2013 H.M. Borges Tinta Negra Colheita Madeira 50 cl - medium dry
€ 39.00 / 50 cl
This semi-dry wine is made from the Tinta Negra grape variety from the 2013 harvest and was bottled in 2022. The wine has a distinct amber color. Delicate notes of curry emerge on the nose, developing into a cloud of nutmeg, toasted almonds, salty notes, and dried fruit. The palate is harmonious, soft, and persistent, displaying a superb balance of sweetness, acidity, and tannins.
Tinta Negra is a moisture-resistant American hybrid of the vinifera variety introduced in the 18th century following attacks by wine mold in the 1850s and phylloxera in the 1870s. Today, it is the most common grape variety in the region, accounting for approximately 85% of total Madeira production. It is an adaptable and robust grape with medium- to small-sized grapes and very fine, soft skins. The wine has adapted incredibly well to the island's geological and morphological conditions. Therefore, it is now grown in the south, in Funchal and Câmara de Lobos, and in the north, in São Vicente.
Food-pairing
A delicious aperitif. It pairs beautifully with main courses of chicken, duck, pork, or veal, whether fried or grilled, or with smoked ham, swordfish with banana and passion fruit, baked pineapple, mushrooms, hazelnuts, aged cheeses, smoked salmon, shrimp, and sardines.
Grapes: Tinta Negra
Grapes were harvested in the Estreito de Câmara de Lobos, an area with clayey, acidic volcanic soil, primarily basalt, rich in organic matter.
The grapes are destemmed and lightly pressed. The wine ferments in open fermentation tanks under controlled temperatures between 24 and 26 degrees Celsius for approximately five days. After five to six days, the wine is fortified with 96% neutral brandy. The wine is then slowly aged according to the Canteiro method, the original way of aging Madeira wine:
In the past, wine merchants would place the filled barrels in the attic on poles called canteiros, with air between them. Due to the island's mild and warm climate, this quickly developed into a small sauna, imitating the conditions under which wine that had been to India and back was aged: the famous vinho de roda. Today, only quality-oriented producers like H.M. Borges still use this slow and expensive aging process, despite the discovery of cheaper alternatives, the estufagem method, which is milder. This exceptional vintage wine is aged for five years in 650-liter American oak barrels at 20-35 degrees Celsius and the remainder in French oak at 20-35 degrees Celsius until bottling, in this case a mere ten years. During this time, between 5 and 8% of the wine evaporates annually, contributing to the concentration of acidity. Although it is a semi-dry Madeira, it contains 59-78 grams of residual sugar per liter, which harmonizes beautifully with the high acidity.
H. M. Borges was founded in 1877 by Henrique Menezes Borges, and today, with Helena and Isabel Borges, the fourth generation of the family produces Madeira grapes in the historic 1924 building in the heart of Funchal. Since Borges' founding, they have worked closely with winegrowers to obtain grapes of the highest quality. Some of them have been working with Borges for generations. The smallest producers supply 25-50 kg, and Borges has hundreds of different grape suppliers.
Viticulture in Madeira is 100% the result of the tireless efforts of the winegrowers. Harvesting is extremely dangerous. In many places, you can harvest standing, but there are also many where you have to climb or use ladders. When the grapes have to be transported to the road on your back, this is done via narrow levadas, often with dizzying slopes of several hundred meters on the sides.
Alcohol content
20%
Store & Serve
Keep a Madeira wine always upright.
The acids of Madeira are so strong that they affect the cork when the bottle is kept lying down
Serve at 16 °C
Madeira is a wine that matured in an oxidative environment for several years, and then comes to bottling in a reductive environment. It is therefore useful to open the bottles a few hours in advance. The bottles can then be preserved almost unlimited, as the air is no longer affecting Madeira wines. It is even so that after a few months the wine tastes better than when the bottle is just opened.
Critics & Awards
Region: Madeira
Producer: H.M. Borges