Fortified wines vary in color, flavor, origin, and sweetness, yet they all have one thing in common: fortification.
Fortification is the addition of a distilled spirit like brandy to wine either during or after fermentation. This process increases alcohol content, thus killing off yeast and stopping fermentation. The English popularized fortification in the late 17th century to preserve wines for long sea voyages, which hasn’t changed drastically since.
Most fortified wines today reflect what wine tasted like 300 years ago. (That’s a history lesson you’ll have to taste.) Madeira, Marsala, port, sherry, and vermouth are the most common types. Despite being a touch out of vogue, sommeliers, chefs and clubhouse managers can find exceptional quality at a great price—if they know what to look for.
How It’s Made
There are many different ways to fortify wine. It’s not always as simple as adding a distilled spirit or brandy.
Madeira is deliberately heated and oxidized to replicate the voyage across the equator as part of its maturation process.
Sherry, a truly unique wine in the world, is exclusively produced in the wine-growing region of Jerez, which is situated in a triangle of land formed by the towns of Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María. Sherry is typically fortified after the fermentation is complete, rendering most sherries initially dry, with the sweetness being added after and aged using the Solera system of fractional blending.
Port, another fine example of fortified wine, is typically fortified halfway through fermentation before the sugar is turned into alcohol.
Vins doux naturels (VDNs), naturally sweet wines, have a long history rooted in the South of France and are considered the original fortified wine. These wines were perfected by Arnaud de Villeneuve, a director of the University of Montpellier and doctor at the court of Majorca—who discovered mutage, the basis behind this unique style of wine.
5 Types to Try
Because each type of fortified wine is unique to its region, and most have variations in the production method, you’ll want to take a deep dive before you start selling them to your membership. (Though these wines make excellent additions to a club’s wine program as they generally last forever, can be sipped slowly, and are unique.)
Below you will find a few of my favorites:
Moscatel de Setúbal
If you’re looking to uncover a gem for your members, look no further than Moscatel de Setúbal. It comes from the southern part of Portugal and is an exceptionally well-valued alternative to a tawny port.
The grape for Moscatel de Setúbal is Muscat of Alexandria, a white wine grape from the Muscat family of Vitis vinifera. It’s also one of the go-to grapes for fortified wine and can be pretty complex. With over 200 varieties, the fortified world favors two cultivars; Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains (Italy’s Moscato Bianco) and Muscat of Alexandria (Spain and Portugals Muscatel).
Look for “superior” bottling, which requires additional aging and exhibits more depth and nutty flavors. The first sip of Moscatel de Setúbal will remind you of dried herbs, date paste, marmalade, roasted cashew and apricot compote.
When shopping for Moscatel de Setúbal, look for producers with quality reputations like Quinta da Bacalhôa or Adega de Palmela.
Muscat of Samos
Muscat of Samos is a simple sweet Muscat wine from the semi-mountainous island which bears its name. There are a few different varieties to choose between, including Vin Doux, Vin Nectar, Vin Doux Natural Grand Cru and Anthemis. These quality tiers will help guide you.
As with most muscat wines, you’ll find flavors and aromas of dried apricot, white flowers like orange blossom, and tropical nuances of ripe pineapple, mango and peach. Quality Samos will have deeper notes of toasted almond and butter pecans.
Some of my favorite producers are Kourtaki and Tsantali.
Muscat de Beaumes de Venise
Established in 1943, Muscat de Beaumes de Venise is an Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée-ranked wine made from grapes grown on vines at the foot of the Montmirail mountains in the south of France. Muscat de Beams de Venise is semi-sweet and must have a minimum residual sugar of 100 grams per liter in the final wine. This produces a tropical, honey-like flavor with hints of white flowers, dried apricot and golden raisin.
Look for quality producers like Domaine de Durban or Pierre Amadieu.
Rasteau Vin Doux Naturel
Located in the Côtes du Rhône’s hot Mediterranean climate, Rasteau wines are 90% Grenache. Rancio styles are produced with a minimum of two years of oxidative aging, often in glass carboys.
Grown on clay and limestone, the grape’s rootstock takes cover from the rounded cobblestone, which retains heat, storing it during the day and releasing it at night.
Your members will love the typical aromas and flavors of sweet mulberry, ripe blueberry, licorice, savory herbs, hints of earth, bitter cocoa and pine.
I have Domaine de Verquiere and Domaine de Beaurenard in my cellar.
Rutherglen
Rutherglen Muscat from Australia—also known as “stickies,” because they are so sweet—is one of my favorites. Four different classifications require increasing years of aging.
- Rutherglen is aged between three and five years and has fresh raisin aromas with baking spices and hints of fig.
- Classic and is aged between six and ten years. It is richer and more complex with rancio elements from the oak cask.
- Grand is aged between 11 and 19 years, and it has more of the richness and complexity of Classic.
- Rutherglen Muscat, aged 20 or more years, is rare by name and nature. These are the pinnacle Rutherglen Muscats. They are fully developed and display the extraordinary qualities that result from blending selected parcels of only the very richest and most complete wines in the producer’s cellar.
Rutherglen wines have pronounced aromas of dried fruits like prunes, raisins, and sultanas. They have some secondary aroma from oak maturation of chocolate, coffee, nutmeg, spice, as well as a touch of vanilla. These aromas are mixed with complex tertiary notes from deliberate oxidation that comes across as dark caramel, walnut and orange marmalade.
Campbells Rutherglen Muscat or RL Buller Fine Victoria Muscat both have great examples.