHERRY PRODUCTION

Was known as sack “Spanish word Sacar means to export

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Real Sherry comes from Jerez de la Frontera In the southwest of Spain in the province of Andalusia.

Jerez (Pronounced as Hereth, from which the word sherry evolved.

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Palomino is the main grape variety, comprising about 95 percent of all sherries

Pedro Ximenez a

sweeter grape, also

made into a sherry

by the same name

Moscatel (Muscat) also used

GRAPES

Soil Samples from Jerez DO

Pedro Ximenez Palomino Moscatel

Three types of soil in Jerez: Soil

Albarriza – (alba – white from Latin) - Chalky & Best

Barro – Clay & Second Best

Arena – Sand

Making 1. Pressing

2. Débourbage (racking) 3. Fermentation 4. Classification 5. Fortification 6. Aging 7. Flor development in Fino/Aging Oloroso 8. The Solera 9. Blending 10. Finishing

Making

Pressing the grapes-Traditional Lagars or modern machines.

Fermentation - Fast or Slow

There are three basic types of Sherry –

Fino

Amontillado

Oloroso

All the styles of sherry are fortified by the addition of high strength local Brandy

A yeast called "flor" (flower) develops on the surface of the Sherry resting in the casks

Flor grows on the wines destined to become Finos, leaving the wine very dry and crisp

Flor grows less fully on the Olorosos and Amontillados

Technically flor is a yeast strain called

Saccharomyces beticus

Flor is a blessing, it seals the wine from harmful bacteria & prevents it from oxidising

Flor is however unpredictable

After maturation(usually one or two years), wines are placed in a solera for aging

SOLERA

The solera is formed by multiple rows of 600 liter old American oak barrels- Butts

The solera may contain as many as fourteen rows of Criaderas (Small Barrels)

The solera system oak casks rest in bodegas

When wine is needed for bottling, a little is drawn off from the oldest casks called the "soleras"

Each row of criaderas is re-filled from the one above it

2nd criadera

solera

Sherry is not the product of any one year, the

solera system ensures that and by law only

30percent of the solera can be drawn off each year

Fino and Manzanella

Fino and Manzanilla - dry styled sherries are made by allowing the flor to bloom in the barrels

Required alcohol content is 16% - 21% ABV (up to 18% in Finos)

Amontillado

Amontillados - Fino sherries fortified to

17% then into another solera without flor

Resembles wines made in a nearby region of Montilla

Olorosso

Made with slightly higher alcohol fortified so that flor could not exist

Oloroso sherries go through the solera more slowly – developing deep caramel flavors

May be dry, or it may be lightly sweetened with a bit of the juice from Pedro Ximenez

Palo Corado

special style – comes from an early transition from development under flor to oxidative

After a few months development under flor, it is fortified to 18-20% ABV - halfway between Amontillado and Oloroso

High content of malic acid leads to a malolactic fermentation - lactic quality in this style

Cream Sherries & Pedro Ximenez

Olorosos that are sweetened up to 15 percent with Pedro Ximenez are known as cream sherries

Made from Pedro Ximenez grapes - can be as sweet as late harvest or ice wines and thicker in texture

Croft

Duff Gordon

Gonzalez Byas

Harveys

La Riva

Sandeman

PORTUGAL

MADEIRA

Madeira - a small, island and province of Portugal, 375 miles west of Morocco and about 500 miles from Portugal

Fortified wine usually 18 % ABV

Neutral grape spirits are added to the wine before it is finished fermenting

Instituto do Vinho da Madiera (IVM) controls

Red grapes

Tinta Negra Mole

White grapes

Sercial

Verdelho

Bual (Boal)

Malmsey (Malvasia)

ESTUFA SYSTEM

OR

ESTUFAGEM

Process Madeira goes through to produce it’s unique character

An Estufa is a heated chamber or room, containing tanks with large capacity

Method involves heating the fortified wines to an average temperature of 45-50 C for three to six months

The best Madeiras will age this way for 25 years or more

Sercial - The driest, is made from grapes of the same name that are grown in the coolest vineyards at high altitudes

Verdelho - The medium-dry style is made from verdelho grapes grown in warmer vineyards. The style is more full-bodied than the sercials

Bual - A medium-rich style that comes from the bual grapes grown in warmer vineyards, these produce concentrated madeiras with rich sweetness

Malmsey - The richest, sweetest style coming from malvasia grapes that are grown in the warmest locations closest to sea level

Rain Water - A blend of Sercial & Verdelho, popular in America.

Port

Blandy

Cossart Gordon

Leacock

Rutherford

Miles

Port comes form only one region, Douro River valley Divided into three sub-zones, from west to east

Lower Corgo

Upper Corgo

Douro Superiore

Red Port Grapes

White Port Grapes

Gouveio Malvasia Fina

Rabigato

Viosinho

Codega

Touriga Nacional

Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo)

Tinta Barroca

Tinta Fransisca

Touriga Francesa

Tinto Cao

Rapid extraction of color, still traditionally done by

treading, but now more commonly done by automatic press.

Quick fermentation to between 6-9 degrees of alcohol

Fortification with grape spirits results in a stopped fermentation with about 10% residual sugar and

finished alcohol of around 20%

Traditionally, 1-2 winters in wineries in large wooden casks or vats

Transported to Vila Nova de Gaia (or other legal area in demarcated Douro region)

Port barrel is called a ‘pipe’ (usually 550 l or more)

Most ports reflect a blend of various

Grape varieties

Vineyard lots

Vintages

Sweet port may be ‘toned down’ with dry port

Extra-sweet port called geropiga can be blended in to increase sugar levels

There are 10 different styles of port, although all port falls into one of two major categories

Ruby

Tawny

Ruby – (Dark Red)

aged in large oak casks for minimum 3 years. The coluor changes to Ruby (Dark Red) during maturation.

Tawny – (Yellowish Brown)

Simple Tawny bottled 3 years after harvest

Aged Tawnies can be bottled in multiples of 10 years

Late Bottled Vintage - From a single vintage, bottled unfiltered at four years. Requires ageing.

Vintage Port - Only in exceptional years, highest quality Port (less than 2% of all Port production), Bottled after two years in cask, requires long (15-20 years) ageing

Single Quinta - Similar to vintage but from a single vineyard. Produced in years when a full vintage declaration is not sought

Aged tawny ports - Designated on the label as, either 10, 20, 30 or 40 years old

Colheita - Vintaged Tawny , matured in cask for a minimum of eight years

Named because of the heavy crust or sediment in the bottle (during ageing),

Blends of 3 or 4 years and bottled unfiltered

Crusted Port -

MARSALA

Fortified wine produced in Sicily in dry or sweet styles

Catarratto, Grillo, Inzolia and other grapes usedThree methods

Fortified with grape spirits

Addition of concentrated must (mosto cotto, must boiled down to concentrate)

Addition of sifone, late-picked overripe must with added alcohol

Oro (Golden)

Ambra (Amber)

Rubino (Ruby)

Marsala Fino - Aged minimum of 1 year

Marsala Superiore - Aged at least 2 years

Marsala Superiore Riserva - Aged 3 years or more

Marsala Vergine/Marsala Solera -Aged in cask min. 5

years in solera system

Marsala Vergine Stravecchio Riserva - Dry, minimum of

10 years aging in cask

Malaga

Earlier known as Malligo and later as Mountain

Grapes used are Moscatel and Pedro Ximenez

Grape Juice is known as Lagrimas- Tears Wine

is matured in Solera System

Sweet Malaga is known as – Dolce and Dry as Seco

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