D5: Madeira

Question 1

Madeira

Answer 1

A Portuguese island in the Atlantic Ocean, 600km from the coast of Marocco. The fortified wine made on the Island is also called Madeira

Question 2

History of the island Madeira

Answer 2

Discovered in 1419, colonized by Portuguese merchants. Forest wore burnt to provide room for agriculture. Although sugar, wheat and vines are the main crops and exports, the sugar industry declined in the 16th century, and wine became the main export.

Wine export grew further in the 17th and 18th centuries as British merchants arrived in Madeira and sent the wine to their colonies in North America and the West Indies. It was found that long periods of time pitching and rilling in the holds of ships to and from the tropics improved the quality of the wines.

The 19th and 20th centuries where more difficult for the Madeira wine trade. Powdery mildew and the Phylloxera hit the island in the late 19th century, destroying vines and lowering yields. During the 20th century Prohibition in the USA, two worlds wars and the Russian Revolution negatively impacted the wine trades in many of Madeira’s major markets at the time. Towards the end of the century sales became more stable, but consumer tastes had changed and sales were far below their peak in the 18th century

Question 3

IVM

Answer 3

Instituto do Vinho da Madeira founded in 1979

Question 4

IVBAM

Answer 4

Instituto do Vinho doBordado e do Artesanato da Madeira was founded in 2006 and is responsible for monitoring Madeira stocks and quality control

Question 5

Climate in Madeira

Answer 5

In general warm summers, average around 20-22 degrees, and mild winters, average around 16-17 degrees

Lack of winter dormancy can be a problem in the warmest sites

As a mountainous island, there is a range of microclimates, with temperatures becoming cooler with altitude. The mountains, reaching up to 1800m, cause moist air in the humid winds arriving from the north-west to cool and condense into rainclouds, meaning the north and centre of the island are considerably cooler and wetter (rainfall can exceed 3000mm per year in the center) than the south. The majority of the rain falls in the autumn and winter

Question 6

Vineyard location

Answer 6

Vineyards are located relatively near the cost with forest covering the center of the island. Vineyards can be found up to altitudes of 800m. Madeira has an total area of approx 74.000ha of which around 500ha are planted with vineyards

Question 7

Soil on Madeira

Answer 7

Soils are of volcanic origin and high in nutrients. Together with plentiful rainfall this provides fertile conditions and therefor vigorous vines

Question 8

Recommended varieties

Answer 8

Tinta Negra
Sercial
Verdelho
Boal
Malvasia
Terrantez

Question 9

Tinta Negra

Answer 9

This black grape is the most planted variety on the island. High yielding and easy to grow. Its only since 2015 that producers hav been able to state the grape variety on the label.

However, much Tinta Negra is use to make wines where a level of sweetness rather than a variety appears on the label. It’s use to make wines at all sweetness levels

Question 10

Sercial

Answer 10

Known for its high acidity and used in the driest styles of Madeira.

Late ripening and especially in cool sites can be the lates variety to be picked, barely above the min level of potential alcohol

Resistant to powdery mildew but susceptible to botrytis bunch rot and can experience poor fruit set

Plantings are small

Question 11

Verdelho

Answer 11

Second most planted vinifera variety. Has high acid but slightly lower levels than Sercial

Susceptible to botrytis bunch rot, coulure, and downy and powdery mildews

Question 12

Boal

Answer 12

Boal is an umbrella term for a number of grape varieties. The variety that grows on Madeira is Boal Cachudo, ands is also named Malvasia Fina (White Port)

Grows best on warm, low altitude sties in the south of the island.

Susceptible to drought and therefor needs adequate irrigation to thrive.

Typically used to produce semi-sweet wines

Question 13

Malvasia

Answer 13

An umbrella term for a number of grape varieties. Malvasia Candida was historically the most important Malvasia. However it is very susceptible to powdery mildew and therefor there are currently only small plantings

Malvasia de Sao Jorge is the most common grown on Madeira. It can produce relatively high yields but is susceptible to botrytis bunch rot

Question 14

Terrantez

Answer 14

Plantings are very limited

Susceptible to powdery mildew and botrytis bunch rot and therefor picked soon after it reaches 9% abv potential alcohol

Question 15

Explain vineyard management on Madeira

Answer 15

Madeira is mountainous and many vineyards are terraced to make planting on steep slopes viable

Vines are generally trained into a pergola system, called latadas. Allowing air circulation above and beneath the vine which helps reduce fungal disease pressure in the humid climate. It also permits other crops to be grown on the land underneath, making effective use of a small landholding

Vineyards are also planted with cordon-trained, VSP trellised vines, called espaldeira

Although canopy management may help, fungicide spray are usually necessary in this humid climate

Question 16

Explain the use of irrigation on Madeira

Answer 16

Irrigation is widely practised: rainwater is carried from the centre of the island to vineyard areas by levadas, small irritation channels. With lower rainfall, irrigation is more required in the south of the island

Question 17

Harvest on Madeira

Answer 17

The official date is decided by the IVBAM, in consultation with produces and growers. Usually at the end of August or the start of September

Given Madeira’s topography harping tends to be done by hand. The min potential alcohol at harvest must be 9% abv, and in general grapes are picked with average potential up to 11% abv.

Prices paid for grapes differ based on health and variety although the traditional varieties (Sercial, Verdelho, Boal, Malvasia and Terrantez) fetch much more than Tinta Negra

On arrival at the winery grapes are checked on weight, health and potential alcohol. Representatives of IVBAM must be present for the arrival of all grapes

Question 18

Explain winemaking of Madeira

Answer 18

1. Grapes are checked upon arrival (IVBAM)
2. Grapes are destemmed and crushed, use of skin contact varies according to the producer. Tinta Negra is often fermented on the skins, particularly for medium sweet and sweet styles
3. Fermentation usually takes place in stainless steel vessels with ambient yeasts
4. Timing of fortification will depend on the style of wine that is produced, with sweeter style fortified earlier in the fermentation to retain more residual sugar. Sweet styles, 2 days, drier styles ferment for around a week
5. Fortifying spirit must be 96% abv, and therefor it will be neutral in style. Producers are free to buy the spirit from wherever they choose, but it’s quality must be checked by the IVBAM. After fortification the wine will usually contain 17-18% abv
6. Before maturation the wines will be fined (bentonite, gelatine and albumin are commonly used) and filtered to clarify the wine
7. The maturation process for modern Madeira replicates the hot, oxidative conditions that the wine was subject to when being shipped in the 17th and play 18th centuries. There are two options; Estufagem and Canteiro

Question 19

Estufagem

Answer 19

Process that involves the wine being heated in temperature controlled stainless steel vessels called esufas.

Thanks are heated to 45-50 degrees (max of 55 degrees is permitted) using a heating coil of water jacket, and the wine must be remained in the tank for a min of 3 moths

Representatives from the IVBAM seal the vessel at the start of maturation and will break the seal when maturation is compleet.

Although the tanks is sealed, it is usually not filled to the top, allowing some oxidation.

The wine is than allowed to cool, it is filtered and left to rest for 6-12 months. Wines may not be sold until the 31st of October of the second year after harvest

Wines are describe as baked or stewed, however, the process has improved significantly over recent years. But this quick ageing process does nog produce wines with the same level of complexity as the canteiro process. It tends to be used for 3 to 5 year old wines made from Tinta Negra

Question 20

Canteiro

Answer 20

Longer and more intensive process associated with higher quality wines

Wines are matured in old oak vessels in a warm environment. A loft or warehouse, heated by the sun. Vessels are usually 400-700 L in size, and left with a small headspace of air, to aid oxidative development

Temperatures usually range from 25-40 degrees. It is typically for young wines to be stored in the warmest conditions, before being moved to cooler parts of the warehouse for extended ageing

Humidity is high, but in these warm conditions, evaporation of water still causes the alcohol to rise up to 19-20% abv. This also cause other components in the wine, such as sugar, acidity and aroma compounds to concentrate

Madeira is rarely racked but due to the loss of water, barrels need regular topping up

Wines can not be sold until three years after the 1st of January following harvest, and a representative of IVBAM must seal and unseal the vessels

Question 21

Explain the effect of Maturation on the style of wine

Answer 21

Oxidation causes the cooler to gradually turn brown and primary aromas to develop into tertiary notes of dried fruit

The warm ageing conditions speed up oxidation and cause caramelization of the sugar in the wine

The final wines have a range of flavours, depending on the site, and and quality including dried fruits such as apricot and raisin, caramel, chocolate and nuts and often a smokey character

Question 22

Explain the use of blending in Madeira

Answer 22

Most Madeira is a non-vintage product. Therefor blending wines from different vintages and vineyards for consistency of style year on year is standard practice

Blending can also be used to achieve a certain style or complexity. For example wines in the youngest age categories may be matured mainly in stuffs but the blend may include some older canteiro wines to bring a greater complexity of flavours

Question 23

Adjustments in the wine

Answer 23

Some adjustments can be made if necessary

Caramel is used in a number of the inexpensive and mid-priced wines to add colour. Carbon fining can be used to strip colour

RCGM: Rectified Concentrated Grape Must can be added to increase sweetness if needed or blending with some drie wine to decrease sweetness

Question 24

Explain bottle labelling

Answer 24

Made in variety of sweetness levels, and can hence be labelled extra dry, dry, medium dry, medium sweet (medium rich), and sweet (or rich)

It must be noted that even wines labelled dry demonstrate some degree of sweetness

There is also some overlap between categories, one producers dry may be another producers medium dry

Many Madeiras, especially premium priced wines, are varietally labelled

As of 2015 all Madeira must be labelled with a botteling date

Question 25

Sercial wine style

Answer 25

Extra dry or dry

Tend to be the lightest colored, with notes of citrus peel and nuts

Question 26

Verdelho wine style

Answer 26

Medium dry

Usually more residual sugar and therefore more body and rounder in texture than Sercial

Impressions of candid fruits ands slightly darker in colour than Sercial

Question 27

Boal wines style

Answer 27

Medium sweet

Fuller and sweeter than Verdelho. Darker in colour with flavours of caramel, chocolate and candied nuts

Question 28

Malvasia

Answer 28

Sweet

Also called Malmsey, tends to be full bodied and often brown in colour

The sweetest style but still balanced by refreshing acidity

Shows notes of raisins and caramel

Question 29

Terrantez

Answer 29

Medium dry of medium sweet

Aromas included citrus peel, caramel and sometimes even floral notes

Question 30

Madeira with an indication of age

Answer 30

Non vintage products and may be labelled 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 50 and more than 50 years old. The age is an indication of style rather than an minimum or an average and wines must be verified by IVBAM’s tasting panel

Quality and price tends to rise with increased age. 5 year old wines tent to be made predominantly from Tinta Negra and most of the wine will have been through the estufagem system often good in quality and mid-priced

10 year old or older are often made with one of the white varieties, but some producers use Tinta Negra. These wines will be made from parcels that have all been aged in the canteiro system

Wines that are 20 years old or more often be of outstanding quality and sell at premium and super-premium prices

Question 31

Standard blends

Answer 31

Many Madeira’s are not qualified for an indication of age. These may be sold between 2-3 years after harvest and are categorized as correlate by IVBAM

These wines are sometimes labelled with a brand name of the producer

Question 32

Rainwater

Answer 32

This is a wine made in a relatively light style in terms of alcohol, body and concentration of flavours, usually around 18% abv

Wines must be medium dry and can only be associated with a max age indication of 10 years

The name is thought to have originated when some cask awaiting for shipment were left open outside and the rain diluted the wine

Question 33

Frasqueira

Answer 33

Also called Garrafeira

These wines usually represent the flagships of a producers range an is the term for vintage Madeira that has been aged in wood for a min of 20 years

The grape variety must be stated on the label, together with the year of harvest

The quality of the wine must be assessed by IVBAM’s tasting panel

Concentrated and complex tertiary flavours, with sweetness balanced by high acidity

Question 34

Colheita

Answer 34

A colheita wine is a vintage Madeira form grapes of a single year that has been aged in wood for a min of 5 years

Either a blend of varieties or made from a single variety. The grape does not need to appear on the label but the harvest year must be stated

The quality of the wine must be assessed by IVBAM’s tasting panel

Relatively new category emerged in 2000, popular because aging requirements are much lower than for Frasqueira

Question 35

Explain the structure of the industry

Answer 35

Madeiras vineyards land is highly fragmented, with over 1000 growers and an average vineyard holding of 0.3ha

The winemaking and maturation side of the industry is extremely consolidated with only eight producers

The largest three companies are Justino’s, Madeira Wine Company and Henriques & Henriques only the later two own or rent vineyards

A producer will often need to buy grapes from as many as a few hundred growers. To smooth this process many producers will use agents who will provide consultation for growers during the season and coordinate the harvesting

Question 36

Madeira Sales

Answer 36

Sales have remain relatively stable over the past few decades. The majority of the sales comes from young corrente made from Tinta Negra, with 5 and 10 year old madeira being the most common age-indicted categories

The largest market for Madeira is France, followed by Madeira itself; the tourist trade makes an important contribution. Germany and the UK are the next most important for volume. France and Germany tend to be important markets for inexpensive Madeira, whereas the domestic market and the UK are important for more expensive wines

Significant volumes of inexpensive Madeira is used for cooking. Produced by the estufagem process and aften released from the winery after a few months and makes up around one quarter of the total production volumes of Madeira