[net.wines] What are fortified wines?

macrev (03/11/83)

I suppose I could look this up somewhere, but this is more
fun.  Is the only difference between fortified wines and
regular wines the higher alcohol content of the fortified
wines?  Why do they have more alcohol?  It must be added,
because if I'm not mistaken, the natural upper limit
(the point at which yeast so poisons its environment that
it dies) is about 13%.  Is there a historical (practical)
reason, such as long storage or poor storage during which
the wine might be contaminated?

Please answer to the net -- I'm certainly no expert on wines,
but I'm interested, and I'd like to see a little more life
in this group.

Mike Lynch
mhuxi!macrev