White Port – Briefly aged before bottling, these are meant to be drunk young, and range from crisp dry wines, best served with tonic, ice and lemon, to sweeter versions, which go well with puddings. There are some aged white ports, too. Tawny Port – After being aged in oak barrels, tawny ports are further aged in bottles for periods such as ten, 20, 40 years, etc. The name comes from the tawny colour they develop over time and they tend to be very smooth and mellow, with flavours of fruit and nuts. They go well with cheeses and some puddings. Crusted Port – A blend of outstanding young ports from two or three harvests, these are left to mature in the bottle, forming a “crust” (natural sediment) as they age. Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) Port – Aged for 4-6 years, these ports have lots of character but are lighter than traditional vintages. Best with soft cheeses. Vintage Port – Made from the best grapes of a single year, the “vintage” refers to an outstanding harvest. After being aged for around two years, vintage ports are further aged in bottles. The best ones can be aged for decades and are both powerful and elegant. They go well with dark chocolate, blue cheeses or on their own.

Top 25 Tawny Port wines right now - Vivino Top 25 Tawny Port wines right now - Vivino

Single Quinta Vintage Port – These ports are produced from a port house’s best vineyards in a great year, but may not be quite good enough for a declared Vintage Port. Great with cheese.