Fortified Wine

Vintage Port is a style made from the best grapes of a single year harvest. It is considered the most prestigious and the highest quality port style. Vintage is not produced every year, but only when port houses decide that the wine is of... READ MORE

Colheita is a type of Tawny port made with single-harvest grapes. They have to be aged for at least seven years, though most producers opt for longer barrel maturation and decide to bottle it when the wine is ready and considered of suffi... READ MORE

Tawny is a variety of fortified port that is usually oak-aged for around seven years (Reserva), but vintages may extend to ten, twenty, and even over forty years of age. These fortified red wines are praised for their complex aromatic pro... READ MORE

Pedro Ximénez is a type of Spanish sherry, as well as the name of the grape that is used to produce it. The grapes are picked when ripe and are then traditionally laid out in the sun—which increases their sugar content. After... READ MORE

Ruby is the most common and the freshest style of fortified port wines. Made from various red grapes, Ruby ports are usually aged for three years, typically in steel or concrete tanks, and are considered to be an approachable introduction... READ MORE

Port is a fortified wine that has its origins in the Duoro Valley. It is produced from various grape varieties, though Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Francesca, and Tinta Cão are considered the best for the r... READ MORE

White port is a fortified wine made just like red port—by adding brandy during fermentation—but using white grapes instead of red. The blend most commonly includes native varieties such as Viosinho, Malvasia Fina, Códeg... READ MORE

This fortified wine produced in the volcanic Madeira Islands ranges from dry wines that are typically served as an aperitif to the ones high on the sweet scale that are usually enjoyed with desserts. Approximately 85% of Madeira is produc... READ MORE

Hailing from Pondesac, Lillet is a fortified wine that is produced with a combination of fruits, peels, and barks that are macerated in neutral alcohol and then combined with wine. The final blend is usually aged for several months in oak... READ MORE

Vermouth or vermut is a fortified and aromatized wine that has its origins in Italy and France. It was imported to Spain sometime in the 19th century, and it soon became a signature local drink, primarily in Catalonia, but the tr... READ MORE

Sherry is a fortified white wine from Andalusia. It comes in a variety of styles, from light dry wines to complex and aromatic sweet varieties. They are mostly produced from Palomino grape, though sweet sherry wines also employ Pedro Xim&... READ MORE

In the past known as bianchissimo (the whitest), Martini Bianco is a variety of sweetened dry vermouth—fortified and aromatized wine—that was first introduced in 1910. Although the exact recipe is a closely guarded se... READ MORE

An Englishman John Woodhouse discovered this fortified Sicilian wine and started producing it on a larger scale in 1796. Because of its instant popularity, the quality of Marsala wines began to deteriorate, but in 1984, stricter regulatio... READ MORE

Vermouth is a quintessential European aperitif. This sweetened and fortified wine is aromatized with various botanicals, and it is usually classified as red (sweet) or white (dry). The origin of vermouth is ancient and closely connected t... READ MORE

White vermouth is one of the vermouth categories that is somewhere between dry and sweet vermouth. Most examples of the style are medium sweet and pale, and producers tend to use warm spices such as vanilla to make the sweetness more pron... READ MORE

Hailing from Turin, this sweet Italian vermouth was created in the 1862s by Martini Rosso. It is made from wine that is infused with various botanicals such as plants, barks, or flowers. The macerate of the botanicals is added together with carame... READ MORE

Amontillado is a rich and complex dry sherry variety. It is made from Palomino grapes, but unlike Fino and Manzanilla, this fortified wine is first aged biologically—under a layer of flor—and when the flor disappears,... READ MORE

Oloroso is a variety of fortified sherry wines that is made from Palomino grapes. Unlike other dry sherry styles, oloroso is exposed to oxidation throughout the maturation in barrels and does not include the element of biological... READ MORE

Manzanilla is a dry sherry variety made from Palomino grapes in Sanlúcar de Barrameda. This light and refreshing wine is aged naturally, under a thick layer of yeast (flor). It is straw-colored with aromas of almonds, yeast, and ch... READ MORE

Late Bottled Vintage port is produced from a single year, and it is bottled after four to six years of age. Due to the slightly longer aging period, this style is more affordable than Vintage port, and it can be enjoyed immediately after ... READ MORE

Made from Palomino grapes in Jerez or Puerto de Santa María, Fino is the driest and the most delicate sherry variety. This fortified wine is aged naturally, under a layer of flor—a film of yeast that appears on the surface wh... READ MORE

Yzaguirre is often called the oldest vermouth in Spain. It is the first Spanish vermouth brand, and though the company produces several styles, the first and signature label is Yzaguirre Rojo, the sweet (red) vermouth. This classic has be... READ MORE

The origin of dry vermouth is mostly associated with France. This light vermouth usually has herbaceous notes and a distinctive dry finish. The examples of the style are typically clear, but some will have subtle golden hues. They can be ... READ MORE

The term sweet vermouth is generally associated with red Italian-style vermouth. Their red color is mostly gained with caramel-coloring, and the examples of the style are typically subtly bitter and usually sweeter than dry vermouth, whil... READ MORE

Locally known as Asinello and classified as vermouth, Corochinato is a fortified and aromatized wine that hails from Genova. The base of the drink is made with fortified white wine that is infused with a secret blend of herbs and... READ MORE

This classic Italian vermouth is still made following the original recipe from 1786 that was created by Antonio Benedetto Carpano. It is one of the first modern vermouth versions. Praised for its exceptional quality, Carpano is characteri... READ MORE

Often dubbed as Vintage port’s little brother, Single Quinta Vintage is a type of port made from the grapes of a single harvest that come from a single estate (quinta). They are produced in the same way as Vintage port—not fil... READ MORE

Maury is a French appellation located in Roussillon that produces vin doux naturel—fortified wine styles with a high quantity of natural sugars. The principal grape is Grenache (Noir, Blanc, and Gris), though small amounts ... READ MORE

This Italian aromatized wine is made by adding cinchona bark, citrus peel, spices and other botanicals to the Muscato wine base. The wine was created in 1891 by Giulio Cocchi, and the original recipe has not changed since. Best known as the source... READ MORE

Sercial is a white Portuguese grape variety best known for its use in dry Madeira wines. The term Sercial is also used for this particular style of Madeira wine. The origin of the variety remains unclear, but it is most likely a native Po... READ MORE

Noilly Prat (Original Dry) is a variety of dry vermouth hailing from the south of France. It is made from dry white wines that are fortified and infused with various herbs and botanicals such as orange zest, chamomile, gentian root, and n... READ MORE

Palo Cortado is the rarest dry sherry variety. Historically, this fortified wine was produced when a base wine that started as Fino or Manzanilla would unexpectedly lose the layer of flor—a thick layer of yeast—and th... READ MORE

Punt e mes is an Italian vermouth variety that is made with white wine and various herbs and spices. It is a clear, amber-colored drink with a herbaceous character and a distinctive bitter-sweet flavor. Punt e mes is often served over ice... READ MORE

Solera Fina is a high-quality fortified wine made using the solera system for aging regular Fina sherry. The solera system is a complex process involving a series of barrels, or criaderas, arranged in tiers. Newer wine is added to the top barrels ... READ MORE

Pommeau de Bretagne is a combination of apple juice and apple brandy (lambig) that hails from Brittany. It is officially classified as a mistelle, a blend of brandy and fruit juice. To make Pommeau, the apples are pressed into a ... READ MORE

This fortified, dessert wine has been produced since the 13th century in the French region of Roussillon. Banyuls is predominantly made from different varieties of Grenache grapes, though Carignan, Muscat (only in small amounts), Macabeu,... READ MORE

This French vin de liqueur—fortified wine—is made by adding unfermented grape must to Cognac. The most common version is the amber (white) Pineau, made from traditional Cognac grapes such as Ugni Blanc, Colombard, or ... READ MORE

Rutherglen Muscat is a fortified dessert wine hailing from the Rutherglen wine region in North East Victoria. The wines are made from Muscat à Petits Grains Rouge—one of the red small-berried varieties belonging to the Muscat... READ MORE

Marsala Superiore is a premium classification of Marsala wine, aged for a minimum of two years in wooden casks. It has an alcohol content of around 18% ABV and comes in three levels of sweetness: Secco (dry) with up to 40g of residual sugar per li... READ MORE

Marsala Superiore Riserva is a prestigious classification of Marsala wine, aged for a minimum of four years in wooden casks, resulting in a richer, smoother, and more complex profile. With an alcohol content of around 18% ABV, it is available in t... READ MORE

Floc de Gascogne is a French fortified wine produced in Gascony that blends grape juice (two-thirds) and young Armagnac (one-third)—both coming from the same estate. The blend has to be aged for nine months, usually in oak. The drin... READ MORE

Mistela is a traditional Valencian liqueur made from Muscat of Alexandria grapes. The liqueur is made by adding pure alcohol to grape must, resulting in sweet fortified wines with an alcohol content over 13%. Mistela is usually straw-colo... READ MORE