Pass the port
FEW elements of a serious meal capture the shifting tides of hospitality over the past century so revealingly as port. That’s partly because so few other dining-room staples come wrapped in such a rich cloak of heritage and convention. Port’s popularity is rooted in the Peninsular War of the early 19th century. It didn’t take long for British troops stationed in Portugal to acquire a taste for the local drink. William Warre, whose family had founded the port house that still bears its name, served under Wellington. On 18 March 1812 he wrote to his father, saying, “Lord Wellington will be much obliged to you if you could have the Pipe of Port Wine bottled for him, marked with his name, and taken care of in a good place till his return, as he wishes to keep it as a bonne bouche.” With Napoleon defeated, officers took this fortifying drink back home to fill the cellars of their English country houses, imbuing Portuguese port with a very British patriotism that endures today.
Port’s appeal was further boosted by its combination of strength and sweetness. In an era when sugar was highly prized and expensive, port was a real luxury. Meanwhile, the addition of brandy not only helped the wine survive transportation better, but also covered any quality issues at a time when the output, even from Europe’s top producers, could be notoriously inconsistent. That fortification also helps port to remain one of the most gloriously long-lived wines, giving rise to the tradition of bestowing a pipe of port at a child’s birth, safe in the knowledge they would both reach maturity at a similar time and – with luck – continue to age well together for decades. These days, most godparents tend to scale down their gift from a full pipe (equivalent to 708 bottles). Indeed, Anthony Symington, whose family now owns many of the great port houses, reveals that the only person to buy a pipe of port from them in the past 50 years is Sir Mick Jagger. Symington estimates today’s pipe price would set you back “about £53,400”, a figure that might make even the average duke think twice, although clearly less of an issue for rock ‘n’ roll aristocracy.
Even in its 20th-century heyday, port had a battle on its hands. An article in The Field from 1 March 1930 bemoans the conflict posed by smoking. “Unfortunately, the impatient urge for tobacco too frequently robs us of the profound and soul-satisfying joy of doing leisurely justice to the port,” the writer complains. “We all know that it is no more possible to savour port in a smoke-laden atmosphere than it is to smell a rose with a cold in one’s head.” Smoking may be less prevalent now, but its steady demise links to a health-conscious push towards diminished alcohol consumption and rigorous drink-driving laws, neither of which work in port’s favour. Add in the increasingly informal approach to dining and you might expect a death knell for port.
Fortunately, that’s far from the case. Vintage port retains a healthy following, but those who don’t want to delay gratification for 20 years have embraced a number of alternative expressions that would have been virtually unknown on dining tables 100 years ago. One particular rising star these days is tawny port. Previously only drunk by the port shippers themselves – vintage port may work well in a cold English country house, but it’s hardly what you crave in the Portuguese summer heat – tawny port fits beautifully with modern dining. Ready to drink once bottled, with no need for decanting, tawny requires minimal patience or ceremony. More refreshing in style, in fact delicious slightly chilled, it’s not only an ideal match for a host of puddings and cheeses, but chimes with the general appetite for less weighty meals. Rather fittingly, tawny is proving a particular hit in the many grand country houses that have now undergone their own transformation into hotels. Symington reports noteable success with putting large-format bottles on display here, since “the Instagram generation love those being poured at their table”. As Sir Mick so perceptively sings, “Kids are different today.”
In an era when sugar was highly prized, port was a real luxury