RSS
Home
Port wines to pair with your leftover halloween loot
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Halloween Candy
The costumes have been put away, and the pumpkins are starting to smell…but somehow the candy and the sweet tooth have remained. Halloween always manages to bring out your child inside, including the one that wants to indulge in all the gluttonous treats that form the backbone of this holiday.
So why not add an adult indulgence to your childish cravings with a glass of port to pair with your Halloween bounty? Port Wine is a type of dessert wine that is made by adding brandy to the wines in the middle of fermentation. Since fermentation is the process of converting sugar to alcohol, stopping fermentation in the middle leaves sugar in the wine…thus making it a sweet or dessert wine. In addition, adding the Brandy makes it much higher alcohol than normal wine, which is why port is often served in smaller glasses and bottles.
Ruby Port
Wondering what to do with Twizzlers, Jolly Ranchers or any other red fruit flavored candies? Try them with a glass of Ruby Port. This style of port packed full of cherry, strawberry and raspberry notes. It also has a deep crimson color to match. If you are looking for a slightly higher quality wine, try a Reserve Ruby Port, which is similar but with richer fruit flavors and better integrated alcohol, meaning less harsh. When the candy runs out, this is also great with berry cobblers, cherry pies, and all other red fruit driven desserts.
A good Ruby Port to try is Broadbent’s Auction Reserve Port. This wine is widely distributed so most retailers should carry it or can order it for you. Deluca’s Market in Beacon Hill definitely carries it.
Tawny Port
Then there are the Snicker’s, Hershey Bars and, of course, Reese’s Cups. Any combination of chocolate, or chocolate and nuts, will be enhanced by a glass a tawny port. This type of port is much less fruit forward than Ruby, but instead has flavors of nuts and caramel. And, as I am sure you know, chocolate, caramel and nuts are always an obvious combination. Tawny Port is more brownish in color with a lighter colored rim around the edge, hence the name “Tawny”. This is a great wine to keep in mind as we move into the holidays since it is amazing with Pecan Pie.
You will often see Tawny Port with an indication of its age, such as 10 Year Tawny, 20 Year Tawny, etc, etc. The number is the average amount of ageing the wine has spent in wood casks. The older the wine, the more complex the flavor and smell of the wine becomes and those nutty, caramel notes really evolve. Unfortunately, as the age increases so does the price.
When it comes to tasting a Tawny, I would splurge on the first one and try a 10 Year Tawny. The Ferreira Quinta Do Porto 10 Year Tawny is a good place to start. Again, this is widely available so ask any reliable retailer to help you find it.
Related Articles:
Comments
.jpg)
.jpg)
