Madeira Wine

Madeira's History

Madeira is a Portuguese island in the Atlantic, nearly 600 km off the coast of Morocco, which makes this delicious and underrated fortified wine of the same name. Colonised in the 1420s by the Portuguese, the island's forests were burnt and it became an agricultural hub, powered by slavery to a large extent. Sugar was the main export, but as competition grew and the industry declined in the 16th century, wine became the key. The island was a useful stepping stone for the British and other colonialist powers to stock up on their way to their colonies in North America and the West Indies, and they quickly discovered that the tropical temperatures and hot conditions in the holds of ships actually improved the quality of the wines. Madeira wines were even used as ballast holds with this very aim in mind!

Disease struck the island in the 19th and 20th centuries as phylloxera spread across Europe. Next, US prohibition, World War I & II, and the Russian Revolution took a toll on Madeira's export markets around the world. And since then consumer tastes have changed, and Madeira has never really recovered. In1979, the Instituto do Vinho da Madeira was founded regulate Madeira production. Then, in 2006 the Instituto do Vinho, do Bordado e do Artesanato da Madeira, P. I. or IVBAM for short took over the role. Since accession to the EU, various subsidies and increased regulation have led to improvements in the quality of Madeira, which is slowly being recognised and helping keep investment in the wines alive.

What grapes are in Madeira?

Firstly, it is worth understanding a bit about the climate. As you can imagine, it is warm pretty much all year round and vines can struggle to go dormant over winter. It is also a mountainous terrain, meaning there are vineyards up to 800m, rain pockets in the center of the island, and a dry area protected by them in the South. The soils are also volcanic which is great for fertility.

Grapes in Madeira are split into two categories, the 'recommended' and the 'authorised'. Authorised varieties are essentially not as good American/hybrid vines that were planted after phylloxera, whilst recommended are the original varieties that built its reputation with the exception of Tinta Negra. The other traditional varieties include Sercial, Verdelho, Boal, Malvasia and Terrantez.

When buying Madeira, you also need to understand that the grape variteties denote the style of wine from dry to sweet. Here's a handy guide going up in sweetness:

Styles of Madeira

• Sercial - This has high acidity and so is used for the driest Madeira wines. Think citrus notes and nuts.
• Verdelho - This also has high acidity, but not quite as much as Sercial. Wines are usually medium dry.
• Boal - Boal is an umbrella term for a number of varieties. The Madeiran variety is actually called Boal Cuchudo (Malvasia Fina in Port). These wines are even sweeter with chocolate, candied fruits and caramel notes.
• Terrantez - This typically makes medium dry/sweet styles of wine with distinct freshness and floral notes sometimes.
• Malvasia - Also an umbrella term, the most important Madeiran grapes are Malvasia Candida and Malvasia de São Jorge. You might see these described as Malmsey on the bottle, which is sweet, full-bodied and often brown. Expect raisin and caramel.
• Tinta Negra - The most planted grape and one that makes all levels of sweetness, although usually on the sweeter side.

How is Madeira made?

With the range of sweetness levels, Madeira production initially varies. For example, Tinta Negra is often fermented on the skins for sweeter red styles, whilst most dry white Madeira's are not. Much like Port, the wine is fortified during fermentation with a 96% grape spirit, with an earlier fortification for sweeter wines to stop the yeast converting all the sugar to alcohol. Then comes maturation, the key part of Madeira. Before this stage all wines will be taste tested to determine how they will be matured.

Madeira Maturation

There are two main options for Madeira's maturation, which are designed to emulate the conditions of the wine in a ship's hold in the 17th-18th centuries. The first is Estufagem, where the heating process takes place in temperature controlled tanks. They are heated to about 45-50 degrees celcius and kept in tank for 3 months minimum. Often, there is some space left in the top to allow the oxidative ageing process to affect the wine as well. After maturation, the wine is left to rest for 6 months or more. This is essentially an artifical and speedy way of creating the conditions that, whilst technology has improved, are still not quite at the quality of the other method, Canteiro.

Canteiro is more intensive and takes longer, driving up the price of the final wine, but the results are often worth it. The wines are put in large old oak barrels and left in a warm loft exposed to the sun. Temperatures are lower but still reach 40 degrees celcius and upwards. The wine begins to evaporate which concentrates alcohol, sugars, acidity and flavours of the wine. This also increases the oxidative effect on the wines flavour profile, and means that the barrels need topping up, again causing oxygen ingress.

Ageing longer than the minimum time period requires a member of the IVBAM to unseal the barrel after 5 years, where the producer can then check the wine and make adjustments and top ups as they deem necessary. They can repeat every 5 years if desired. This means that most Madeira is non-vintage, as it is topped up rather like the solera system in Sherry.

But what affect does this ageing have? Oxygen ingress causes the colour to turn brown over time, fresher flavours/aromas to develop into notes of dried fruit. The warm ageing conditions speed up the oxidation reaction and help caremalise the sugars. Age, quality and sweetness all affect the wine profile, but generally you can expect dried fruits such as apricot and raisin, caramel, chocolate & nuts.

Other Madeira Categories

Standard Blends - Those that don't qualify for age labelling are sold between 2–3 years after harvest and are categorised as corrente. These styles are some of the most common and labelled with brand names such as Blandy’s Duke of Clarence, or even just as a style description such as Henriques & Henriques’ Full Rich Madeira.

Madeira With Age - Old Madeira wines can be labelled 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 50 and ‘more than 50’ years old and according to style and/or grape variety. This must be verified by IVBAM’s tasting panel. Younger levels will often be made from Tinta Negra through the estufagem system. At 10 years old or up, mostly the other grapes through Canteiro, although that is not to say you won't find Tinta Negra available at this age.

Rainwater - This is thought to have originated when Madeira casks were left open outside and rained in, diluting the wine. As you can imagine, these are therefore lighter in style, must also be medium dry, and can only reach the 10 years ageing mark.

Frasqueira (Garrafeira) - Often these wines are reserved for the flagships of a producer’s range. This is premium vintage Madeira that has been aged in wood for at least 20 years and must be tested by IVBAM’s tasting panel to qualify. Styles vary depending on the grape, however, they are notable for intense flavour concentration and complexity.

Colheita - This is also vintage Madeira that has been aged in wood for a minimum of 5 years. These wines can both be a blend of varieties or single variety. Again, the quality of the wine is tested by IVBAM’s tasting panel.