Madiera Flashcards
What is Mdiera?
Fortified wine made on island of Madiera (only 450 hectares planted)
Where is island of Madiera?
Portuguese island in the Atlantic around 600km from coast of Morocco
Intituto do Vinho, do Borado e do Artesanato da Madiera (IVBAM)
Superceded the Instituto do Vinho da Madiera in 2006 to regulate production and that plus EU regulations have improved quality
-Monitor stocks, quality control, labelling
Climate
Warm maritime
Climate Description
- Warm summers (68 - 72 F) and mild winters (61 - 63 F)
- Microclimates created by mountains (alt = cooler)
- Mnts cause moist air in the humid winds arriving from the NW to cool and condense into rainclouds which makes the North and Center of the island cooler and wetter than the South
- Majority of rain in Autumn and Winter
Risks
- Lack of winter dormancy can be an issue in warmest sites
- Disease Pressure = downy mildew, botrytis, Phomopsis (canopy mgmt + fungicides)
Vineyards
Planted near the coast and reach 800m altitude
6 Recommended Grapes
Tinta Negra, Sercial, Verdelho, Boal, Malvasia, Terrantez
Tinta Negra - Red
- Most planted variety on island
- High yield, easy to grow
- Used to produce wines of all sweetness levels
- only since 2015 have producers been able to state grape variety so Madiera made with Tinta Negra is usually just labeled with a level of sweetness
Sercial - White
- High Acid
- Used in driest styles
- Late ripening, in cool sites can be latest variety picked
- Resistant to powdery mildew but susceptible to botrytis
- Plantings are small
Verdelho - White
- High Acid (but lower than Sercial)
- Second most planted
- Susceptible to botrytis, coulure, downy and powdery mildew
Boal
- blanket term for a number of grape varieties
- Variety grown on Madeira is Boal Cachudo (Malvasia Fina) found in white port
- like warm, low altitude sites in south of island
- Susceptible to drought (needs irrigation)
- typically used for semi-sweet wines
Malvasia
- blanket term for a number of grape varieties Malvasia Candida: - historically most important (still prized for quality) - Very susceptible to powdery mildew Malvasia de Sao Jorge: - most common Malvasia grown on Madeira - can produce high yields - susceptible to botrytis
Terrantez
- very limited plantings
- susceptible to powdery mildew + botrytis (therefore picked soon after it reaches 9% abv potential alc)
Vineyard Management
- Mountainous = many terraced vineyards
- Mostly trained and trellised into a pergola system (here called Latadas) for max air circulation to reduce fungal disease - and leaves room for other crops below to maximize small land-holdings
- Some are cordon-trained, VSP trellised (called espaldeira)
- Irrigation = rainwater from center of the island by levadas to the south, small irrigation channels”
Madeira’s warm, humid climates means vines are particularly susceptible to?
How do they manage these?
- Downy mildew, botrytis, phomopsis
- canopy management, fungicide sprays
What are latadas?
- Vines are mostly trained and trellised into pergola system (Latadas) for max air circulation to reduce fungal disease - and leaves room for other crops below to maximize small land-holdings
- some cordon-trained, VSP trellised (called espaldeira)
Levadas
Small irrigation channels that bring rainwater from the rainy center of the island to the warmer, drier south
