Earlier this year, I noticed on FTLOP’s Forum, a thread started by a Madeira loving friend in Wadersloh, Germany. His name, Dr. Wolf Peter Reutter, who I first met in Seattle a dozen years ago, in January 2007. His brother Hans lived nearby at the time and worked for Microsoft, and we met as well. [...]
There are at least six, probably seven (and maybe still more!) known Terrantez wines from 1795. There is the 1795 Terrantez of Barbeito, the 1795 Terrantez of Companhia Vinicola da Madeira, the Terrantez of F. F. Ferraz (probably the same wine like the “Messias” wine in Alex Liddell’s book “Madeira”), a 1795 Terrantez possibly from [...]
The 1977 Port vintage was heralded from the outset. It had been seven years since the excellent 1970 vintage and 14 years since the outstanding 1963 vintage. The market, and Port enthusiasts, were ready. I’ve always been a big fan of the 1977 vintage and have had a good representation of the vintage in [...]
Is now the time to end the notion of "generally declared” Vintage Ports? For the past couple of centuries, it has been common practice for the Port trade to declare Vintage Port three times per decade based on the quality and quantity of excellent grapes harvested in a given year. There have been very few [...]
After five years of concentrating on one Madeira grape at a time: Terrantez, Verdelho, Bual, Malvasia and Sercial respectively, it was time for a change of pace. To put it in perspective, all of the nearly 100 bottles we’ve tasted under the same roof in NYC; have combined for a staggering total of circa 17,000 [...]
FTLOP is proud to introduce you to Ana Almeida. Here is Ana’s story: 1. Please share some information about your life and how you wound up working in the Port and Douro wine trade and at what age? I grew up in the smallest AOC in Portugal, Carcavelos, in Lisbon’s suburbs where fortified wine [...]
A quick aside, Colheita Madeira unlike Colheita Port (the latter of which requires 7 years in wood) but with Madeira, Colheita rules have required a minimum of six years in neutral cask, since the category was created in the early-mid-1990s. In the new regulations passed in 2015, that was changed to where Colheita Madeira now [...]
The late ripening Sercial grape is unquestionably the driest (up to 1.5% RS) and often the most crisp style of Madeira, with lemon, grapefruit and nutty nuances along with mineral characteristics. Madeira’s Sercial grape is noted for its rarity, as well as its fresh, razor-sharp -- some would say, “searing” – acidity, hints of VA and delicate mouthfeel as [...]
This was our 4th consecutive year of exploring the various cultivars of Madeira. Having previously surveyed Terrantez, Verdelho and Boal grapes, the natural progression from dry to sweet, led us to the marvelous Malvasia grape. The perfect ambience, spacious banquet room, excellent food and service staff at NYC’s Del Posto restaurant, has continued to deliver [...]
This my twentieth year since first visiting the Douro, has provided me pause for thought. While looking back on two decades of visits to Northern Portugal, I’ve taken time to consider all of the people that I have met in the Port and Douro wine trade. It has also allowed me to sit back and [...]
