TN: Abudarham Madeira Terrantez 1899... (short/boring)

WINE TALK
#1

Sue pulled this out to celebrate her 80’th BD last Thurs:

  1. Abudarham Madeira Terrantez (20%; CortiBros Exclusive) Abudarham & Filhos/Funchal 1899: Med.brown color; intense Madeira/coffee/toffee slight alcoholic/fumey very complex nose; pretty tart/acidic intense Madeira/coffee/toffee very complex bit smokey flavor w/ slight tannic bite; very long/lingering intense classic Madeira/coffee/toffee very complex finish that goes on & on; a very classic old Madeira that seems as young as a 1910; words don’t begin to describe the complexity you find in this wine; pretty incredible stuff.

A wee BloodyPulpit:

  1. The Terrantez grape is pretty near extinct in Madeira. Traditionally made in an off-dry style between Sercial and Verdelho. A very rare genre of Madeira.
    In the mid-'70’s, Darrell imported a selection of these Abudarham vintage Madeiras. At crazy/silly prices. My recollect is that this sold for around $30. We tasted thru them all & was blown away by their quality.
    Thanks for sharing this, Sue.
    Tom
1 Like
#2

Tom,
Actually the current laws state the sweetness level is between Verdelho and Boal, but back in 1899 there weren’t the regulations.
They’re increasing the acreage on the island. There’s about 2000 liters/year now in a good year.