Tawny

Tawny Ports are aged in casks rather than large tanks or bottles like their Ruby counterparts. This gives them a lighter (in both body and colour) and silkier style. There are two major types of Tawny: a blend of several recent vintages with no specific statement of age – known as basic Tawny Port – and older-aged Tawnies, marked as 10, 20, 30 or 40 years old.

Basic Tawny is aged in small casks for two to eight years, during which time the wines take on a tawny colour (hence the name) and a smooth, sweet, dried-fruit character. Tawny Port can also be made by blending red and white Ports together, although the finest examples are not made in this way. Lightly-chilled Tawny makes an excellent apéritif but works equally well with chocolate desserts or cheese. It is ready to drink as soon as it is released, does not throw a sediment, and does not improve with bottle age.

Aged Tawny is the best-known and finest style of Tawny Port, often in par with the other venerable style, Vintage Port. It can be labelled as 10, 20, 30 or more than 40 years old. This age statement refers to the average age of the wines in the blend, although it is not an exact science. Older Tawny Ports are added for extra subtlety and complexity, while younger Tawnies bring freshness. Vintage-dated Tawny is also produced and is known as Colheita. It is relatively rare but often offers exceptional quality and value.

Aged Tawnies are aged for many years in wooden casks where they take on an increasingly tawny colour, a coffee, nutty, dried-fruit complexity and a silky character as the tannins soften. The oldest Tawnies are mellower, complex, delicate and less sweet in style. Once bottled, Aged Tawnies are perfect to drink and do not require decanting as they do not throw a sediment or improve with bottle age.