Best Madeiran Beverage Types
This fortified wine produced in the volcanic Madeira Islands ranges from dry wines that are typically served as an aperitif to the ones high on the sweet scale that are usually enjoyed with desserts. Approximately 85% of Madeira is produced with the Tinta Negra Mole red grape, from which all of the different styles can be produced, from dry through sweet.
Other four major styles are each named after the predominant white grape variety that is used in the mix. From driest to sweetest those are, respectively: Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, and Malvasia. Madeira is famous for its unique winemaking process of wine heating, which produces a wine of exceptional durability.
THE BEST Madeira Fortified Wines
Pereira d'Oliveira Vinhos
D'Oliveiras Madeira Wines Matured over 10 years 2005
Concours Mondial de Bruxelles - Grande Médaille d'or 2019
Verdelho is a white Portuguese grape that is mostly grown on Madeira Islands, and which is often used in fortified Madeira wines. The grape, dry varietal wines, or blends produced from Verdelho are also common in the Azores, Dão, Spanish Galicia, and some new world wine regions - namely Australia.
Although the style of Verdelho wines may vary depending on the region, the best expressions are typically crisp, soft, full, and refreshing. In Portugal, the wines are usually herbal and mineral with notes of stone fruit, citrus, honeysuckle, and tropical fruit.
THE BEST Verdelho Wine Varieties
Justino's Madeira Wines
Justino’s Madeira Verdelho 10 Years Old
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold 2022
Justino's Madeira Wines
Justino’s Madeira Verdelho Colheita 1997
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold 2022
Poncha is a traditional cocktail from Madeira consisting of sugar cane spirit (aguardente de cana), fresh citrus juice, and honey. The drink is traditionally made with lemons, though modern variations often opt for oranges, tangerines, or other fruit.
Poncha is made by mixing lemon juice and honey and then adding aguardente. Optionally, citrus fruit can be muddled with honey, and the drink is then topped with sugar cane spirit and citrus juice. The ingredients are traditionally mixed with a wooden muddler called caralhinho or mexelote.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Nikita is an ice cream cocktail that hails from Madeira. It is made with a combination of ice cream, fresh pineapple, pineapple juice, and typically beer or white wine. Most versions opt for either beer or wine, but some mix both. This cocktail can be made in a blender—this will ensure creamier texture—by simply adding all the ingredients and blending until smooth.
Another option is to put all the ingredients in a large container and use a mexelote—a wooden muddler used to make the popular poncha cocktail—to muddle and mix all the elements until the drink is smooth and creamy. The drink is poured into glasses and comes garnished with a pineapple slice.
Sidra da Madeira is a cider made from the natural fermentation of fresh apple juice, sometimes mixed with pear, from traditional and other varieties exclusively grown on Madeira Island. It showcases a unique blend of colors, aromas, and flavors, with a notable freshness attributed to its particular acidity.
The natural sugars in the apples and potentially pears are converted to alcohol through fermentation. This process typically occurs using the natural yeasts present on the fruit itself or within the fermentation containers, resulting in a cider with a minimum alcohol content of 5% ABV.
Sercial is a white Portuguese grape variety best known for its use in dry Madeira wines. The term Sercial is also used for this particular style of Madeira wine. The origin of the variety remains unclear, but it is most likely a native Portuguese grape.
Sercial is finicky to grow and its plantings on Madeira are limited. The main characteristic of Sercial is its high acidity. The wines can be slightly harsh when young, but they have excellent aging potential. They are aromatic, crisp, and citrusy.
As they age, they attain a distinctive nutty aroma and remain lively and bright.
THE BEST Sercial Wine Varieties
Justino's Madeira Wines
Justino's Madeira Sercial Colheita 1997
Frankfurt International Trophy - Grand Gold 2022
Best Madeiran Beverage Producers
Established in 1820, Pereira D’Oliveira today is run by Anibal, Luis and Filipe D’Oliveira, the fifth generation of the family and the direct descendants of Joao Pereira d’Oliveira who founded the company. Their philosophy is to produce wines of the highest possible quality with experience acquired over two centuries of wine making.
Above all their aim is to produce wines of exceptional balance – powerful and textured with wonderful aromatic complexity, yet balanced by freshness.
AWARDS
Berlin Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2024, 2023, 2022, 2019, 2018
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
IWSC- International wine & spirit competition - Gold
2019
BEST Pereira d'Oliveira Vinhos Wines
AWARDS
IWSC- International wine & spirit competition - Gold
2023, 2022, 2019
Frankfurt International Trophy - Grand Gold
2022, 2018, 2017
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022, 2018
BEST Justino's Madeira Wines Wines
AWARDS
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022, 2021
Decanter World Wine Awards - Platinum
2024, 2022, 2021, 2019
Decanter World Wine Awards - Best in Show
2021, 2019
BEST Henriques & Henriques Wines
The Blandy family is unique in being the only family of all the original founders of the Madeira wine trade to still own and manage their own original wine company. Throughout its long history on the island, the family has played a leading role in the development of Madeira wine.
Members of the family continues to live on Madeira, maintaining a tradition that goes back to 1811: 2 centuries of fine wine production.
AWARDS
IWSC- International wine & spirit competition - Gold
2024, 2019
Asia Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
BEST Blandy's Wines
AWARDS
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
BEST H.M. Borges Wines
AWARDS
IWSC- International wine & spirit competition - Gold
2023
Decanter World Wine Awards - Platinum
2019
Decanter World Wine Awards - Best in Show
2017
BEST Cossart Gordon Wines
AWARDS
IWSC- International wine & spirit competition - Gold
2024, 2023, 2022, 2020
BEST D'Oliveiras Wines
AWARDS
Asia Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
BEST Miles Madeira Wine Wines
Best Madeiran Beverages
This harvest of Madeira wine was selected in a year of excellent production and ensured with quality control of the grapes, their ideal maturation, and a winemaking process that combines our art and centuries-old experience, with modern technology.
This traditional Madeira aged in old oak barrels at the appropriate temperature, until the year of bottling. It is recommended to keep the bottle in a vertical position, protected from extremes of cold or heat, and served at a temperature close to 20º.
AWARDS
Berlin Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2024, 2023, 2019
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
D'Oliveiras Boal is a renowned Madeira wine known for its rich, semi-sweet character. Made from the Boal grape variety, this wine typically offers a balanced sweetness with a refreshing acidity, making it versatile and appealing to many palates. With aging, D'Oliveiras Boal develops complex flavors of caramel, dried fruits, and nuts, along with the distinctive earthy notes typical of Madeira wines.
This wine is often aged for decades in wooden casks, which enhances its depth and long finish, making it a great choice for sipping on its own or pairing with desserts and cheeses.
AWARDS
Berlin Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2023, 2022, 2018
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
Terrantez is one of the rarest grapes, saved from the brink of extinction. 50 year-old Terrantez wines are as rare as it gets. Aged for over 50 years in old oak barrels and bottled on demand. An exceptionally rare wine. Rich, ethereal and very complex.
Intriguing scents of musk and autumn woods. Medium dry. Tobacco, spices, cigar box, tea leaves and iodine notes. Finish with mineral and bracing acidity.
AWARDS
Decanter World Wine Awards - Best in Show
2020, 2018
AWARDS
Decanter World Wine Awards - Best in Show
2021, 2019
AWARDS
Berlin Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2024
Portugal Wine Trophy - Grand Gold
2022
Blandy’s Terrantez showcases a mahogany gold color with greenish nuances. Its intense aroma stands out with toasted exotic wood notes, smoked dried fruits, and aged malt whiskey, offering a unique complexity and richness. On the palate, it begins with a sweet attack, quickly revealing itself to be fresh and powerful.
Saline notes are evident, providing an invigorating and challenging tasting experience, with each approach offering new dimensions. The long finish leaves intense spice and old brandy notes.
AWARDS
Decanter World Wine Awards - Best in Show
2023
This Madeira has a pure and brilliant pale amber color. An intriguing, elegant and complex aroma of musk and wood with delicate notions of honey. The old Reserve, more than 40 years old Madeira Terrantez, is semi-dry with flavors of nuts and minerals.
The aftertaste is refreshing. Walnut bread with manchego cheese and Spanish ham such as jamon de Serrano. Roasted duck with dark chocolate gravy.
AWARDS
International Wine Challenge - Champion of Champions’ Trophy 2020
2020
AWARDS
Decanter World Wine Awards - Best in Show
2016
AWARDS
Falstaff - 100
AWARDS
Concours Mondial de Bruxelles - Grande Médaille d'or
2019
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