From Portugal’s dramatic Douro Valley, port is considered among the world’s great wines. This red wine is made in two basic styles — ruby and tawny — with a number of variations within each style. All typically are high alcohol (fortified with brandy to 20% ABV) bursting with red and black fruit, richness, hint of almond and natural sweetness balanced with refreshing tannin, finishing with a kick.

Vintage port: the pinnacle of the port ladder. Highly praised for intensity and ability to develop over decades. Bottled after only two years in wood; made only in exceptional years; distinguished by power and concentration.

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2020 Kopke ($85), structured, intense, expressive, refined.

2010 Graham’s Quinta dos Malvedos ($65), single vineyard; eucalyptus, forward, elegant.

As with most pinnacle wines, vintage port is beyond the reach of many consumers. Port houses have developed variations over the decades to make their wines more accessible in taste and affordability.

Late bottled vintage port: made from very good wines that didn’t make the severe selection for vintage port: a taste of such at a much more affordable price; bottled after four to six years and ready to drink upon release.

2016 Fonseca ($24), unfiltered; licorice, full-bodied, balances lush tannins.

Ruby port: youngest, freshest, most accessible style, both in taste and price. Reserve port: exuberant fruit, intensity and richness, a bridge between ruby port and vintage port.

Cockburn’s Special Reserve ($20), fruity, luscious, smooth, mellow,

Graham’s Six Grapes ($27), youthful, complex, structured, balanced.

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Tawny port: distinguished from ruby port by a process that marries multiple vintages for average periods ranging from 10 to 40 years in cask; results in a transformation creating mellow wines known for complexity, purity of fruit and elegance; ready to drink upon release, expect a distinctive almond, fig, and admirable balance.

10-year-old tawny: good introduction to the style; you can discern these elements of age and a certain finesse; aged in wood an average of 10 years and delightfully mellow with succulent fig and plum, with a little bitter almond.

Croft ($37), wonderfully aromatic, complex and luscious.

Kopke ($35), succulent, bright, intense, full.

20-year-old tawny: more complexity and intensity, with freshness, elegance and pure fruit, often with cinnamon, licorice and caramel.

Taylor Fladgate ($50), established in 1692; opulent, enticing raisins, honey and date.

Kopke ($70), luscious, graceful, deep, mellow.

Colheita Port (kohl-YAY-tah): tawny port from a single vintage year and quite rare; aged in cask for a minimum of seven years but often released long after that; tend to be surprisingly fresh, elegant and refined.

2012 Kopke ($40), rich, intense, nutty, spicy.

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