The next Production Tasting will be held on Saturday, July 18 at 3:00 p.m. at the winery. This month’s theme is Port. Here is the lineup:
- 1970 Taylor’s Vintage Port (Taylor, Fladgate & Yeatman) PORTUGAL
- 1977 Taylor’s Vintage Port (Taylor, Fladgate & Yeatman) PORTUGAL
- 1994 Taylor’s Vintage Port (Taylor, Fladgate & Yeatman) PORTUGAL
- 2003 Taylor’s Vintage Port (Taylor, Fladgate & Yeatman) PORTUGAL
- 2006 Rappahannock Cellars Red Dessert Wine (Norton) VIRGINIA
- 2007 Rappahannock Cellars Red Dessert Wine (Norton – barrel sample) VIRGINIA
Port is a wine that many consider more a reflection of the winemaking than the grape from which it is made. It is a fortified wine, meaning that its alcohol comes from both natural alcoholic fermentation and added grape spirits (distilled wine – brandy). The tradition surrounding the origins of Port explains that brandy was added to preserve the finished wine for its long voyage from Portugal to England, though why/when it was added to fermenting wine, to arrest the fermentation and maintain its sweetness, is lost in history.
The ’70, ’77, ’94, and ’03 represent four of the best six vintages of the last 33 rated vintages in Portugal. Taylor’s is considered one of the best “shipping houses”in Portugal. Red Port is a sweet and alcoholic (~20%) wine made from the varieties:
- Touriga Nacional
- Tinta Roriz
- Touriga Franca
- Tinta Barroca
- Tinto Cao
- Tinta Amarela
These wines will be paired up against our Virginia Red Dessert Wines made entirely of the Norton grape, but also made by adding grape spirit. In Virginia, wineries are prohibited from producing any wine greater than 18.0% alcohol. Thus our Virginia Red Dessert Wine is 17.9% alcohol.
The cost is $75.00 per person and the event is limited to 11 people. Each wine is a two-ounce serving and the tasting will be conducted blind, meaning we will not know the producer or vintage of the wine until all the wines have been tasted.
Contact me (Jason) directly at jburrus@rappahannockcellars.com to RSVP. Please do not call the winery as e-mail is the best way to contact me.
-Jason
Vintner of Rappahannock Cellars
