The Barbeito company was founded in 1946 by Mario Barbeito on the island of Madeira. On the one hand, he relied on vintage wines (as a financial cushion), but also produced simple Madeira wines. Ricardo Freitas Diogo has been running the business in the third generation since the mid-1990s. Today, the Barbeito company sets itself apart from the competition, among other things, by almost completely dispensing with the addition of caramel as a factor affecting color and taste.
Last week I drank a glass of very good Madeira from a bottle my grandfather opened 25 years ago.
Ricardo Diego Freitas, Barbeito boss
This preserves the originality of Madeira, this very special specialty that can hardly be compared to the dessert wines that seem to be related, such as port and sherry from the continent. Madeira is particularly suitable as an aperitif. Similar to port wine, the fermentation of Madeira wine is interrupted by adding high-proof brandy. As a result, not all the sugar ferments and the wine retains a corresponding sweetness. Another hallmark is the succinct acidity that generally results from the base wines (volcanic soils with a low pH) and specifically from Barbeito due to the purchase of the grapes just before the usual ripeness. The alcohol content is between 17 and 22 percent. The special feature of Madeira wine is five to eight months of storage at elevated temperatures of up to 75 degrees Celsius. This used to happen in wooden barrels in the heat under a tin roof, but today it is mostly done artificially in a heatable tank. As a result, Madeira wine has an extremely long shelf life and even an opened bottle can stand for months without the wine going bad. Madeira wine is essentially made from five white vines: Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, Terrantez and Malvasia. Tinta Negra Mole joins them in the red area.
On the island there is a clear separation of cultivation and processing: the producers receive the grapes from the hundreds of small farmers on the island, whose plots are rarely larger than a typical home garden. In any case, this island offers few suitable areas for cultivation, which are then planted either with grapes, bananas or sugar cane.
The typical grape varieties of the island are the white Sercial, Verdelho, Boal, Terrantez and Malmsey (Malvasia), as well as the red Tinta Negra Mole.
Manufacturer: Vinhos Barbeito, Estrada da Ribeira Garcia, Parque Empresarial de Câmara de Lobos, Lote 8, 9300-324 Câmara de Lobos, Portugal
