A warming a glass of Tawny port on a dark and rainy night is a welcome treat, and the better the port, the more welcome it is! A large shipment of Kopke Colheita Tawny ports just arrived, from a special order we placed in July. We now have the largest selection of Kopke Colheita Tawny ports since the pandemic hit. The Colheita (vintage) Tawny ports make incredible gifts for birthdays, anniversaries or retirements parties, so if you’re looking for a specific year, come in or call now.
There are several styles of Tawny port to choose from, including those labelled simply “Tawny” or “Fine Tawny”, which has aged a minimum of 7 years in barrel. These young tawnies are good, with basic port flavors of caramel and orange peel emerging into the forefront and are generally a great value. A step up in complexity are Tawnies designated 10, 20, 30 or 40 years old, which are blends of different harvests and reflect the average age of the port in the bottle. 
For example, a 10 year tawny is a mix of 5 year, 10 year, and 20 year ports blended in different proportions each year to maintain a constant flavor profile. Colheita Tawny ports are unblended tawny port from a specific harvest and are aged in the barrel until bottled. Colheitas are available for many years going back as far as the early 1940’s. They reflect a specific vintage because they are actually as old as their date. For example, a Colheita from a harvest 20 years ago reflects twenty years of barrel aging in its subtle flavors whereas a 20 Year old blend is an average of 20 years old and has some younger port in it to lend some vibrancy to its flavor profile. If you have a tawny port tasting, the difference between a blended tawny and a colheita tawny is worth exploring.
A Tawny port can be served on its own or with a dessert after dinner. Or try serving port with one of these recipes:
BLACK OLIVE-FIG TAPENADE From The Spanish Table Cookbook by Steve Winston Makes approximately 1 1/2 cups.
Marrying figs and olives in this tapenade creates a savory-sweet spread that can be served as a tapa with wine, sherry or port.
½ teaspoon Minced Garlic
⅛ teaspoon Coarse Sea salt*
1 cup Dried Pajero Figs, chopped*
½ cup Matiz brand Olivada (black olive spread)*
2 tablespoons Lemon juice
¼ cup Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil*
¼ cup Minced parsley
*Ingredients available at Paris-Madrid Grocery
In a food processor, chop the garlic with the salt, then add the figs and blend until the consistency of a coarse paste.
Slowly add olivada, thin with lemon juice and Extra Virgin Olive Oil then stir in parsley. Serve on crackers.
BLUE CHEESE AND PORT MONTADITOS From The Spanish Table Cookbook by Steve Winston Makes 12 tapas
½ pound Cabrales or Valdeón Spanish blue cheese*
¼ cup Fine Tawny port*
2 tablespoons Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil*
1 Apple, cored and cut into 12 slices
1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
12 walnut halves
12 slices Raisin nut bread
¼ cup Olive Oil for frying*
*Ingredients available at Paris-Madrid Grocery
Using a mortar and pestle, cream the blue cheese with the port and Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
Dip the apple slices into lemon juice to prevent browning.
Fry the bread slices in olive oil.
Spread a little of the cheese on each piece of fried bread. Top with a slice of apple, a walnut and serve.