E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Widow’s Port.
A wine sold for port, but of quite a different family. As a widow retains her husband’s name after her husband is taken away, so this mixture of potato spirit and some inferior wine retains the name of port, though every drop of port is taken from it.
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“We have all heard of widow’s port, and of the instinctive dread all persons who have any respect for their health have for it.”—The Times.
