Port vintages are declared by the shippers when they feel they can make a wine good enough for extended bottle aging for many years (say 15-20 years). The declaration is subsequently approved by the regulatory body after a sample of wine has been tested. Different port shippers may have different assessments of the years and one shipper may declare a vintage when most others do not. There are years when everyone agrees is a good vintage year, such as 1963, 1970 and 1977; whilst here are years when only one or two port house declared. Due to improved vine-growing and wine-making, it has been over 30 years since the last year in which no one has declared a vintage.
Vintage Ports are aged in barrel for a maximum of two and half years and then bottled. It is expected to need over 10 years of bottle aging, though the rule of thumb that a vintage wine of the same year as a baby is born can only be drunk at or after his 21st birthday is not necessarily true. Extended bottle of the wine causes a heavy deposit in the bottle when mature and vintage ports all benefit from decanting. The wine will retain its ruby colour and its fruit but will behave more like an unfortified wine once opened, hence they need to consumed over a day or two. There are two more types of vintage ports (as opposed to colheita tawnies); they will be dealt with in other tidbits.
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