2002 DOliveira Malmsey Colheita Madeira - sweet
€ 175.80
| Producer | D'Oliveiras |
| Region | Madeira |
| Grapes | Malvasia (Malmsey) |
| Ageing | Colheita (single harvest), at least 5 years in cask |
| Alcohol | 20%vol |
| Serving | 18°C, open a few hours in advance Store upright, keeps almost indefinitely once opened |
| Drinking window | 2014-2024 |
A 2002 Malmsey Colheita: honey-sweet, syrupy and yet fresh.
Tasting note
Topaz to mahogany in colour, translucent. Sweet aromas, a very syrupy, honeyed texture, some citrus notes and a scent of fresh flowers. Quite fresh for a Malvasia.
The story
A Colheita comes from a single harvest and ages for at least five years in cask. At D’Oliveiras the wine stays in cask until it is bottled.
Malmsey gives the sweetest style of Madeira. There are two kinds, Malvasia and Malvasia Cândida, which grows closest to the ocean and is said to come from Greece. A lovely legend tells how the Duke of Clarence chose to drown in a butt of Malmsey rather than die by the sword. Shakespeare often refers to Malmsey, and even Napoleon took some from the island. In the 19th century Malmsey became even more fashionable, with a ‘morning Malmsey’ to start the day. The sweet, early-ripening Malvasia grows only in the south, in low-lying vineyards at 150-200 m, close to the ocean.
Madeira spends years ageing in an oxidative environment and moves into a reductive one at bottling. It is therefore best to open the bottle a few hours in advance. After that, air no longer affects the wine: an open bottle keeps almost indefinitely and often tastes even better months later. Always store Madeira upright, as the acidity attacks the cork if the bottle lies down.
Food pairing
An excellent match for pastries, fruit, chocolate, pralines, hard cheeses, and ice cream, caramel and coffee desserts.
The producer
D’Oliveiras (Pereira D’Oliveira) is one of the most traditional Madeira houses and is still owned by the founding family, whose roots lie in São Martinho, above Funchal. Through the purchase of other houses, the oldest of them founded in 1820, D’Oliveiras holds the island’s largest stock of old vintages, going back to 1850. In 1968 the brothers Aníbal and Luís D’Oliveira joined the firm, which then began to export. Since Aníbal’s death in 2017, Luís and Aníbal’s son Filipe have carried on the house.
The house is convinced that Madeira ages best in cask. Old vintages therefore stay in wood, and only as much is bottled as is needed. D’Oliveiras was one of the first on the island to print the bottling year on the back label. The lodge is on Rua dos Ferreiros in old Funchal, in buildings dating back to 1619.
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