Great write-up, Luke; putting us all in the mood for Christmas. I have a 1983 (my vintage) Kopke Colheita at home which I might have to open this year :-)
Great advice on port types. It may be very naive but I think a lot of people are unsure what the rules are on longevity of open bottles of port and decanted port. Can you enlighten?
I'll caveat all the below by saying every port behaves a little differently once opened and everyone's preferences are different. For instance I know a number of people in the industry who will quite happily leave their lbv port open for a number of months. I've had vintage ports that keep on giving in different ways after a number of weeks and ones that die infront of your eyes. It's about being hands on in my opinion. But as a good rule of thumb here is a guide:
Vintage Port: Young Vintage Ports (under 5 years) can last 4–5 days once opened. Older vintages (over 15 years) are best consumed within 2–3 days, as they may lose their rich character and aromatic intensity if left open longer. Very old vintages (over 25–30 years) should be enjoyed within 24–48 hours.
Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) Port: Unfiltered LBVs, when stored in a cool place (8°C to 10°C), can remain enjoyable for 2–3 weeks after opening. Filtered LBVs typically last up to 10–12 days without noticeable quality decline.
Colheita Port: Younger Colheitas (less than 15 years old) can last up to 2–3 weeks after opening. Older ones (30–40 years) are best consumed within 3–4 days.
Aged Tawny Port (10–40 years): These can last up to 2-6 months after opening if kept in a cool, dark place. At room temperature, aim to finish within 3–4 weeks.
Ruby and Basic Tawny Ports: because they have more primary fruit they typically last 4–6 weeks after opening when stored in cool, dark conditions. Ideally, finish Ruby Ports within 1 month and Tawny Ports within 2 months.
White Port: Once opened, store in the fridge and consume within 2–3 weeks. For optimal vibrancy, especially in a 'White Port-Tonic', finish within 1–2 weeks.
Proper storage—cool, dark conditions and refrigeration when appropriate—helps maintain the quality of your Port wine after opening.
In a well stoppered decanter 3-5 days for a vintage port. But let’s be honest it rarely lasts that long. Those aged tawnies and white ports that don’t need decanting generally last longer as they have had a more oxidative barrel aged process. So when kept somewhere cool and well stoppered, they last a little longer. But again… never knowingly tested that in our house!
For ruby lbv vintage character etc… if it’s just sat there consider enriching a gravy/ sauce/ jus with it, rather than see it go to waste 🙂
Worth keeping Ana eye to Asda who seem to do a discount on Dow Quinta do Bomfim in the run up to, and run off from Christmas
Thank you for this Matt
Great write-up, Luke; putting us all in the mood for Christmas. I have a 1983 (my vintage) Kopke Colheita at home which I might have to open this year :-)
very helpful thanks
Thank you Peter
Port is the nectar of the gods!
Agreed!
Hi. Thanks for all that wonderful information. Do you store port lying down like wine or standing up like whisky?
Thank you Colin. Yes lying down and just remember to keep it stood up for a good period of time before opening to let the sediment fall.
Long term aging lying down
Great advice on port types. It may be very naive but I think a lot of people are unsure what the rules are on longevity of open bottles of port and decanted port. Can you enlighten?
Hi Gavin,
I'll caveat all the below by saying every port behaves a little differently once opened and everyone's preferences are different. For instance I know a number of people in the industry who will quite happily leave their lbv port open for a number of months. I've had vintage ports that keep on giving in different ways after a number of weeks and ones that die infront of your eyes. It's about being hands on in my opinion. But as a good rule of thumb here is a guide:
Vintage Port: Young Vintage Ports (under 5 years) can last 4–5 days once opened. Older vintages (over 15 years) are best consumed within 2–3 days, as they may lose their rich character and aromatic intensity if left open longer. Very old vintages (over 25–30 years) should be enjoyed within 24–48 hours.
Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) Port: Unfiltered LBVs, when stored in a cool place (8°C to 10°C), can remain enjoyable for 2–3 weeks after opening. Filtered LBVs typically last up to 10–12 days without noticeable quality decline.
Colheita Port: Younger Colheitas (less than 15 years old) can last up to 2–3 weeks after opening. Older ones (30–40 years) are best consumed within 3–4 days.
Aged Tawny Port (10–40 years): These can last up to 2-6 months after opening if kept in a cool, dark place. At room temperature, aim to finish within 3–4 weeks.
Ruby and Basic Tawny Ports: because they have more primary fruit they typically last 4–6 weeks after opening when stored in cool, dark conditions. Ideally, finish Ruby Ports within 1 month and Tawny Ports within 2 months.
White Port: Once opened, store in the fridge and consume within 2–3 weeks. For optimal vibrancy, especially in a 'White Port-Tonic', finish within 1–2 weeks.
Proper storage—cool, dark conditions and refrigeration when appropriate—helps maintain the quality of your Port wine after opening.
In a well stoppered decanter 3-5 days for a vintage port. But let’s be honest it rarely lasts that long. Those aged tawnies and white ports that don’t need decanting generally last longer as they have had a more oxidative barrel aged process. So when kept somewhere cool and well stoppered, they last a little longer. But again… never knowingly tested that in our house!
For ruby lbv vintage character etc… if it’s just sat there consider enriching a gravy/ sauce/ jus with it, rather than see it go to waste 🙂