Crossword Genius

Drink to go with port is not the best and is hard to take? (6,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

bitter pill

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'not the best and is hard to take?' is the definition.
I know nothing about this answer so I cannot judge whether this works.

'drink to go with port' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'drink' could be 'bitter' (bitter is a kind of drink) and 'bitter' is found within the answer.
'port' could be 'p' and 'p' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'ill' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'is' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for bitter pill that I've seen before include "It's hard to take" , "One unpleasant to swallow" .)

I've seen this clue in the Irish Times and the Irish Times (Crosaire).
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app