I’ve never heard that Sercial and Palomino are the same. They may be, but Palomino comes in different iterations, just like the Pinot grapes. And in the Canary Islands, one of them is called Listan. And it’s not a super high-acid grape as a rule.
This was determined only a few years ago. Yes, very interesting because Madeira and Sherry as so different acidity wise.
Do you have any sources for this? I’d love to read more. I tried to Google some stuff, but nada.
I mean it just sounds really odd. I’ve had different Palominos from all over the Iberian peninsula + Canary islands and it is always very low in acidity and rather neutral in flavor profile.
Sercial, on the other hand, is known as the highest-acid variety in Madeira and also a variety known for high acidity - for example known as Esgana Cão, a “dog strangler” in the mainland Portugal, because it keeps its bracing acidity even when very ripe. Doesn’t sound like Palomino at all.
That’s what I thought. There has been a lot of DNA research on Palomino and it’s pretty clearly Listan, but I haven’t found anything about Sercial, which is also known as Bucelas, Douro, Esgana Cão, Esganinho, Esganiso and a few other things.
I learned this from the IVBAM, the Madeira Wine Institute (and embroidery and wickerwork). I’ll have to look at my records to find the sources.
I have had 100 year old Massandra muscat that was mind bendingly good. Just sayin.
Those older Massandras can be mind-boggingly spectacular wines. However, they often aren’t that clear with the grape varieties they use, so I’ve no idea what grape varieties the ones I’ve had were made from. The oldest I’ve had was 1931 Tokay Ai-Danil.
But on the topic relating to Muscat - I’ve had a Muscat Madeira from 1900 that was otherworldly. Plus tons of great Setubal Moscatels. So Muscat is a grape variety in its own class when talking about spectacular fortified wines. Definitely eligible for the “noble” title.
Discovered my notes from IVBAM. I was incorrect, it was not Sercial but Listrao that is genetically the same as Palomino. But the point is still the same, that Listrao is not a low acid wine on Maderia. All the grapes, indeed all the fruit in general, have much higher acidity than elsewhere. In Jerez, Palomino is often acidified but on Maderia the fruit is naturally high in acid. The new company, Madeira Vintners have started producing Listrao again. I’ve tasted a cask sample that is promising and some bottles of Artur Barros e Souza are still floating around.
Yeah, well, that makes sense. After all, Listrao is pretty close to Listán Blanco and all the other Listán synonyms, so one could easaily guess it from that already. Furthermore, “Listrao” is already a synonym for Palomino Fino in its Wikipedia article, so no real news there.
It also makes sense, because Sercial is in no way similar to Palomino. Of course Palominos planted in cooler climates and higher altitudes can produce some higher-acidity wines than those from the hot, low-altitude vineyards of Jerez, but their flavors are still much more neutral compared to the more lemony notes of Sercial.