Blandy’s Madeira Wine Lodge

During the evening of the 3^rd we had shortlisted the key Madeiran attractions we’d like to see. There were far more than we would have time for and so Madeira was definitely put on the ‘must come back to’ list. Some online research helped with opening times and locations but we really needed to visit a Tourist Information Office, both to pinch some maps, and to also find out what would be open. We had, once again, arrived just as there was about to be a public holiday!

Fitting the new VHF aerial for the AIS   

The other ‘vital’ task was that ‘somebody’ was itching to fit the new VHF aerial, for which Nicky had successfully haggled, so that we could get the AIS up and running properly again. After a little bit of soldering to fit one of the plugs it was time for another, and hopefully final, trip up the mast to install the new aerial. With a cruise ship having recently docked and disgorged its passengers into the immediate area, Nicky’s hoisting me half way up the mast seemed to provide the entertainment for more than the average number of harbour visitors. Once fitted there was an instant improvement in our AIS reception; hopefully job done.

Thereafter, a spot of lunch led us nicely on to one of the attractions that we needed to do before the Republic Day Bank Holiday on 5 October – Blandy’s Madeira Wine Lodge.

The Blandy’s family has been producing Madeira since 1811. Much of the wine is still matured in oak barrels on 3 different floors in their wine lodge, though some spends its life at the new factory in Caniçal. The top floor is the hottest and the wine spends various amounts of time at each level to get the aging right.

We had booked our tour online and turned up at the allotted time. The lodge is very attractive and once we had taken a look at the courtyard, the old wine press and got our tickets, we made our way into the waiting room.

These were wonderful rooms with wooden cabinets filled with hundreds of bottles of vintage Madeira in its various forms.

Once our fellow tourists had gathered, the tour started in the area used by the coopers. It was in use until just a few years ago and Blandy’s still employ 4 coopers full time. Interestingly they don’t make any new barrels now and haven’t for years. The coopers’ job is to repair the barrels which are reused and have been for centuries.

The lowest floor has the largest barrels, or vats, but the middle floor is more interesting because the barrels are smaller and we saw far more different vintages. It was far more atmospheric and the smell in the room was just amazing from the small amount of wine which evaporates through the oak; the equivalent of a whiskey distellery’s “angel’s share”. The oldest Madeira still aging here is from 1948. The barrel originally had 1136 litres in it but through evaporation and the occasional tasting it now contains 1099 litres.

Madeira is made from up to 6 different grape varieties and we learnt that they are Malmsey, Bual, Verdelho, Sercial, Terrantez and Tinta Negra. Each has a different character and are grown by different vineyards around the island which then sell their crop to Blandy’s to add to their own vineyards’ production and to match the demand for the wine. The grape juice used to be carried down the steep hills in goat skins and the process of gathering the grapes and then crushing them was very much a whole family task except, that is, for the crushing. For some reason stamping on the grapes was a task reserved for the men. Nowadays, the crops are moved by car and small vans to Blandy’s new processing facility on the outskirts of Caniçal.

An old wine press   

There are several Madeira wines, differing in sweetness and grape blends. The fermentation process is stopped when the particular wine is at the right level of sweetness. Unlike Port where brandy (aged in barrels) is added, here alcohol distilled from the wine is added which, as well as killing the fermentation yeast, also fortifies the wine.

Once the aging process starts, the wines and not the barrels are moved around. When space becomes available in the barrels on the middle floor, the wine is pumped up into them from the vats on the ground level. When the time is right, the wine is pumped into barrels on the top floor and here, where the temperature is highest, the wine is given its longevity. Unlike Port, when a bottle of Madeira is opened it stays good for at least a year. In the bottle it can last for centuries. Indeed, its longevity in the bottle is such that you are advised to store the bottles upright because the wine can outlive the cork. Another distinction from Port is that Madeira does not mature in the bottle. The heating and maturing when the wine is in the barrels sets the flavour.

As you would expect of any business, meticulous records have been kept of the orders for the wine. Winston Churchill was a particular fan of Madeira and the small museum room has letters from him and a variety of other celebrities and world leaders for their orders for pipes of the stuff and then subsequent letters recording their pleasure at receiving it.

After the tour of the lodge we were ushered into the tasting room where we sampled the sweetest Madeira, Malmsey, and a variation made from just Verdelho grapes. At the back of the bar area were bottles for sale of all types and vintages. It was very tempting to buy a bottle from each of our birth years but then we probably wouldn’t want to pull the cork from them! Instead, we also tried the driest variety, Sercial, and left very happily clutching a bottle of the 10 year aged version which will almost instantly be put to good use!

Funchal, Madeira, Portugal