For The Love Of Port

I have a 50l Oak barrel that was given to me as birthday present over 10 years ago and yes at the time it was full. Keen to begin with I kept it topped up but became lazy with that more recently to the point where there is only about 5l left in it. I have decanted the port with intent to clean out the barrel as sediment was appearing in recent pours and it had also turned to a rich sweet syrup that is almost chocolate in colour. The port itself tastes awesome but needs to be thinned out as it is just to thick to drink now, but it also has slightly gritty/dirty texture to it and as a result am nervous about reintroducing it back to the barrel. I am currently filtering the port through a T-shirt and strainer of all things and that is relieving the gritty texture but the colour just doesn't lend itself to be nice to drink - there is no ruby red tone to it all. I have experimented in blending a small amount of it with the new Tawny I am placing in the barrel and love the taste but am just not convinced that I won't be ruining the new port I will be topping the barrel up. Would appreciate any thoughts or suggestions on the colouring and if there is any other filtering I should do with the port or just throw it out and start afresh.

First, Welcome to the Forum!

The brown color is due to heavy oxidation (exposure to lots of air). You've accidentally stumbled onto what happens when you leave a Port in a barrel for too long without topping (also called refreshing) it up. It turns to exactly what you describe. There isn't much you can do with it now except add a tiny amount to a larger amount of younger and fresher tawny to give it some depth, if you were bottling an older tawny Port that is. A little, as in a tiny amount, goes a long way. However, that is obviously something you aren't going to do as you aren't a producer making and selling a decent amount of Port. And what you have probably isn't of the highest quality for blending anyways*. For what you are looking to do, and the amount left, I would just toss it and clean the barrel and start new.

*What was the Port you put into barrel back then, that is now well oxidized?

Thanks Andy, I kind of figured that was the case. I am not sure what the original port was that came with the barrel as it was full when it was first given to me but I topped up with a low cost Tawny as I started to make my through it. I have filled the barrel with water at the moment and found a few leaks - I assume that they will close up as the timbers absorb it - correct? What style/s would you recommend to restart and is it a good idea to add brandy?

Agree with the advice of tossing out the caramelized syup unless you want to pour it over your Sunday morning pancakes or waffles.

Not so sure why the cask would be leaking if it is only 10 years old.

Welcome to FTLOP, Cam!

If I read this correctly,

The port itself tastes awesome but

.

Ok I get that it's way too thick or strong or whatever, but it tastes awesome to him. Port reduction sauces are wonderful, Port Sabayon would be great, Port poached pears, fantastic. The last thing you should do is throw it out, repurpose instead.

When refilling, remember, aging a low quality wine just gives you an old low quality wine. Use something decent which you would like to drink.

Roy Hersh wrote:Not so sure why the cask would be leaking if it is only 10 years old.

A barrel can leak in much less time, like 6 months (in Colorado, maybe longer elsewhere) if it is allow to dry out. It sounds like this barrel had a very low fill at the end, so I'm not all that surprised.

Filling the barrel with water is the first step to see if the leaks will stop. You can also spray the outside with water, or even soak the entire barrel, inside and out, in water. I have a giant tub for this. If it still leaks, you can consider pounding the hoops tighter (remove nails first if it has them), or even disassembling and reassembling the barrel, one half at a time. There are also a variety of leak repair products, like filler wax, reed strips, and spiles. You can even make a food-safe plaster paste and use that, with flour and an acid as I recall.

Thanks for all the feedback guys and the great suggestion of repurposing the current port - my wife and I have already had some cooking / dessert ideas for it. I filled the barrel with water and it immediately began to leak at the front and rear of it, however within a few hours the leaks had stopped and have now left water in for 2 days and all seems to back to normal. Lesson learned here - drink and refill.......don't just drink.

I would have to look up the acid and alcohol tolerance, but another problem with air space in the barrel is acetobacter.

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Eric Menchen wrote:

Roy Hersh wrote:Not so sure why the cask would be leaking if it is only 10 years old.

A barrel can leak in much less time, like 6 months (in Colorado, maybe longer elsewhere) if it is allow to dry out. It sounds like this barrel had a very low fill at the end, so I'm not all that surprised.

Filling the barrel with water is the first step to see if the leaks will stop. You can also spray the outside with water, or even soak the entire barrel, inside and out, in water. I have a giant tub for this. If it still leaks, you can consider pounding the hoops tighter (remove nails first if it has them), or even disassembling and reassembling the barrel, one half at a time. There are also a variety of leak repair products, like filler wax, reed strips, and spiles. You can even make a food-safe plaster paste and use that, with flour and an acid as I recall.

+1 to almost all of that, I can't vouch for the "plaster" though. I'm glad the wood has become rejuvenated with the water though.

If your barrel has issues in the future, they may also be related to barrel quality. If it was originally meant for more decorative purposes, rather than functional, it's going to have issues over time.


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Bradley Bogdan wrote:+1 to almost all of that, I can't vouch for the "plaster" though.

One source: https://embracethefunk.com/2013/12/14/f ... he-barrel/

DIY Pastes– These are pastes made to a consistency of really really thick oatmeal. The most common is a combo of unbleached flour and distilled water. Start with 1 cup of unbleached flour and begin slowly mixing in 1/4 cup of water until it is a thick moist paste (think drywall mud or joint compound). I do know of one brewer who has successfully used only flour to fix a leak. Some have used a small amount of blackboard chalk / Calcium Carbonate in the mix too.
Chalk /Calcium Carbonate and garlic is another old school fix. Mixed to a very thick paste and dabbed on with your finger.

I think I used calcium carbonate and garlic once. It worked.

A very slow leak can self-seal. The water and alcohol evaporate out, leaving a hard sugar spot.

That's very cool, thanks for sharing


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Hi Cam, I spent the last weeks thinking and thinking and thinking about what happened to your barrel.
I think I found the answer. You didn't use Port Wine from the demarcated region in Portugal, did you? That's why.