Port stored in small oak tabletop kegs
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Jacquie Yee
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Aug 29, 2006 9:33 pm
- Location: Vancouver, B.C.
- Contact:
Port stored in small oak tabletop kegs
Last year while visiting family in Australia I was introduced to the idea of keeping Port and other spirits in small decorative French or Italian made oak wine barrels. I have located a source for one in Europe ( they're hard to find in Canada) but are really quite expensive and so I'd like to get some opinions about how these things work. Are they just a gimmick and will I be destroying my fine Ports by using one?
"The more useless it is, the more it is apt to be Art" Anonymous
Hi Jacquie,
Welcome to the FORUM and the FTLOP website. I hope you will enjoy your time spent here!
I have a small Port cask at home. It is not good enough to really do the trick although I used to use it in the 1990s on occasion for Tawny Ports. However, it does look good, but that is not why I purchased it. There are some higher quality ones but they are not easy to find. Obviously you will want to seek out a caks with more neutral oak or wood that has been seasoned if possible. I would not store anything better than 20 year old Tawny Port inside this type of cask, although I bet it would be really interesting to try putting some Madeira in it.
In the Feb. 2006 FTLOP newsletter (in the archive on this website), I showed a picture of a pair of great casks containing 1882 AJS Reserva (Colheita) and you might want to have a look at that picture. It was one of the best wines I have had this year.
Welcome to the FORUM and the FTLOP website. I hope you will enjoy your time spent here!
I have a small Port cask at home. It is not good enough to really do the trick although I used to use it in the 1990s on occasion for Tawny Ports. However, it does look good, but that is not why I purchased it. There are some higher quality ones but they are not easy to find. Obviously you will want to seek out a caks with more neutral oak or wood that has been seasoned if possible. I would not store anything better than 20 year old Tawny Port inside this type of cask, although I bet it would be really interesting to try putting some Madeira in it.
In the Feb. 2006 FTLOP newsletter (in the archive on this website), I showed a picture of a pair of great casks containing 1882 AJS Reserva (Colheita) and you might want to have a look at that picture. It was one of the best wines I have had this year.
Ambition driven by passion, rather than money, is as strong an elixir as is Port. http://www.fortheloveofport.com
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Derek T.
- Posts: 4080
- Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2005 5:02 pm
- Location: Chesterfield, United Kingdom - UK
- Contact:
Jacquie,
Welcome to FTLOP. I have seen these casks in Oporto. Apparently they were once used by the aristocracy (I think mainly in the UK) as a means of storing their drinking port on ships or when travelling. As Roy says you would need to find a cask that has been well seasoned otherwise it would react with your wine and change it's character.
What is the capacity of the cask you are looking at?
Derek
Welcome to FTLOP. I have seen these casks in Oporto. Apparently they were once used by the aristocracy (I think mainly in the UK) as a means of storing their drinking port on ships or when travelling. As Roy says you would need to find a cask that has been well seasoned otherwise it would react with your wine and change it's character.
What is the capacity of the cask you are looking at?
Derek
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Jacquie Yee
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Aug 29, 2006 9:33 pm
- Location: Vancouver, B.C.
- Contact:
Thanks Roy and Derek for your input. Your comments made sense and seem to fit what my Aussie friends were doing.
They advised me keep my best ports bottled but keg the less expensive ones, always keeping the level of the cask high to prevent spoilage. This way I could have easy access to a nip of my favourite drink on a daily basis while saving the best for special occasions (Okay, like watching Survivor or buying a great pair of shoes)
The size I'm looking at would be a 5 litre oak cask handmade in Italy and "untoasted". I just received shipping info and at 140 euros on top of the purchase price it better be a worthwhile investment and not a white elephant (with brass rings and spigot, mind you!) in my bar. I am the sole port drinker in my circle and have felt lonely at times. Thanks to the FTLOP site I feel I can now hold my head up high just knowing you are all out there.
I'm sure I'll be back with more questions.
B'bye, Jacquie
They advised me keep my best ports bottled but keg the less expensive ones, always keeping the level of the cask high to prevent spoilage. This way I could have easy access to a nip of my favourite drink on a daily basis while saving the best for special occasions (Okay, like watching Survivor or buying a great pair of shoes)
The size I'm looking at would be a 5 litre oak cask handmade in Italy and "untoasted". I just received shipping info and at 140 euros on top of the purchase price it better be a worthwhile investment and not a white elephant (with brass rings and spigot, mind you!) in my bar. I am the sole port drinker in my circle and have felt lonely at times. Thanks to the FTLOP site I feel I can now hold my head up high just knowing you are all out there.
I'm sure I'll be back with more questions.
B'bye, Jacquie
"The more useless it is, the more it is apt to be Art" Anonymous
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Derek T.
- Posts: 4080
- Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2005 5:02 pm
- Location: Chesterfield, United Kingdom - UK
- Contact:
Jacquie,
I admire your capacity for port - anyone who needs 5 litres on tap with no friends who want to share it with gets my vote as a true deciple of the port world 8)
Seriously, I think you are looking at a novality item here. 140 Euro plus whatever you are paying for the cask seems excessive. There are 2 people on this Forum from your part of the world (relatively speaking) who travel to Oporto each year. Roy Hersh (website owner and Port Guru) lives in NW USA and Fred Blaise (Port God of Canada) lives in Quebec - I am sure if you want an authentic port cask from Villa Nova de Gaia for your bar you could persuade either of these gentlemen to bring you one across the Atlantic for the oportunity to meet up and share a glass of port 8)
Whatever you decide to do about the cask, please do join us here as we are devoid of female company
Derek
I admire your capacity for port - anyone who needs 5 litres on tap with no friends who want to share it with gets my vote as a true deciple of the port world 8)
Seriously, I think you are looking at a novality item here. 140 Euro plus whatever you are paying for the cask seems excessive. There are 2 people on this Forum from your part of the world (relatively speaking) who travel to Oporto each year. Roy Hersh (website owner and Port Guru) lives in NW USA and Fred Blaise (Port God of Canada) lives in Quebec - I am sure if you want an authentic port cask from Villa Nova de Gaia for your bar you could persuade either of these gentlemen to bring you one across the Atlantic for the oportunity to meet up and share a glass of port 8)
Whatever you decide to do about the cask, please do join us here as we are devoid of female company
Derek