Sheffield Tawny Port

I like port. So when I needed a sweet red wine for my Thanksgiving cranberry relish, naturally I looked for a bottle of port. I found one from Sheffield Cellars that wasn’t too expensive, so I decided to try it.

This is a Tawny Port, which means it’s been aged in a wooden barrel (in this particular brand, an oak barrel). As it ages, the wood gradually turns the red wine a more brownish, or tawny, color. (This is, of course, a very simplified explanation, based on my simplified understanding. You should probably go google it if you want a better, more detailed explanation.)

The aroma was heavily oak and prune. Sometimes I have trouble distinguishing the subtleties in an aroma, but there was nothing subtle about these. I also found a faint mustiness that made me think of the Regency Romances I indulge in, where the men always seem to retire at the end of a meal to enjoy their port while the women go off to gossip together. This is definitely a man’s port (compared to the sweet port that remains my favorite).

The taste was sweet without being cloying, with black licorice and something that made me think of my PopPop’s pipe. It tasted like Thanksgiving, which is very weird considering (1) we don’t drink port on Thanksgiving because (2) we don’t really drink any wine on Thanksgiving.

I definitely liked this port, and I’ll probably treat myself to it again. I'm giving it three stars.

• 1 star = It was okay but nothing special
• 2 stars = It was good and I liked it
• 3 stars = It was good and I'd buy it again
• 4 stars = I really, really like it, enough to call it a favorite
• 5 stars = It's mine, all mine! And I don't want to share.