Madeira tasting in London

Thank you Westbury for organizing an intense "Madeira Wine Experience" today at London's Glazier's Hall. A walkaround of most of Madeira's producers (there are less than 10 anyway!) was enriched by three well-run masterclasses and the result was an intense day of exposure to this unique fortified wine.

I led a visit to Madeira with the Brussels Wine Club before, and was already familiar with most of the producers who participated today, but there is always something new to learn in the infinite diversity of madeira wines.

Especially useful was the provision of different kinds of food to match to madeira. While usually seen as an aperitif, or an accompaniment to dessert or cheese, madeira can actually be paired quite successfully with a variety of main courses from the cuisines of the world.

Below are my notes from some of the most notable tastings today. I mostly skipped the entry-level 5 and 10-year-old wines, not because they are not good, they often are. And can be great value. But I focused on the rarest bottles that might intrigue readers to spend a bit more in order to access a more unique drinking experience. Let us remember that the best madeira can age over a century, easily, as it is a very stable wine thanks to its unique process of controlled heating and slow oxidation. Looking forward to the next Westbury event on port wines in November.

Walkaround tasting

Blandy's range

Blandy's best today

My first stop was at Blandy's, perhaps the most widely recognized label.

2009 Sercial, verdelho, boal and malvasia. Typical expressions of the four main varieties on the island, keep in mind that 2009 is a very very young vintage to drink in 2022.

The race horses for Blandy's today were the 1978 Terrantez and the 1972 Bual, just released this year after half a century of aging in barrels. 

Terrantez provided a pleasant bitterness that comes from this rare grape variety. Score 89. 

Bual (or Bual) was a magnificently smooth, balanced wine exuding nutty notes. Score 93

Henriques & Henriques lineup

Next stop at Henriques & Henriques.

A 15yo was fresh with a touch of ripe apricots. Score 86.

Terrantez 20yo was also fresh but more complex. Score 92.

Sercial 2001 was superfresh, citrussy even, very elegant. Score 93.

Boal 2009 predictably smooth and toffee notes. Score 93

Malvasia 2001 sweet as expected, smooth and long. Score 93

This company remains a stable point of reference in Madeira for dependable quality. They now own six brands. Go visit them when on the island for a unique experience, you can also see coopers making canteiro barrels!

Justino's

Next up was Justino's. A producer whose cellar I visited a few years ago and you can read my reviews here in this blog. Today We tasted four wines.

A 10yo sercial was surprisingly smooth. Score 90

A 1997 sercial surprised me with an intense nose and amazing freshness that did no damage to an overall balance. One of the best wines today. Score 96

A 10yo verdelho was an easy drink, sweeter than expected. Score 85

Final fireworks with a 50yo terrantez, still so fresh and structured, complex and long. Score 94

Barbeito

Barbeito was a new discovery for me as I had not had a chance to taste their wines before. The gem of their lineup today was a bottle of bastardo, a rare grape that is now almost extinct in Madeira. Known as Trousseau elsewhere, it is used for dry wines but its Madeira incarnation is a world apart from anything else.

Bastardo, considered medium dry, was rediscovered in 2004 by Teofile Cunha. The first harvest was in 2007 and it's been going skyward ever since. Barbeito offered a bottle of just 2184 produced in 1995 that was tingling and fresh, with lime notes. Yet balanced and long. Score 95 for a most rare opportunity to taste this grape. 

A complex and long Tinta Negra (the humble grape from which by far most madeira wine is made) produced by the "canteiro" method in 2900 bottles in 2008 surprised me and all those who continue to exclude this grape from the list of "noble" varieties. Score 93

Finally, a malvasia candida 2006, produced in just 2366 bottles. A balanced, complex and moderately long wine. Score 92

Masterclass on Madeira pairing with food

As I mentioned earlier, madeira is too rarely thought of as a meal wine, but it is. Today we had a small sample of some successful pairings. Some, ahem, food for thought as we plan our meals with madeira wine.

A Blandy's sercial, the driest grape for madeira, was paired with a bite of cod on a salty spread of garlic conf, parsley and basil. The wine's acidity contrasted well with the creamy food.

Next, a Borges verdelho 15yo met its partner for the day in a slice of roast beef, again good contrast of medium dry wine with sweet tendency in the meat.

A Barbeito rainwater reserva, a tingling spicy wine, was well matched with smooth fried chicken. Usually, a classic pairing would be smooth wine and spicy food, but it worked very well the other way around here.

Henriques & Henriques offered a Finest medium dry that was paired with Hungarian beef stew. I would have preferred a drier madeira here but that's just my personal taste.

Justino's entry level semi-sweet Boal 10yo went hand in hand with sweet tendency pumpkin and blue cheese. Classical pairing by concordance of sweetness levels.

Finally Pereira's Malvasia 2000, the sweetest of the lineup, accompanied a ginger Jamaica cake with custard. In my view the cake was too sweet for this wine. Even though Malvasia is the sweetest madeira this bottle retained lots of acidity.

Meeting the Producer: Valdecuevas and Finca Rodma

Twin companies presented at Onvinum 2022, May edition.

Valdecuevas and Finca Rodma belong to the same Castilian holding company but retain their separate personalities and styles.

Verdejo 2021 valdecuevas
Fresh citrussy, almond, touch of vanilla
med length and complexity
Score 85

Verdejo valdecuevas 2020.
An easy Summer wine fresh and aromatic. A delicate structure and mod length. Well paired with frogs and lettuce stirred with lemon juice, garlic and olive oil. 

Score 84

Valdecuevas fermented in Barrels 2020

More complex than the previous wine, and more structured. Paired with slightly spicy sea bass in the pan with spring onions.

Score 87

Finca Rodma Selection 2019

Hand picked grapes from their best plots. Evolved for 12 months in American and French oak. 

A powerful wine, exuding complex red fruit aromas with round tannins and good length.

Score 93

Meet the Producer: Kanu of Stellenbosch, South Africa

Jade showing her gold

Kanu was present at the London Wine Fair 2022 with a substantial range of wines.

Founded in 1692, it changed hands a number of times and it acquired its current name in 1997. You can read its full history, in times of peace and war, on their website. Today Kanu is established as a boutique producer of quality wines with grapes sourced over a wider area in the Western Cape.

The name Kanu is from a legend told by an old Xhosa man who was raised in his grandmother’s house on the Goedgeloof farm. Day after day, he would tell of the mythical bird he had seen flying over the farm. According to him, if the bird’s shadow touches your crop, you are promised a bountiful year’s harvest!  (from their website)

I was fortunate to taste a few wines, both at the London Wine Fair and subsequently with some colleagues from the Club. Scroll to the end of this post and you can listen to a conversation with Jason Chen, general manager and Johan Grimbeek, winemaker. Because of a technical glitch we only have the audio from our guests, sorry. Recorded on 11 July 2022.

Angelina rosé brut (Gold)

Fruity and smooth, with fine and persistent bubbles. Good freshness and minerality ensure a perfect balance with the lightly pressed pinot noir. Complex aromas in the nose and fragrance in the mouth. An elegant wine with a full personality. The gold flakes are added to some of the bottles to attract certain market segments who appreciate this precious touch of exclusivity and class.

Score 92

Pinotage rosé

Pomegranate color and fresh strawberry aromas for this original interpretation of an archetypical South African grape. Freshness in abundance but rounded for a perfect balance. 

An amazing surprise. I paired it with a raw yellowfin tuna salad on a hot Summer day and can see how this wine would be ideal with sushi, sashimi or beef carpaccio.

Score 94

Pinotage Rosé

Chenin Blanc 2019 Old Vines

Quite old these bush vines, planted in 1980 to be precise. Low yield, minimalist intervention for a vineyard certified as a heritage of Stellenbosch.

Papaya to the nose, immediately reveals a smooth, velvet wine. There is however enough acidity to ensure a moderate balance. Vanilla, almonds, pineapple all combine to provide complexity and moderate length. Late harvesting adds some spicy notes.

Score 90.

NuEra 2017

Deep ruby with highlights of garnet. An intense and complex set of red fruit aromas welcomes you to this plump and elegant wine. Peppercorn and lavender help give character and structure so that the result is a perfect balance. A harmonious wine. 

I paired it with lasagne, a medium structure food for a medium structure wine. I also tried it with Chinese pork belly and mushrooms, again the elegant tannins contrasted perfectly with the fat in the plate.

Ready now, can probably wait a few more years but it won't necessarily improve. An amazing discovery.

Score 95 

Keystone 2017

Top class South African wine in bordeaux style blend. You do not get the austerity of a Bordeaux but you can enjoy the sunshine in this is a superb expression of Stellenbosch: plump, fruity, complex and ready at just 5 years of age. I paired with bbq meat, South African style, first pork chops and then guinea fowl.

Score 93

Noble Late

Chenin blanc 100%

The sweet sibling of the family. A voluptuous wine with mellow nuances of vanilla, tangerine and ripe apricots. A "sunny" version of the well known Sauternes-style. I paired it to a home-made tiramisù, but finished off the bottle the next day while reading in the afternoon, no pairing, just a delightful meditation wine.

Score 93

the cellar

bird's eye view of the estate

the Kanu range

Hungary decanted: a walkaround tasting

A most interesting tasting hosted at the Hungarian Embassy in London. In their own words: walk around tasting will showcase Decanter World Wine Awards “Best in Show”, Platinum and Gold medallist Hungarian wines, including Best in Show wines Juliet Victor Tokaji Szamorodni 2017 (Best in Show 2020) and St Andrea Nagy-Eged Bikavér, Eger (Best in Show in 2021).

Over 30 DWWA award winning sparkling, dry and sweet wines from around 20 producers will be available to taste from all over Hungary. Producers include: Balassa Bor, Grof Degenfeld Wine Estate, Maul Winery, Kreinbacher, Zelna Boraszat, Szent Andrea Winery, Vesztergombi.

Prevalence of white wines and especially sweet ones. Just by way of reminders, Hungary uses the unit of "puttonyos" to indicate the degree of sweetness of its wines. Here are my favorite takeaways:

Grand Tokaj - Tokaj

From the largest winery in the historic Tokaj region, the company owns 67 hectares of land and purchases grapes from 1000+ farmers in the area.

Aszú 6 puttonyos 2014, furmint

Perfect balance, 10% abv, Score 96

Aszú 5 puttonyos 2014, furmint

Too fresh, needs a bit time, abv 9.5%, Score 90

Esszencia 2013, blend of 6 grapes

abv 2.5%!, very syrupy, I can hardly call this a wine, 450g of residual sugar, but it will please those with a very sweet tooth.

Gróf Degenfeld - Tokaj

Aszú selection 6 puttonyos 2017, blend of furmint and other grapes

Ripe apricots, plump consistency. Perfect balance, very long. abv 10.5%.Score 96

Aszú 5 puttonyos 2016, Hárslevelü and furmint

A balanced and mod long wine. abv 10%. Score 92

Aszú 6 puttonyos 2017, Hárslevelü and furmint

A majestic wine, perfectly balanced, plump, long and complex. Exudes harmony and promises enjoyment for many years. abv 11%. Score 98

Harsányi - Tokaj

Kútpatka single vineyard 2017, furmint

Ripe apricots, a smooth elegant dry wine with a touch of freshness. abv 11.5%. Score 95

Aszú 6 puttonyos 2016, furmint

Excellent balance, a long and complex wine. abv 9.2%, Score 97.

Meet the producer: Vignobles Chatonnet, Bordeaux, France

A new discovery for us this producer from the right bank in Bordeaux. The homeland of merlot, one of my favorite grapes, mellow yet powerful, velvety and structured. A touch of elegance in many Bordeaux wines from either bank, but a protagonist in Lalande de Pomerol, where the vignobles Chatonnet is based. 

Today we met with Andrea Giraud who is in charge of the international market at Paul Chatonnet. We asked about the peculiarities of this vineyard. Let's hear it directly from her.

 

Tasting notes:

Archange 2016, merlot 100%

A typical expression of this noble variety. Opulent, elegant, complex and long. A masterpiece merlot, at the pinnacle of rive droite interpretation of this grape.

Result of "lutte raisonnée", aiming at minimizing human intervention as much as possible but without ideological strictures.

Score 97

La Sergue 2016,  Merlot (85%), Cabernet Franc (12%) and Malbec (3%)

An original composition with the unique addition of malbec instead of the more familiar cab franc which is the normal third party of the Bordeaux trinity. The result is a balanced and moderately complex wine that is ready now but could wait a little longer.

Score 95

Away from the camera we also tasted:

Haut Chaigneau 2016, merlot 90%, cab franc 10%
Dark Ruby red, intense nose of red fruits
Fresh for a 2016, could use a few more years to round its edges but already balanced enough to be highly enjoyable with structured food. I had it with lasagne.

Score 89

   

Amphora wines master class at the London Wine Fair 2022

Captivating master class organized by Enotria&Coe at the London Wine Fair 2022 on amphora wines. Our speaker was Peter Wallbridge, Enotria&Coe buyer for Spain and Latin America and a published author on the American Journal of Enology. These are my main takeaways from this session.

This is a recurring trend, every so many decades amphora becomes fashionable again. Of course the method itself goes back thousands of years, to the origin of the very first wines, before producers knew how to use wood, cement or even glass to hold their wines during fermentation and aging. But of course clay was used pretty much everywhere in the wider Mediterranean and Mesopotamia region, all the way to Georgia, to hold oil as well as dry cargo such as grains.

In recent times amphora has gained popularity again and the more scientifically oriented specialists focus on its oxygen transmission rate (OTR), pointing out how it is a linear progression, as opposed to wood's OTR which starts high and peters out. So what? Well there is lots of anecdotal evidence for the effects this has on wine, though not enough scientific data.

Experiments in Italy and Spain (where he thinks the best clay comes from) have shown that amphora does not yield good results the first year wine is poured into its vessels. But then tartaric acid deposits create a layer that is ideal for the best micro-oxygenation.

The long road to the re-discovery of amphora wine is going to be a long one.

Tasting notes:

Airen Las Tinadas Organic, Bodegas Verum, La Mancha, Spain 2020

Tinadas Airen 100%, RRP £19

This unusual grape is similar to pinot grigio and gave us a balanced wine with notes of almonds and mod length. Manual harvesting with selection of only the best bunches from each plant. Old vines planted as far back as 1950. A serious Summer wine.

Score 85

Las Tinadas Cencibel, Bodegas Verum, La Mancha, Spain, 2016

This grape is close to tempranillo and comes from vines planted in 1956 on rocky soil, and have to make do with no irrigation. They produced a fruity wine with a medium body, complex and with a quirky but pleasant bitterness aftertaste.

Score 93

Viejas Tinajas Cinsault, De Martino, Itata Valley, Chile, 2020

Easy does it, this is Chile's answer to Beaujolais.

Score 84

Viejas Tinajas Muscat, De Martino, Itata Valley, Chile, 2020

An incredibly strong nose, with exuberant notes of fresh citrus and nuts. This is an "orange" wine in that there is extended skin contact. A unique product that will make you want to taste more.

Score 90

Trebbiano d'Abruzzo DOC Anfora Organic, F. Cirelli, 2019

Trebbiano 100% Certified organic now moving to biodynamic. Manual harvest.

Fermentation in natural yeasts in terracotta then aged 12 months in amphora.

They only use new amphora, do not want tartaric acid layers and the result is a wine that retains an amphora feel, a certain roughness.

Score 88

Montepulciano d'Abruzzo DOC Anfora Organic, F. Cirelli, 2020

Montepulciano 100% A fruity and mod balanced wine, some rough edges but an intriguing clay feel that makes you want to taste future vintages to see how this producer will evolve after its recent conversion to organic and biodynamic.

Score 83

Meet the producer: Thelema Mountain Vineyards of Stellenbosch, South Africa

Thomas Webb

Another interesting master class at the London Wine Fair 2022, this time with Enotria&Coe presenting the products of Thelema Mountain Vineyards of Stellenbosch, South Africa. Our speaker today was Thomas Webb, Director of Thelema. 

The family now owns 180 hectares of land and does not plan to increase its size, rather they want to focus on quality. He explained how the origin of their name comes from François Rabelais a monk, doctor and writer in sixteenth-century France who imagined a utopian abbey on the banks of the Loire. In stark contrast to the religious orders of his day, this community admitted both men and women and encouraged them to live together in great luxury. This was the Abbey of Thélème, which ultimately lent its name to our vineyard on the slopes of the Simonsberg Mountain: Thelema. (from their website)

I asked about how the various ethnicities of South Africa are getting involved in the wine industry, but the answer is more than in earlier times but not much. Wine was not part of the traditional culture of the Ndebele, Xosa, Zulu...

They use thermal imaging of the vineyard to monitor maturity and decide when to pick at the exactly perfect moment. Which means picking at different places on different days.

thermal imaging of Thelema vineyards

They use screw caps, they believe it will allow for more homogeneous aging in the bottle.

Here is my notes from their best wines tasted today:

Thelema Chardonnay 2011
Pressed in steel tanks and fermented in French oak barrels.

A mature wine, round and complex, with a perfect balance.

Score 93.

Thelema Chardonnay 2018

Still quite fresh and fruity, moderate length.  Definitely needs more time in the bottle.

Score 87.

Thelema Cabernet Sauvignon 2001

De-stalked, manual sorting of berries, crushed in steel then pressed and left for 20 months in French barrels, 50-50 new and old. Incredible fresh for a 21-year-old wine.

Ready now, but can benefit for a longer period in the bottle to round the tannins a bit further.

Score 90

Thelema Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Incredibly, this is smoother than 2001, ready now.

Score 93.

Thelema Rabelais 2015

Cab sauvignon 80%, petit verdot 15%, merlot 5%.

Perfect marriage of fruit and structure. Excellent balance, length and complexity. Ready now.

Score 95

Thelema Rabelais 2019

Same grapes as 2015 but no merlot. A tad disappointing after tasting the wonderful 2015.

Score 87