Justino Madeira Rainwater

Madeira will be a pleasant new discovery for many U.S. wine lovers. But was once the most popular wine in America... some 200+ years ago, when our nation's founders drank it at parties, at lunch, at dinner, at most anytime, really.  

It is, perhaps, the best thing to drink with winter deserts, pairs nicely with cheeses and nuts, and works perfectly with yams, roasted squash, and pumpkin or pecan pies!

History

All Madeira is from Portugal. Specifically, a series of small Portuguese islands off the coast of Africa, the largest of which is called Madeira. The wine starts out as regular wine but is then oxidized and maderized (cooked) - something originally occuring while the wine made its way around the globe on sailing ships while stored in oak casks in the heat of summer. Imagine thinking your wine was ruined only to discover people loved the product!

Today, the wine can be maderized for years before benig cooled and stored until release, sometimes decades later, sometimes centuries later! If you ever see an age indication on a Madeira, it won't be a vintage date, as they are blends of multiple vintages. But you may see an indicator such as "10-Year" or "20-Year", and this indicates the average age of the wines in the bottle.

As the tale is told, the "Rainwater" style of Madeira was another happy accident. A barrel of Madeira was left off the cart headed for the docks and was discovered open after a rain storm. The producer found the diluted wine to their liking, and decided to create a new, lighter style. Today the producers of Rainwater just use tap water, which may seem less romantic but frees them up from a whimsical and unreliable Mother Nature!

Types of Madeira

 I don't know about you, but I find it easier to memorize random things by using the first letter in each word. In this case, I remember the acronym SVBM, which is the order of sweetness for Madeira wines:

Sercial: Dry and tangy with nutty flavors and hints of bitter nut skins. 

Verdelho: Medium to off-dry with a bigger mouthfeel.

Bual (or Boal): A sweet wine of medium richness that has been the standard in England for cenutries.

Malmsey: The sweetest and richest style.