Madeira

Overview

The volcanic island of Madeira, located in the Atlantic Ocean, 750 km off the coast of North Africa, is home to some of the world’s most long-lived and finest fortified wines. Madeira’s wine producing history dates back to the 16^th century, when, due to its location in the Atlantic Ocean, 750 km off the coast of North Africa, it was a regular port of call for passing ships crossing the Atlantic on trade routes. These ships would frequently carry a barrel of Madeira wine on the long journeys, and since the wines were frequently unstable, often deteriorating before reaching their destination, it became common practice to add brandy to each barrel to improve keeping qualities during the long sea journeys.

It was then later discovered, that the time spend in the warm hull of the ships, crossing the equator, would in fact, dramatically improve the wines – and thus, throughout the 18^th century shippers were experimenting with ways of replicating this heating process on land. ‘Estufas’ (special ovens in which wines would be artificially heated) became the most common method to replicate the rapid maturation which happened during the long sea journeys.

Today, estufas are mainly used for cheaper wines, whereas higher quality wines go through a gentler process of being heated in warm rooms, and the very finest Madeiras are heated naturally, over many years, in barrels under the eaves of lodges in Funchal (the latter is known as the Canteiro system).

Key Grape Varieties

The best Madeiras are traditionally named after the principal grape variety from which they are made - these names give an indication of the style of wine to expect and in order of driest to sweetest are:

• Sercial
• Verdelho
• Bual
• Malvasia.

Sercial

The palest, driest, and lightest madeira, with lemony, stony, and herbaceous aromatics and ferociously high levels of tangy acidity. Sercial is often served as aperitif, along with green olives and marcona almonds, but is also popular with a variety of starters like raw fish and charcuterie.

Verdelho

Medium dry wine, more mellow and with more body than Sercial, Verdelho has characteristic smoky and saline aromatics along with high acidity. Verdelho is popular to serve with white meat and fish dishes, while also often accompanying vegetable and creamy soups, along with which the velvety texture goes beautifully.

Bual/Boal

Dark medium-rich, sweet, and raisiny style of madeira with baked caramel character yet retained nervy acidity. Bual can be paired with dessert with dried fruit, nuts or caramel, and with pungent styles of cheese, and finally is also completely delicious to meditate over on its own.

Malmsey/Malvasia

The very sweetest, most luscious and honeyed of all Madeira wines, redolent of coffee and caramel, it is rich, concentrated, and complex, yet balanced by high acidity. Malmsey can be paired with the richest of desserts and cheeses, from ice-cream, chocolate cake or treacle tart, to blue cheeses, or just enjoyed on its own.

Key Producers

We offer some of the great Madeira from the following producers: Just click on any of the links below to find them.

• Blandy’s
• Henriques & Henriques
• Justino’s Madeira
• Broadbent Madeira
• D’Oliveiras