Why You Must Be Drinking Port This Holiday Season

The holidays are a time of indulgences. We spend too much money, we eat too much rich food and sweets, and we drink too much alcohol. As we are over-indulging on food and booze there is a solution to help wash down our gluttony: port.

I realize port is alcohol; however, it is a special type of alcohol that can help our guts process the rich foods and drinks we consume this holiday season. Port is a digestif, which means, in addition to tasting amazing, its job is to help the body digest the meal. The touch of sweetness is soothing to the stomach, while the body welcomes the higher alcohol levels because it coats the stomach. Furthermore, if ending the meal with a holiday sweet treat, port is an excellent accompaniment.

Common port characteristics include sweet notes of dried fruits and warm notes of baking spices. What could be more perfect for the holidays?

Port is a fortified wine from the Duoro region of Portugal. There are two main styles of port: ruby and tawny. It should be served slightly chilled (60 °F) for best consumption. Port is crafted from Portuguese grape varieties, up to 52 different varieties used, the winemaker then determines when the port has reached the desired sweetness during fermentation, and at that time brandy is added to the fermenting port to stop fermentation process.

After the brandy is added port still needs two year of bottle aging before it can legally be released. Winemakers commonly add 30% brandy to reach the desired minimum alcohol percentage of 17.5.

Vintage ports can age after purchase decades, if properly stored. Tawny ports are frequently crafted to be consumed young. Whether enjoying a ruby or tawny port, vintage or late vintage, port is the perfect digestif for the holidays.

Here are five ports to kick off your holidays:

Graham's 10 Year Tawny Port ($36): elegant, striking a delicate balance between notes of a rich nuttiness, honey, and fig and deeper notes of spices with a hint of dark chocolate that develops due to its aging in seasoned oak casks until it reaches the peak of maturity; barrel aged 10 years, shelf life after opening 2-4 months; 20% ABV.

Dow's 2011 Late Bottled Vintage Port ($24): dark and jammy notes of black fruit dance with dried raisin notes of black and red fruit, rich dark chocolate, holiday spice notes of cloves, cinnamon, and added complexity of damp tobacco notes with violets; muscular in body and style, bold and rich through the finish; barrel aged 4-6 years, shelf life after opening 2-4 weeks, 19.5% ABV.

Cockburn's Special Reserve ($18): powerful dark fruits, warm baking spice, cocoa, toffee, savory herbal notes, rich and elegant, offering warmth to the palate, this is a chocolate lover's port as it will pair seemlessly with a decadent chocolate dessert, a depth of sweetness that is a bit more intense but balanced with round acidity; barrel aged 4-6 years, shelf life after opening 6 weeks; 20% ABV.

Quinta dos Murças 10 Year Tawny Port ($32): dried black figs, hazelnut, touch of toasted orange rind, lingering vanilla; elegant and warm, full-bodied, persistent, well-structured with balanced acidity, a beautiful ending to a lovely evening; barrel aged 10 years, shelf life after opening 2-4 months; 19.5% ABV.

Quinta dos Murças 2011 Vintage Port ($65): dark berry fruit notes of black cherry, blackberries, plums, and black raspberries, with warm spice notes, violets, a touch of cocoa, and vanilla; elegant and silky on the palate, warm and inviting, perhaps this port calls for a second glass; 20%ABV

So grab a bottle of one of these delicious ports and get your holidays and your gut off to a great start!