Fortified Wines

10 Years Old Reserve Madeira from Tinta Negra Mole

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Câmara-de-Lobos – Main growing area of Tinta Negra Mole © IVBAM

Madeira always show a typical malty-caramel taste. This is caused by the heat treatment of the wine, which causes the sugar in the wine to caramelize. The simplest and cheapest type of heat treatment is the method called Cuba de Calor, in which the wine is heated to 40 – 50 ° C using simple heating coils. The most expensive type of warming, called Canteiro, which lasts up to 20 years, is reserved for better qualities. It takes place in the attics of warehouses in barrels of various sizes.

Different grape varieties are used for the production of a Madeira, whereby a basic distinction is made between the noble grape varieties such as Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, Malmsey and Terrantez and the less noble varieties such as Complexa or Tinta Negra Mole. 

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Taylor’s pale red 10 Year Old Tawny

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Theoretically, a Tawny is a port wine which is aged for a longer time in the barrel until its red color changes to amber (tawny), which means the wine becomes a Tawny. This usually starts after about 6 years of barrel maturation. However, since port wines of different ages are always blended for a Tawny, as in the case of a 10 year old tawny, the indication of age is not very precise – but approximately true. However, all Tawny with age 10, 20, 30 or over 40 year old are checked and released by the IVDP (Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e do Porto). … Read more ...

Vino Naranja – not an Orange Wine

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Bitter Oranges © Dimitris Vetsikas Pixabay

Vino Naranja comes from Huelva, or rather from the DO (Denominación Origén) Condado de Huelva wine region, which, lying on the Atlantic coast of southern Spain’s Andalusia, has a long history of winegrowing. Given its location between the Portuguese border and the Jerez sherry area, it is no wonder that there still wines like Condado Pálido and Condado Viejo, which are comparable to Fino respectively Oloroso, are produced using the Solera process,

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Multi-layered – Martha’s Colheita Port

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© monica749 Pixabay

Many wine drinkers know Vintage Port, whereas Colheita is largely unknown, and only few know which port wine style it is. Its brownish color identifies it as a Tawny type port and since the Portuguese word Colheita means harvest, a Colheita Port is a Tawny that comes from the grapes of a single vintage. A Vintage Tawny, so to speak, just like the Ruby typ Vintage port from a single vintage. But while the dark to black-red port wines of the Ruby type are aged in large barrels with little contact with atmospheric oxygen, the mostly amber to mahogany-colored

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Malvasia – Aromas from Sicily

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There are more than 20 different varieties of Malvasia – white, red and reddish, the last called gris or pink. In Sicily and its islands, the two varieties Malvasia Bianca Siciliana and Malvasia delle Lipari are the most common. The Malvasia Terre Sicilia Vino Liquoroso IGP of Cantine Pellegrino, which we have tasted, is produced to 100% with Malvasia Bianca. The grapes for the wine originate from vines that grow in the province of Trapani, from sea level up to 300 meters above sea level, on sandy and partly clayey soils.

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Multiple varied Vin Doux Naturel

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View of Banyuls-sur-Mer

Hans had invited to a wine tasting and announced to offer only one or two small courses – however, there were much more courses. Hans just returned from a journey through Roussillon and the Rhone Valley, where he had bought a variety of Vin Doux Naturel. For the dessert, a chocolate cake with honey olive jelly, he opened some of them.

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Macvin – Tradition of the French Jura

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Macvin Blanc du Jura Château d'Arlay

The name Macvin is more reminiscent of Scotland than the French wine-growing region of Jura, where the Macvin production has a long tradition. It is said that there has been a wine named Maquevin or Marc-vin already in the ninth century. The name Marc-vin indicates that Macvin consists of the french brandy Marc and wine, which means that it is a alcohol-fortified wine.

However, this is only partially true, because the Macvin is made from must according to the AOP rules. This does not exclude that the must already may have started fermentation. The Macvin may be red, rosé or white. In the red and rosé versions, only the … Read more ...

1963 Vin Doux Naturel – jewel of Puig-Parahÿ

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The Domaine Puig-Parahÿ is known for its Vin Doux Naturel (VDN). Nearly 50 vintages of Vin Doux Naturel, which are stored in Passa in the cellars of the Roussillon-based winery, are marketed. Many of these VDN date back to the last century. For Parker’s Wine Advocat, David Schildknecht had tasted just under a dozen of these VDN Rancios by Puig-Parahÿ from vintage vintages from 1875 to 1998 in 2009. They have been rated with 90 to 98 points, the majority with more than 95 points, on average with almost 94 points.

Ripened VDN are in high demand, especially those of Puig-Parahÿ, which is reflected in the price. … Read more ...

Elegant Vin Doux Naturel – Muscat de St.-Jean de Minervois

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If you now and then like to drink a glass of fruity sweet wine, but the wine does not last long even in the fridge, you should try a Vin Doux Naturel (VDN) of Muscat grapes, which lasts much longer than most other sweet wines because of the way how it is produced.

The Muscat Vin Doux Natural, produced in different appellations, are almost all made from the grape Muscat Blanc de Petits Grains, as well as all all VDN originating from the Languedoc. The Muscat de St-Jean-de-Minervois, which we have tasted, originates from about 300 m high vineyards in the northeast of the Minervois. In these locations, … Read more ...

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