Colheita Port (pronounced coal-yee-ta) is a classification that denotes that the wine is a Tawny Port made from a single vintage. Personally, these are my favorite styles of Port because the fruit is much softer and the wine is more savory. The winemaking process for Colheita Port is the same as any other Port: indigenous Portuguese grape varieties are harvested quite ripe, then they are pressed and fermented, and once the must reaches about 8% alcohol during fermentation, they add around 20% brandy to kill the yeasts, which leaves an abundant amount of residual sugar along with about 18-21% overall alcohol, which acts to preserve the wine. After, the sweet fortified wine is aged in large barrels for a minimum of seven years, in this case, this 1999 Colheita was aged in barrel about fifteen years. Each year, the primary fruit characters in the wine break down and slowly integrate into the wine—becoming slightly dried and more nutty. (Note: Vintage port spends about three years in barrel, which leaves the fruit intact.) 

As you may recall from some of our recent offers, I have a lot of passion for this region after having spent time working in the Douro Valley. Amongst the producers in the region, Niepoort has always been one of my favorites and is widely considered a top producer. The Niepoort family has been an important name in Douro Valley Port production since 1842; currently, the fifth generation brother and sister team—Dirk and Verena—have been handling the estate. When Dirk took over from his father in 2005, he vowed to continue making Port the traditional way, but also purchased premium vineyard parcels to increase the quality of their production. When Dirk and Verena purchased the new vineyard parcels, they planted additional indigenous grape varieties and continued to maintain the healthy, older vines which already existed on the property. These vineyards are currently farmed biodynamically, and the viticulture team respects the natural cycles of the vines, as well as the relationship between the distinct terroir and each unique vine. The 60+ year old Vale do Pinhão and Ferrão vineyards are used to source grapes to produce this wine and are planted to Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinto Cão, Tinta Francisca, Tinta Amarela, Sousão and Tinta Roriz, among others. 

The Niepoort 1999 Colheita has a dark amber center quickly moving to orange and light garnet hues extending to the rim. The aromas are powerful and complex, showing notes of dried plums, dried black cherries, sandalwood, sweet tobacco, candied walnuts, white raisins and exotic spices. The palate is generously sweet, but in a perfect way that is not cloying, showing beautiful flavors of preserved red and black fruits, grilled nuts, sweet spices and and hint of crushed stones. The amazing dried fruit flavors and nutty characteristics of this bottling are tantalizing and there are few other wines in the world I would rather drink after dinner than a well-aged tawny. The quality in this bottle far outshines its price tag. I cannot speak more highly of this wonderful Port house and their consistently impressive quality level. This wine should be enjoyed out of an all purpose stem at about 65-70 degrees. Unlike Vintage Port, which typically has sediment, decanting Tawny is not needed as all of the wines sediment falls out during the extended barrel aging process. After dinner, simply pour and enjoy with a selection of cheeses alongside marcona almonds, honeycomb and toasted Raisin Bread. Again, this wine will be great for many months open so you can enjoy a small amount over a long period of time, one of the great qualities of Tawny Port.