Not Just Any Old Port

Outside the European Union, port can be called port even if it's not made in its native region of Douro, in northern Portugal, which in 1756 became one of the world's first demarcated wine regions. If sold in America, the real thing must be labeled "Oporto" or "Vinho do Porto." However, countries other than Portugal have been making similar fortified wines that are rather impressive.

From Australia, we savored the Chateau Reynella McLaren Vale Old Cave Fine Old Tawny Port ($19), with a somewhat lighter body and classic tawny flavor profile including a dry, nutty finish. At Zola restaurant in Penn Quarter, Director of Operations Ralph Rosenberg is a fan of Yalumba Museum Reserve Antique Tawny ($7 a glass at Zola). He especially likes it with what he terms "challenging-flavored pies," such as cherry, blackberry or rhubarb, because aging creates "a wonderful sherrylike consistency that accentuates the fruit with hints of vanilla and oak." On Zola's current menu, he's finding it an ideal match for chocolate desserts and a banana mousse cake with caramel notes.

From California, we've enjoyed tawny- and vintage-port-style wines from Ficklin Vineyards in Madera, which produced the first port-style wine made in the United States solely from Portuguese grape varieties. (When he lived in San Francisco, Andrew used to buy it by the case and give bottles as holiday gifts.) Seek out the Ficklin Vineyards Old Vine Tinta Port ($14) for a ruby-port-style wine with dark plum and chocolate flavors to pair with Stilton cheese.

As much as we love to sip port with cheese or dessert, it packs enough complex flavor to make for an elegant ending to a meal all on its own. A dessert this satisfying, even if it's in a glass, is a seasonal tradition we could get behind.

Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, award-winning authors of "What to Drink With What You Eat," can be reached through their Web site,http://www.becomingachef.com, or atfood@washpost.com.

TIP: A Bottle of October

October is Apple Month, Caramel Month and Dessert Month, with specific dates designated as National Moldy Cheese Day (Oct. 9), National Nut Day (Oct. 22) and National Chocolate Day (Oct. 28). As those are all great matches with port, there's clearly no better month to enjoy a bottle. Here's how:

-Store port someplace cool, even the refrigerator. Serve at about 65 degrees.

-Serve 2 or 3 ounces, or about half a usual wine pour. Use a regular wineglass to allow for swirling and sniffing.

-How fast should you drink that bottle? Because port is a fortified wine, it should last longer than table wines do. If you like the taste of a freshly opened bottle, the sooner you finish it, the better. However, some people like the way port develops flavor over time as it is exposed to air. We've had bottles of aged tawny port that have been delicious as long as several months after being opened.

-Port makers to keep an eye out for: Churchill, Cockburn, Croft, Delaforce, Dow, Fonseca, Graham's, Quinta do Noval, Sandeman, Taylor and Warre .