It feels strange to talk about remote places in Madeira, especially nowadays when the infrastructure is top-notch. But there was a time when the parish of Curral das Freiras was pretty isolated – or perhaps rather, protected. It is…
Is there a future for the table wines of Madeira? 10 years ago that question was fully legitimate. Today it’s a no brainer. Like asking if the pope is catholic. And I’m pretty sure we’ve just seen the start…
I know what you think. That’s a mighty big book. The old log books at Blandy’s, with details going 200 years back in time on who ordered what and when, are pretty solid pieces. Not your bedtime read perhaps,…
It’s quite amazing when you think about it. Since the early 1940’s, the Borges house have had only two winemakers. Jorge Borges and Ivo Couto. The former for more than sixty years and Ivo now for 13 years. Talk…
One option is of course to just hope business will continue as usual. That the next generation of wine growers considers it natural delivering grapes to the producers. But what if not? What if they want to do something…
I have been a thousand places Seen a million faces Since the last time It’s been way too long since the last posting on the site. Almost three months. An eternity in cyberspace but not as long as between the…
Wine sites come and go, this one stays! It’s been around eight years now, Mad about Madeira, and there’s no intention to stop. Madeira is still the most breathtaking wine in my world & I’ll keep promoting it to…
There’s a first time for everything. Like producing a 30 Years Old Bual. But hopefully not a last time because Blandy’s initial attempt at the mentioned age level is nothing but brilliant. Many sequels please. No, it’s actually not…
I probably should focus totally on what’s in the glass, the 1877 Terrantez, a monumental wine and a memory for life. A wine bought by the company’s founder Henrique Menezes Borges shortly after he started the partidista business of…
“Dia da Madeira” (Madeira day) is celebrated on the 1st of July, the date when Portugal granted Madeira its autonomy back in 1976. It’s a perfect occasion to show you support the craftsmanship carried out by those involved in…
Madeira wine is on the move! 2015 saw Tinta Negra being promoted to a recommended grape and among other news, there was this new age category added to the blends – the 50 Years Old. A most welcome one as…
Are you visiting Madeira and Funchal? Would you like to learn more about Portuguese wines in general, including Madeira? Then you must visit Paixão do Vinho! Filipe Santos runs a wine distribution on Madeira. He is also the man…
Friends of Madeira. In this post, I’m taking the liberty to travel roughly 1,000 km northwest of Madeira – to the Açores. More specifically, to Pico. And yes, I’m Mad about the Açores as well. Thanks for following my…
During easter, at my most recent visit to Vinhos Barbeito, Ricardo Diogo presented a wine to me with the words; you can’t write about this. Not yet. Fine, easy to respect that, I thought. Then he poured the wine….
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