Can someone please explain Crusted Port..different to LBV ?

[gonzo]

Just wondered if one of you fine and knowledgeable gents could fill me in on this,i have been wondering how and why a port is discribed as crusted?

[KillerB]

A Crusted Port is a mixed-vintage Port that has a bit of grit in the bottom. It's is not over-filtered when bottled so this gives it more of an opportunity to mature. Normally a bottled year is on the label.

A Late Bottled Vintage is exactly what it says, bottled late from a specific vintage. It may be filtered or unfiltered, so an unfiltered one will mature in the bottle.

Basically:

Crusted is a Ruby with sediment;

LBV, is from one year but held in vats for five years before bottling.

T'other Alex will probably be a lot more specific but say roughly the same thing.

[uncle tom]

Crusted is essentially a poor man's vintage port.

It is a blend of unfiltered wines from two or three harvests; matured, bottled and cellared in much the same manner as vintage port. The date on the label is the date of bottling.

It has an advantage over vintage port in that by blending wines from more than one year, the blender has much more scope for getting a good brew, and in particular, one that is good for early drinking.

In practice, the wines are usually approachable on release, but will reward another five to ten years of cellaring. Crusted ports that are more than 20 years old are often tired and past their prime.

Tom

[PortDude]

This is the information that I found from a shipper. It basically confirms all of the above:

"Crusted is a blend of excellent young ports from two or three harvests, bottled without any fining or filtration. The legislation only allows the bottling date to feature on the label. These Ports were aged in bottle for three years before being offered for sale. Crusted Port derives its name from the fact that, exactly like Vintage Port, it will throw a “crust† or natural deposit with bottle age. As with Vintage Port, the wine should be stored lying down and will require decanting prior to serving. Crusted Port, although excellent for drinking at the time of release (i.e. 3 years after bottling), will also age gracefully for several years in bottle. The bottle ageing allows this wine to develop the magnificent bouquet and flavour which is unique to bottle matured wines. This style of Port wine offers an excellent value alternative to Vintage Port.

Late Bottled Vintage, like Vintage Port, is a wine of a single year but it is not a “declared† Vintage Port. Whereas Vintage Port spends only two years in casks and then matures in bottle, LBV is aged in casks and then bottled with a light filtration at between four and six years old. At the time of bottling it has completed its maturation and is ready for drinking without the need for decanting."

[Andy Velebil]

Crusted Ports were really the LBV's of their time. As Tom pointed out, they were known as the "Poor mans Port" becuause they were cheaper than their VP counterpart yet still matured in bottle.

There are very few producers still making Crusted Ports, as most have shifted to just unfiltered or filtered LBV's.

[DRT]

I have added a link to this thread hereso that it can join the other definitions of port styles on the site.

Derek

[Alex Bridgeman]

Crusted ports are still being made and seem to be reasonably popular mainly in the UK market. Because there is such a limited market but because the prices achieved for a Crusted are much better than for a basic ruby, some shippers are happy to put together small batches of Crusted blends and then send them to the UK in time for Christmas.

Pop in to your local Majestic Wine Warehouse and you will see what I mean. If I recall correctly the conversation that I had, Fonseca only filled 11,000 bottles with their Crusted blend and sold over half of them in the UK last year in the run-up to Christmas.

As an aside, the aging ability of a Crusted Port does depend on your personal taste for what you like in an elderly port. I love those really old, fragile and ethereal, full of faded elegance style of wines. My personal view contrasts with Tom's - I would happily pull a Crusted out of a cellar after it had built up 30-40 years of bottle age.

Alex

[DRT]

...and if you pull out two at the same time they would be 80 years old

[KillerB]

...and if you pull out two at the same time they would be 80 years old

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

[Sideways]

I recall reading something about the Crusted Port style being developed to aid long shipping journeys, a layer of 'crust' atop the wine in barrel helped prevent spoiling on long journeys. I remember thinking at the time- surely a ship on the ocean wave is far from 'stable' and the crust would be broken up as the wine is tossed around the barrel

Anyway, my fave crusted port is Grahams Crusted 00 & 01.

[uncle tom]

I have recently obtained a rather odd Crusted from Noval

It is firmly dated 1962, but in the smaller print says bottled 1965

This is rather at odds with the convention of blending several years together..

..anyway, remind me to bring it to an offline so Derek and Alex can prove to me that they last forever!

Tom

PS: wine sediment is (I think) invariably denser than the wine itself - methinks Sideways has picked up an old wives tale...

[DRT]

I have recently obtained a rather odd Crusted from Noval

It is firmly dated 1962, but in the smaller print says bottled 1965

This is rather at odds with the convention of blending several years together..

maybe it was ablend created in 1962 (from various years) and then left in the cask until 1965?

..anyway, remind me to bring it to an offline so Derek and Alex can prove to me that they last forever!

A splendid idea and it will become a nice addition to the Crusting Pipe's odd bottle collection Incidentally, it is 1965 VP that I am banking on keeping me alive forever but am willing to give this one a try in the interest of scientific research.

methinks Sideways has picked up an old wives tale...

Agreed

Derek

[Andy Velebil]

Tom,

I've had the 1962 Noval Crusted once and, while its no stunner and its best years are behind it, it was still a tasty bottle and proof that even the "Poor mans Port" can hold up to some long term bottle aging.

[Sideways]

PS: wine sediment is (I think) invariably denser than the wine itself - methinks Sideways has picked up an old wives tale...

As I immediately suspected.... but there may be something in it if you consider its history...

So what do we know? Crusted Port was invented by English wine merchants when port was still being shipped in bulk and blended to their specification.....it ceased to exist as soon as bulk shipments were stopped....later the Portuguese authorities reinstated Crusted port as a special category.

Romans would use olive oil to ‘float’ atop wine to preserve it and prevent evaporation on long journeys. If port was in transit for weeks, possibly months at a time isn't it possible a floating crust or cap was encouraged to aid preservation?

Come on guys, you're the experts

[DRT]

Hmmm, we now seem to be clutching at straws but let's explore this further just for fun

Firstly, I suspect olive oil would effectively provide an airtight seal on top of the wine and would therefore eliminate, or at least severely reduce, oxidation.

Secondly, a cap and a crust are entirely diferent things. A cap is formed by the grape skins that float to the top of the liquid during the initial fermentation phase. A crust is formed from the solids that fall out of suspension as the wine matures. I'm not sure that a cap would offer the same protection as the olive oil method as it is in no way airtight and would quite probably spoil the wine as the solid debris decayed over time.

I think the only reason for the word Crusted to appear in the name of this style is because the wine is bottled unfiltered and therefore forms a crust in the bottle when stored for an extended period of time.

Derek

[uncle tom]

Olive oil has molecules that are partially soluble - when a tiny amount is placed on the surface of water it will spread to form a film that is as little as one molecule thick, sealing the surface from air contact.

If the Romans - or anyone else - uses a earthenware pitcher to store wine that has been glazed thoroughly, a small amount of oil on the surface will protect the wine as well as any cork.

When the wine is to be drunk, almost all the oil with come off with the first glassful.

Now, why do pubs go to all the trouble of putting nitrogen blankets over the surface of ale to preserve it, when a couple of squeezed olives should do the trick just as well..?

Tom

[mpij]

Olive oil has molecules that are partially soluble - when a tiny amount is placed on the surface of water it will spread to form a film that is as little as one molecule thick, sealing the surface from air contact.

If the Romans - or anyone else - uses a earthenware pitcher to store wine that has been glazed thoroughly, a small amount of oil on the surface will protect the wine as well as any cork.

When the wine is to be drunk, almost all the oil with come off with the first glassful.

Now, why do pubs go to all the trouble of putting nitrogen blankets over the surface of ale to preserve it, when a couple of squeezed olives should do the trick just as well..?

Tom

Now you have your own pub perhaps ou could do a comparison test.

[Andy Velebil]

Olive oil has molecules that are partially soluble - when a tiny amount is placed on the surface of water it will spread to form a film that is as little as one molecule thick, sealing the surface from air contact.

If the Romans - or anyone else - uses a earthenware pitcher to store wine that has been glazed thoroughly, a small amount of oil on the surface will protect the wine as well as any cork.

When the wine is to be drunk, almost all the oil with come off with the first glassful.

Now, why do pubs go to all the trouble of putting nitrogen blankets over the surface of ale to preserve it, when a couple of squeezed olives should do the trick just as well..?

Tom

Now you have your own pub perhaps ou could do a comparison test.

Because we don't want London Pride with a touch of olive oil flavor.