For The Love Of Port

I will keep this as a "sticky" topic all month, meaning it will stay at the very top of the Madeira Forum.

You may choose just one, (like a Lay's Potato Chip) or put together a short list of your faves so far. Given that the whole month of June is part of the first half of 2009, this will remain in place until then.

I think it would be great to see which you've enjoyed the most.

I have a feeling some of you may include items tasted on the recent Fortification Tour, while others will report a few from the Leacock's tasting this weekend.

It may even entice Reidar Anderson to join in the discussion as he has only been lurking here over the past several weeks. We'd love to have him participate here more. Peter too and lots of others who only seem to read and not post, yet we know you're drinking some bodacious Madeira!

In Seattle, the 08 D'Oliveria Boal and the 05 Verdelho.
In Madeira, the Blandy's 1920 Boal and the Barros Sousa Doce Extra Reserva (this was the one with some Malvasia from Faja dos Padres)
I'm expecting a lot from Leacocks wines from the Rare Wine Co. this weekend.

Where do I begin:

1944 Justino's Sercial (cask sample)
1934 Justino's Verdelho
Manuel Eugenio Fernandez More Than 40 Years Old Verdelho
1968 Blandy's Verdelho (cask sample)
1920 Blandy's Bual
1968 D'Oliveira's Bual

hehe - guilty as charged
So far the best Madeira I had in 2009 was a Harveys Superior Old Malmsey. Bought out of curiosity at auction I expected little to nothing grom that old blend, but -WOW- what a postive surprise. Obviously a blend with a lot of old Madeira in it, sweet, complex, multi-layered and so much fun to drink. One more bottle left
Peter

Unfortunately, I have not been able to attend the events held on the west coast and I remain in the virtual madeira desert of central Florida (Bern's in Tampa being the oasis).

Therefore, I will list all of the madeiras I have tasted this this year (a very short list indeed) in order of preference:
1 - 1937 D'Olivera Sercial (a very elegant wine, my first vintage sercial)
T2 - 1929 Barbeito Verdelho (I think I will stick to bual for mid-sweetness)
T2 - n/v Broadbent 10 year Malmsey (juicy, but not too sweet)
3 - RWC Historic Series New York Malmsey (perhaps a distant 3rd)

I am anxious to read many reviews of the Leacock event and to hear information about a similar event planned in New York.

Joe D'Achille
Orlando

Hi Joe,

For the past few years, I've held fun Madeira tastings on both coasts at restaurants in DC, SF and NY. It is called the MADEIRA ROAD SHOW. You probably can Google it or search this Forum and come up with info. These are announced in the newsletter and fill up quickly as they are limited to 14 guests in addition to the host (me) and the guest (co-moderator Mannie Berk). There may be one in November in NYC. The basis is everyone must bring one great bottle and parlays that into tasting 16 of the similar high quality. Dinner is the only cost beyond any transportation and hotel expenses that we have.


That said, I now have to figure out my own favorite Madeira(s) from the 1st half of the year. I am very much enjoying reading other's "best of" experiences so far this year.

Calling Reidar, Marco, Heather, Andy, Glenn and others who were at the 2009 Gala, because even if they had not had a single bottle elsewhere, I know they all enjoyed some very solid bottlings from that event ... yet I am positive they've all had other fine bottlings too.

Considering I went on the Fortification Tour this year, I was finally able to taste many more madeira's than I normally could. Hopefully I'll be able to attend a Madeira Road Show so that my 2nd half of 2009 will have some new top tastings.

In Madeira:
1934 Justino's Verdelho
Fernandes More (Than) 40 Years Old Verdelho (bottled in 2002)
1920 Blandy's Boal
1968 D'Oliveiras Boal
1983 Fernandes Verdelho from cask (it tasted much older than it was, and it was almost 3pm and we hadn't eaten lunch so take that into account)

Geez, it looks like I copied from David, well he was on the same trip and clearly has good taste.

Looking at my tasting notes made me realize I like the Verdelho style probably best or right there with Boal.

Eric,

I was wondering if we were going to ever see you come back to visit us. Nice to have you post again!

I hope you enjoyed this year's Fortification Tour and that your blood sugar is back to normal by now.

Thanks for the well thought out list and I hope in time, you might even post some tasting notes, which would be great.

Honestly, I think that 1983 Fernandes Bros. was mighty fine too and I am in lockstep agreement that it showed the characteristics of a much older bottling. They do such a nice job. As good as lunch was, I had a ton of fun between that meal and dinner too, in Seixal's surrounds. Dinner wasn't half bad either.

Don't be a stranger. :hello:

This year I tasted Madeira for the first time. My favorites have been the 1922 D'Oliveira Bual and the 1900 D'Oliveira Moscatel. I want to try the 1875 D'Oliveira Malvasia next. Anyone have recent tasting notes or views on this one?

Roy Hersh wrote:Calling Reidar, Marco, Heather, Andy, Glenn and others who were at the 2009 Gala, because even if they had not had a single bottle elsewhere, I know they all enjoyed some very solid bottlings from that event ...

Guilty as charged. :)

I'm not really a Madeira lover, but there were some really good ones at the 2009 Gala. My favorite of the group was the 1905 D'Oliveiras Verdelho simply because it had the most pleasing palate for me. I know that Roy (and others) really love the Fernando Brothers More Than 40 Years Old Verdelho, but to me the two couldn't be more different. The Fernando Brothers' version is bright and very acidic, while the '05 D'Oliveiras seemed to me to be much more subtle and nuanced. Or maybe it was just less acidic.

I was surprised that I liked the '05 D'Oliveiras the best because it was a Verdelho, and I really expected to like the '07 D'Oliveiras Malvazia or the '00 D'Oliveiras Moscatel the best based on sweetness. But it was not to be... the '05 came out the clear winner for me.

Enough madeira porn about 19th century vintages and private wines available only in remote Madeiran villages. My favorite madeira tasted in the first half of 2009 was Barbeito Terrantez reserve. This seems to be mid way in sweetness between the MWA, Justino's, and Broadbent styles on the one hand and D'Oliveira's on the other. I wish i could buy a couple cases for daily drinking, but the label says only 480 bottles were produced and RWC doles them out parsimoniously. At least I have three left.

1) 1875 Barbeito Malmsey

2) 1908 D’Oliveira Bual

3) 1969 D’Oliveira Sercial

(*I tasted them just two days ago, but perhaps we are still close enough to the half-year mark...)

Jonathan,

I hope you will grace us with tasting notes on these exceptional Madeira bottlings that you were fortunate enough to try. Please start your own thread for that.

Will just mentioned a rarity , and non-vintage...

In Alex Liddells book on page 201 it is mentioned Blandy's 10 year
old Terrantez from 1997..

I read that when I bought the book in 2000 and in 2001 when I crossed the Swedish border to buy some Madeira there, I found two bottles in their state owned monopoly shop.. I asked if they could get more. They said yes, there were about 12 left around Sweden.

Long story short. I picked up all the rest at a later date..

This spring I finished one of the last four in my stock.. Just excellent like most terrantez...From a viking's viewpoint...

I want to try the 1875 D'Oliveira Malvasia next. Anyone have recent tasting notes or views on this one?

I have had this on several occasions. Although the 1875 Malvasia by Barbeito is very good, this is an exceptional bottle of Madeira and one that is not all that easy to find nowadays, or should I say ... it is getting to the point of being unaffordable.

I really like the D'Oliveiras version of th e1875 and would put it in my top 5 all-time favorite Malvasia/Malmsey bottlings.

Roy,

reading your mouthwatering TN about the 1839 Terrantez we tasted at your beautiful home in July 2009, I just had to take a sip of that wonderufl wine again. It is still doing very well and is just as good as it was a couple of months ago.

If I only knew what producer it came from... I would certainly go for a total case of this Terrantez.

Anyway this wine is definitely my top wine for the SECOND half of 2009

Peter

Peter,

It is still early to annoint the best Madeira tasted in the 2nd half of the year. You still have another 8+ weeks left and you never know what can happen around the holidays.

Agreed, it was an amazing Madeira and one that I am unlikely to be able to top either, but there's always

I am thinking of opening a special half bottle ... a 30 year old blend that was bottled on my birthday this year ... when visiting my friend Richard up in Edmonton in a couple of weeks. I'll keep you posted when I do!