Another side to colheita madeiras

This is a colheita Madeira not made from the four "noble' varieties. This wine is based on the "chameleon" grape Tinta Negra Mole, blended with Complexa and Triunfo. Frasqueira (vintage) Madeiras can only be varietals of the four "noble" varieties and blends can only be colheitas. Tinta Negra Mole is considered the workhorse grape of Madeira, which can produce wines in the style of the noble varietals. On its own it produces pale sweet wines, so quite often it is blended with other grapes as in this case. Complexa is a crossing of a Castelao x Bouschet Petit with Muscat Hamburg, and produces wines of deeper colour and lower tannins than Tinta Negra Mole. Triunfo is a csimilar crossing to Complexa, being Castelao crossed with Muscat Hamburg.

What of the wine? A golden tea colour, the nose was sweet and smoky with hint of preserved bean curd (腐乳). The palate was sweet with ample vine fruit and nutty notes, with an acid nutty backbone running through to the finish. Nice!