New York Does Not Make "Wine"

Port (aka Vinho do Porto, Oporto, Porto) btw, is a sweet Portuguese fortified wine from the Douro Valley, Porto district, Portugal.

As I said....

Here comes da german food critic to dump on my thread.

If you knew anything about wine, or port, or food and drink in general, you'd know that "port" is made all over the world. Australia produces some excellent versions. True "Port" is from Portugal, as I noted.

It sure isn't from NY.

I've had good NY wine in the past, but over the last decade or so the NY grape growers have been hit with every fungus imaginable. The climate here has gone to extremes, very warm humid days followed by cold nights - that is what fungus loves. There has also been a plague of very late frosts. Many of the really good, mostly smaller, vineyards went out of business and that left the big commerical/industrial wineries to do all the producing. In fact, most of the grapes are coming from other areas of the country because of how difficult it is to produce a decent grape crop without spraying constantly. I think most of the existing wineries are just making a living off the tourists now.

France has some lock on the name "Champagne" but that doesn't stop them from investing all over the world, and buying up (and jacking up the price) of prime vineyard land to produce "sparkling wine".

Anyway, I had my usual beer after work, then a glass of red wine with dinner. Then I opened the plonk.... one small serving was all I had - I forced myself to finish it to forever impale the horribleness of it all on my memory and never, ever buy it again.

Today I feel like I was out partying with Britney and Paris all night, except without the itchy scratchy down below part.

If you want to try a good NY alcoholic beverage, I suggest you find some hard cider (apple jack) or a number of the local micro-brewed beers.

Under international trademark law, only the product from Portugal may be labeled as Port.
I admit that US-federal law only mandates that the Portuguese-made product be labeled Porto or Vinho do Porto.

This has only little to do with knowing something about wine (our family only had a wine import firm and wine shop) so my knowledge certainly isn't as good as yours) but with law.

So what do you call the Aussie port in Germany? Or do they just not sell it there?

Is there a trademark on biere?

I don't care if it is called Port, port, porto, porto fino, whatever, but if it tastes like port-o-potty then I'm gonna call foul.