Christening Gift Ideas: Vintage Port?

What to give as a Christening gift can be a frustrating dilemna. How does one choose a gift that a new born child will one day both appreciate and enjoy but that will also have sentimental value? One thought is to give a vintage port as a christening gift with the idea being to open it and celebrate when the child comes of age two decades later. With that in mind, we asked a panel of wine experts their port suggestion for someone looking for that special bottle to open in 20 years:

"If you want to give Port, it must be vintage and from a great year. Do not give Tawny Port or LBV Port. Great years are 1963, 1966, 1970, 1975, 1977, 1983, 1985 and, more recently, 1994, 1997 and 2003. My recommendation is the 1985 Quinta do Noval (Approximately $65). The problem with giving Vintage Port, of course, is that a Christening usually takes place in the baby's birth year and the Port isn't released onto the market until two years later. You can always give a Port that is 10, 20 or 30 years older than the recipient (e.g. 2007 Christening, give 1997 or 1977)." - Clyde Beffa Jr., Owner and Bordeaux Buyer, K&L Wine Merchants

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"I suggest Vintage Port though the actual Port depends on the year. Although it is generally thought that a truly great Vintage Port is only made in a generally 'Declared' year [a year when all the Shippers produce one], it isn't true to say that good age-worthy Port can only come from a Declared year. Most of the well known brands of Port can only produce a great Port about three or four times a decade because they have to rely on their one main Quinta [vineyard] getting lucky in a terrain where micro-climates cannot be guaranteed too often. However, there are some houses that have many vineyards and if one location doesn't get the right weather pattern, another might have perfect conditions. Since the laws changed to allow individual grape growers [single Quintas] to ship there own wine instead of having to ship to the big companies that just blended them into their other tanks, there are now small producers who can make their Vintage Ports available. Thus, there is no longer the neccessity to wait for the big Shipper to Declare a Vintage because someone produces good Vintage Port somewhere in all but the worst of years. Therefore, for some years now, Broadbent Selections has been offering a Vintage Port of the birth year, every year, as Christening or Birth gifts. We offer a Certificate that reads something like this:

"CERTIFICATE OF OWNERSHIP, [name] is the proud owner of a bottle of 2007 Vintage Port, which will be bottled for him in 2009 and will be delivered to his parents Mr. & Mrs. [name] [address]. This bottle will be delivered in late 2009 or early 2010. It should be kept until [name]’s 21st Birthday. This gift is from [name]."

The beauty of Port is that it ages and can be kept, even if the storage conditions are not ideal, hence the name 'fortified wine' until the child comes of drinking age and way beyond. In fact, even the lightest of years, the Port isn't at its best until 20 years old. Most Vintage Port can be kept 50 years. Not bad for a $75 gift. Of course, the name of the Port isn't known until after two years after the harvest or baby's birth. This is the only gamble but it isn't a bad gamble, as whichever Port we get from that year, it will still age beautifully. The gamble being that if you get a bigger name brand, it might appreciate more in value but that doesn't matter, since it is a gift that is meant to be consumed in your memory on some distant great occasion." - Bartholomew Broadbent, CEO, Broadbent Selections, San Francisco.

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"I suggest the 2003 Taylor Fladgate (approx $85). Taylor makes an incredibly age-worthy wine, 20 years from now this wine will still be an adolescent. If you think the recipient will grow up to be popular buy them a magnum (double-sized bottle), so they can share with their friends." - - Efrain Madrigal, Wine Director, Sam’s Wines & Spirits, Chicago, Highland Park and Downer’s Grove, Illinois

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"Quinta do Vesuvio Vintage Port (approx $70). Quinta do Vesuvio is one of the prettiest vintage ports. In addition to all of those powerful Port aromas and flavors of dark fruits and chocolate, there's a wonderful floral quality that lends Vesuvio a fine elegance. It also has the advantage of being released in most vintages, unlike many vintage ports - so your odds of it being available in a given birth year are higher!" - Mark Middlebrook, Paul Marcus Wines, Oakland, California

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"My recommendation is the 2003 Dow Vintage Port (Approximately $70 - limited availability though so plan ahead and be ready to search around). A great house and from an excellent vintage." - Mulan Chan, Rhône and French Regional Buyer, K&L Wine Merchants

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"Churchill’s Crusted Port (approx $30) Btld 2000, Churchill Graham: Terrific value with aromas of plumy dried fruit and almonds. Score: 92/100." - Natalie MacLean, author of the best selling book Red, White and Drunk All Over, offers a free e-newsletter at www.nataliemaclean.com.