MADEIRA WINE, UNIQUE WINES WORTHING 100 YEARS

Originally madeira was made of four different kinds of grapes, each with its own taste characteristic, ranging from sweet to dry. Madeira was named after the grape it was made of: Sercial (dry), Verdelho (medium dry), Boal (medium sweet) and Malvasia (sweet)

Today, most madeira is made of one grape variety, Tinta Negra, which grows better. However, the four types of Madeira can be produced from that grape variety.

What is the difference between madeira wine and postage? Well, there are both regional and characteristic differences.

A true port is a sweet dessert wine made in the Douro valley of Portugal. It is a red wine made with grapes grown in the region and then enriched with a grape distillate called aguardant and this while the wine is still fermenting.

This addition stops the fermentation resulting in extra sugar and increases the alcohol content.

A well-made Vintage Port can get very old and the current portwines almost for an indefinite period of time, but most of what we find on the market are non-Vintage port mixtures.

Today, port-style wines are produced all over the world, but only a true postage in the Douro Valley can be labeled as a postage or port wine.

They vary in style from dry to sweet. Like portwines, well-made vintage Madeira wines can be preserved and consumed for an indefinite period, but the quality and price vary greatly.

Whether it’s the dry styles drunk as an aperitif or the sweeter sorts consumed with or after dessert, it’s no longer the daily tipple of gentlemen in the American colonies — George Washington was a huge fan of Madeira and American independence was toasted with it — but the future looks bright for this unique wine. For many wine lovers, Madeira is a wine yet to be discovered in its full range of styles.

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MADEIRA WINE, UNIQUE WINES WORTHING 100 YEARS

Barrel aging

Grapes