For The Love Of Port

VacuVin - No, I don't believe this works after trying it a bunch. Dumbs down the aromatics and flavors too much.

Private Reserve - A better method, but it still shows a lack of vibrancy that is noticeable.

Refrigerate - After re-corking, this works about as good as anything else I've tried.


--- But what about freezing left over Port?

Have you ever tried this ... and if so, did it work for you? I'd be very interested to hear your experiences!

do you just mean putting in the freezer or freezing? I don't think 18%+alcohol Port will freeze until about -15C / 0F...maybe it would freeze but I would guess probably not in most freezers...I am sure someone will prove me wrong.

I recall doing the math, and I think Port will freeze somewhere between ten and twenty degrees fahrenheit. Peter? And I think most freezers are set around zero. Now for some real fun, you could freeze it slowly so the water freezes first on top and remove the ice to further concentrate the wine. Strictly speaking this may not be legal.

This was where I posted it:

http://www.fortheloveofport.com/ftlopfo ... hol#p57014

To save looking, water with 20% alcohol freezes at about -7.5C (discounting any effect the sugars might have).

Does this mean I can make port popsicles in the summer?!?

Hmmm.....

I think Eric was suggesting Port-eiswein. Now I'll leave it up to him to lobby the IVDP to set up a new category!

Freezing to remove some of the water after fermentation is more like apple-jack than Eiswein.

Peter W. Meek wrote:Freezing to remove some of the water after fermentation is more like apple-jack than Eiswein.

I bet that would be the best tasting apple-jack you've ever had though...

The best way I have found is to immediately pour half into a 375 ML bottle and cork it right away, but rarely does a bottle of port sit around long enough to go bad at my residence.

Best overall luck for me is to recork (I keep a stack of t-corks on hand) and refridgerate it. Or if there is a 1/2 bottle or less, then I'll transfer to a 375ml bottle (or smaller if needed) to reduce the head-space and then refridgerate it.

The can type, where you spray in a chemical to displace the oxygen, always seems to leave an off flavor to the liquid. Not sure why, as it is supposed to be neutral, but it always seems to be there when I open the bottle later and is quite off putting to me so I stopped using that type a long time ago.

A word of caution - if you freeze solid a bottle of wine, there is a serious risk of bursting the bottle..

Tom

That's an excellent point, Tom. I recently had that happen with a glass bottle of root beer, stuck in the freezer to chill it down ... and forgotten about.