Marji Barks, above, samples a port, while Ficklin, left, helps Bob and Brenna Barks with a curbside pickup.
Portuguese tradition Many U.S. wineries produce fortified dessert wines with the words “port” or “port-style” on the label, but using non-Portuguese varietals. Ficklin Vineyards’ use of Portuguese varieties sets its ports apart, Ficklin said, adding, “It is our traditional ports that compete head- to-head with the Portuguese, who have been making tradit iona l ports since the 17th century and are obviously the standard to be measured against.” Ficklin followed in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps by studying enology at UCDavis. In 1983, he took over as winemaker at the family business, which now crafts about 50 different, highly acclaimed ports sold across the U.S. The small, estate vineyard grows Portuguese varieties Tinta Madeira and Touriga Nacional, and Ficklin buys other port varietals such as Souzao, Tinta Cao, Tinta Roriz and Alvarelhao from a network of California wineries. “Port is made by harvesting and crushing each variety’s fruit at optimal maturity and allowing a fermentation to begin, just as in table wines,” he said. “At the right moment, we add custom-produced grape brandy to stop the fermentation, retaining the grape sugar and raising the alcohol content to a range of 18% to 21%, traditional for ports.”
Ficklin, above, displays three of Ficklin Vineyards’ 50 to 70 different ports, many of which are award-winning, below.
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