Sip Liquid History with 2 Exciting New Port Categories

Port lovers are accustomed to seeing age statements or vintage years on their favorite labels, which hint at the luscious array of aromas and flavors they can expect from years (or decades) of aging in barrel or bottle, like unctuous caramel, toasted nuts, dried figs, and baking spices. Now two new categories are upping the ante, offering a unique peek into beverages that stretch even further back in history.

In January 2022, the Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto (IDVP), the Portuguese organization that controls the quality and volume of Port produced, announced two new designations for the country’s revered fortified wine, including a 50-year-old that permits Port houses to extend the category beyond 40 years--previously the oldest permitted expression.

Kopke’s 50 Year Old Ports

Kopke, the world’s oldest Port house, recently released 50-year-old Ports in both tawny and white styles. “Our stocks are very deep and very broad, plus we have always specialized in tawny and white Ports, so we were and are uniquely positioned to take advantage of this new category,” says head winemaker Carla Maria Dias Tiago. “[These] are some of the best expressions of the art of winemaking, plus really a thrilling taste of history.”

Kopke’s 50-year-old blends are composed of wines ranging in age from 47 to 55 years and highlight the dichotomy of freshness retained by high-quality wines with the honeyed richness and structure that comes from extended barrel aging. Unsurprisingly, Dias Tiago says, the notes of an older tawny are wildly different than that of a younger offering, with the latter categorized by fresher aromas, sweeter candied fruit, mild oak and occasionally the perception of alcohol on the palate. “Older tawnies have more complex aromas of dried fruit, spice, and some hints of iodine,” she explains. “In the mouth they are silkier and with a longer and more intense volume.” Their 50-year-old white Port picks up notes of salinity, hazelnut, apricot and vanilla that lingers through the lengthy finish.

Taylor Fladgate’s 50 Year Old Ports

Taylor Fladgate’s range of 50-Year-Old single harvest tawny Ports, first released in 2014 with a 1964 vintage, have helped spur an increase in demand for longer-aged tawnies. Last spring, Taylor Fladgate announced a 50-Year-Old blended Tawny Port; Taylor’s Golden Age is a limited edition blended from rare wood-aged wines aged for half a century in oak casks. “This exceptional wine has reached its ‘Golden Age’ of maturity, the point at which it achieves perfect balance, a magical complexity and a seductive smoothness and density,” according to managing director Adrian Bridge. Concentrated notes run the gamut from baking spices and butterscotch to pineapple and citrus, all wrapped up in a viscous texture balanced with fresh acidity.

Delving into Old Ports

It’s nearly impossible to find a 50-year-old bottle of any category of wine that’s in perfect condition, Bridge points out. (Ahem, kind of like people.) Since this one is a blend of top-quality older stocks, he deems Golden Age a fitting tribute for a mid-century birthday or golden anniversary. In other words, skip the “Over the Hill” mug for a friend’s fiftieth and spring for a half-century tawny.

But let’s say you’re celebrating an even greater milestone—or just want a glimpse back to the World War II era or earlier. There’s a new blended Port for that too, created to differentiate and protect very old stocks of wines. “With the Very Very Old Tawny Port category (VVOP), only wines over 80 years old can display this designation, functioning as a guarantee of quality and rarity for the final consumer,” Bridge says. Previously, there had been no restriction for a producer to label, say, a 30-year-old wine as “Very Old,” which led to a lot of confusion for the consumer. 

In 2010, Taylor Fladgate started releasing extremely old, limited edition tawny Ports. Their first, SCION, is more than 150 years old, made with grapes harvested before phylloxera devastated European vineyards. The house followed that up with Taylor 1863 and 1896, both single-vineyard bottlings. The most recent release carries the new designation and is made from a selection of rare lots matured in wood, some of which date back before the Second World War. “The wine has the precision and intricacy of a watch movement, all its complex elements working together in harmony,” muses Bridge.

You may be tempted to buy one of these extended-aged Ports and cellar it, but don’t. These wines have put in all their time in cask, are bottled on demand and are at the ready to be enjoyed immediately--or at least within a few years. Once opened, however, they will maintain their freshness for several months, though you may notice the aromas and flavors evolving--which is not necessarily a bad thing.

And not to be too meta or Einstein-y, but these older Ports really drive home the relativity of time. “Since Kopke Port Wine was established in 1638 [making it the oldest Port house], 400- and 500-year horizons are just a part of everyday life,” says Dias Tiago. “These wines are a wonderful expression of the art of time and will continue to tell many stories and delight each drinker release after release.”

Bottles to Try

Kopke 50-Year-Old Tawny Port ($250): “Very intense on the nose, with remarkable complexity and breadth. There are layered aromas of wood from such long barrel aging, and particular notes of dried figs, prunes, and walnuts. The palate reveals the fullness of a great old Port wine, with lingering flavors of spice and dried fruit, wrapped in fresher notes that culminate in a unique and very long finish,” says Dias Tiago.

Kopke 50-Year-Old White Port ($175/375ml): “Elegant yet intense on the nose, with notes of yellow stone fruits, particularly apricot, enveloped by notes of spice, dried fruit, hazelnut, and vanilla; there is also the hint of citrus that distinguishes Kopke’s whites. The palate is full and saline, retaining the elegance and freshness that are the hallmark of Kopke’s old whites, with a long and enduring finish,” says Dias Tiago.

Taylor Fladgate Golden Age ($325): Elegant, rich and delicate primary aromas of rum, raisin, clove, nutmeg and cracked black pepper are joined by prunes, quince, apricot and zest of lemon and orange deliver acidity, while notes of grilled pineapple, passion fruit and lychee balance beautifully with toasted coconut, almonds and butterscotch. It finishes bright, fresh and poised, and lingers for an eternity,” says Bridge.

Taylor Fladgate V.V.O.P. ($1,150): Undertones of butterscotch, dried figs and freshly ground coffee mingle with marzipan and sultana, lifted by fresh notes of orange peel and apricot and hints of vanilla, cedar wood and cinnamon. The palate has bright acidity and perfect balance but holds massive reserves of aroma which emerge on the long finish in a seemingly endless mellow surge.”