Sherry and port are both fortified, sweet wines that pack a decent amount of alcohol with every sip. Though they share plenty of similarities, noteworthy differences separate the two, starting with how they're made: Sherry is explicitly made with white wine grapes, while red or white grapes can be used to make ruby and tawny ports.

Secondly, sherry is fortified just before it is casked to help control differing stages of maturation, resulting in varieties like the crisper-tasting Lighter Fino, the heavier Amontillado, and creamy dessert sherries. The ABV in sherry can range from 15% up to 22%, and surprisingly, the sweeter the sherry, the higher its alcohol content.

Port wine is only made in Portugal, and its fortifying ingredient, brandy, is added during fermentation, not at the end like with sherry. This step kills the yeast in the barrel and stops fermentation, resulting in young, sweet wines called ruby ports or older tawny ports with spicy caramel notes, both which have 16% to 21% ABV.