Friday, 29 May 2009

Other Fortified Wines

Here is an outline of some less-common fortified wines:

1. Spain - Moscatel de Valencia: made from Muscat of Alexandria and mostly fortified before fermentation to c. 15% abv; simple fresh perfumes.


2. Greece - Muscat of Samos: Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains, grown at altitude on hillside terraces, can be fortified before fermentation (Samos Doux), to interrupt fermentation (Samos VDN) or unfortified (Samos Nectar). It comes from the Greek island of Samos, in the Aegean and is allegedly "Greece's most famous wine" (after retsina).

3. Greece - Mavrodaphne of Patras: a Greek appelation in the Peloponnese which produces a fortified sweet red made from the Mavrodaphne grape, cask aged for a long time, giving a tawny colour.
4. Cyprus - Commandaria: Cypriot wine, made from sun-dried grapes, fortified after fermentation has stopped naturally. Fermentation achieves only a low level of alcohol - about 10% abv (NB PX is even less). Aged oxidatively for at least 2 years in oak at the coast. Static or solera systems can be used.
5. Cyprus - Fortified Cyprus Wine: sherry-style, fortified mid-ferment, cask-aged for a year then sweetened with concentrated grape must (although there are dry styles aged under flor in solera).

6. Australia - premium vintage and tawny styles are made from Rhone varieties (esp Shiraz); to a lesser extent, Madeira- and Sherry-styles; see separate post on Rutherglen

7. California - basic cream sherry-styles, but sweetened; some quality Muscats and Port styles

8. South Africa - Port-style wines using Rhone/Port varieties; Sherry styles; Moscatel

(Sources: WSET materials, The Oxford Companion to Wine)