The remarkable wines of Barbeito, the leading producer from Madeira
Ricardo Freitas is a third generation Madeira producer, and his family firm Barbeito is widely regarded as the top producer on the island.
The first vineyards on Madeira were planted in 1425. There’s mention of Malvasia Candida in 1480 and by then there were already lots of vineyards around Funchal. From the economic point of view it’s around 1670 that wine became important for the island, eventually becoming the most important economic activity of Madiera.
At the beginning Madeira wasn’t a fortified wine: spirit additions began in the middle of the 18th Century. It was known then as the wine of the Americans. There are statistics showing that close to 75% of the wine drunk in the USA in the second half of the 18th century was Madeira. Madeira still exists for the 75 years until 1825 when it was the most popular wine in the USA.
Madeira was shipped and suffered oxidation on the trips, and this was considered positive for the wines. Madeira now is much more oxidised than it was then: it used to be a Claret-style table wine and the slight oxidation made it easier to drink for everyone.
The Madeira business was dominated by the English, and they had a lot of privileges. The Portuguese government supported them and they dominated throughout the 18th and early 19th century. The wines were made by Portuguese vineyard owners, and the English were buying the wines and shipping them, mostly to the Americans. The first blenders in Madeira were the Americans, who had a deep knowledge of the wines. They sent letters with recipes and the English shippers went to the vineyards, bought wines and blended them, and then shipped the wines.
The geographic position of Madeira is important. All the ships from Europe crossing the Atlantic stopped in Madeira for their last supplies. All the empty space was filled with casks of wine from Madeira. Madeira was the second demarcated region in Portugal after Douro. The wines were classified in three quality levels: wines that could be exported, those for sailor’s consumption, and those to be consumed locally. And wines from the north of the island could never be mixed with wines from the south (thought of as the best wines).
Madeira had a huge, long black period of 100 years, says Ricardo, and especially between the 1940s and 1970s it was associated with bulk-shipped cooking wine. He still faced this in Barbeito when he worked in the company in the summer holidays. They were also involved in the bulk business, and in 1991 when he started full-time, they were the first company to stop doing bulk. They lived through their inventories, and they were running out. The bulk business means sometimes you lose money sending the wine, and if they had carried on with it they would have been bankrupt quickly. They decided to stop bulk, just keep their good customers, and then give themselves 12 years to recover everything and replenish their inventories, as well as buying old wines from other producers and growers to fill the cellar. Many changes that he made were without his mother’s knowledge. He says he was wasting so much time discussing ideas with her, and she kept saying be careful ten times a day, so he began making changes without telling her. It took five years to convince her they should stop adding caramel to the wines, and in 2001 he just did it without asking her. People in the company said that she would find out. But he said in six months she will find out and then we can’t go back, but she found out in 3 days.
Barbeito’s stock average is 1.2 million litres, and they sell 180-190 000 litres a year. It is a lot of money tied up in inventory, but it is the only way to have a good quality product. If Madeira isn’t high quality it’s not worth making, he says. The quality comes from ageing and the differences are in the blend.
In 2017 he started making some table wines, but it was because he wanted to prove to all the other still wine producers in the island that they were doing it the wrong way. A plant produces 2.5 kilos but you can’t make a still wine from these yields. He also has the best barrels, such as François Frères. But this flirtation with table wines was never intended to cover lower sales in the fortifieds. In the last 15 years he’s seen no decrease in fortified sales.
There was a big change in the mentality of all producers around the 1990s. They started seeing that only making bulk wine wouldn’t work: they began to stop bulk sales in 2001, a decade after Ricardo, who worked the niche markets before everyone else. Everyone is now working in the same direction, and now Madeira has a very good image, he says. There are just seven producers and they are working in the same direction, and the best moment for Madeira has been in the last five years.
‘In 1991 I thought Barbeito wines were very boring,’ he says. ‘The style of all companies was the same: very sweet, lacking acidity.’ Ricardo decided that his wines needed to be purer. ‘I created a new style in Madeira: it’s very pure.’ When he started the wines sold to consumers whose average age was 60; now it is 40.
The cheapest grapes are Tinta Negra at €1.2 per kilo, but Sercial and Malvasia sell for €2.4/kg. But Ricardo also pays 3 salaries a month for people to support the growers he buys from – this wouldn’t be necessary under normal circumstances but is caused by labour shortages on the island. It makes it expensive to make Madeira.
THE WINES
Barbeito Vinhas do Farrobo Bastardo 2022 Madiera, Portugal
10% alcohol. From the north side of the island, St George. It’s tough in terms of viticulture because this is humid and Bastardo (aka Trousseau) is a sensitive variety, so it needs picking before maximal maturity. 800 kg were harvested, and 482 bottles were made. This was fermented in stainless steel and then went to a 400 litre barrel. Pale cherry red in colour with some lovely aromatics of redcurrants. The palate is supple with nice red fruits and great acidity. There’s a sense of finesse and precision here: this is sappy and delicate with some herby notes. 94/100
Barbeito Vinhas de Lanço Vedelho 2020 DOP Madeirense, Portugal
This is a table wine made from Madeira grapes by the super talented Ricardo Diogo. It’s linear and fine with a mineral, stony quality. So fresh and expressive with taut acidity and a long, linear finish. There aren’t a lot of wines like this from Madeira, because there are only 550 hectares of grapes on the island, and 80% of this is Tinta Negra Mole. But Ricardo is showing the potential of the white grapes for making striking white wines with keen acidity and lovely intense flavours. 94/100
Rocim x Barbeito A Meias Verdelho Na Ânfora 2020 DOP Madeirense
11% alcohol. This is a collaboration between Ricardo Freitas and Pedro Ribeiro. Made with grapes from the north of the island, this spends a year in amphora. Wonderful aromatics with a hint of marmalade as well as ripe pear and lemon fruit. So fresh and expressive. The palate is tangy, fresh and vivid with keen acidity but also lovely ripe citrus fruit: there’s a generosity to the fruit which balances perfectly the acid. This is crystalline and mineral, with a slight saltiness here. So lovely: if only more than 600 bottles were made. 96/100
Barbeito Rainwater Reserva Medium Dry NV Madeira
Around 5 years of age. This is fresh, bright and juicy with nice citrus and apricot, as well as a hint of raisin, with a nice juicy complexity. 93/100
Barbeito Boal Reserva NV Madeira
This is around 5 years old. Complex, nutty and a bit waxy with lovely citrus drive. Has high acidity and nice intensity with notes of honey, almonds and a touch of orange peel. 93/100
Barbeito Sercial 10 Years Old NV Madeira
Lively, taut and fresh with nuts, wax, apple and marmalade with some apricot richness. Very lively with high acidity. Vibrant and complex with lovely intensity. 95/100
Barbeito Tinta Negra 2008 Madeira
Textured with nice sweet raisin and spice notes as well as some honey and nuts. Has freshness and acidity with good complexity. Spicy and fine and sweet, but superbly balanced. 95/100
Barbeito Bastardo Reserva NV Madeira
50% 2011, then the balance equal parts of 2009 and 2007. Complex, fresh and tangy with lovely citrus, cherry, wax and honey notes with nice fruitiness and also some complexity. So refined. 95/100
Barbeito Malvasia Cândida Reserva Especial NV Madeira
Complex, rich and sweet. Finely spiced with some raisin notes. Very powerful with some nice pear and apricot fruit. Layered and complex with nice freshness. 94/100
Barbeito O Escanção 40 Year Old Malvasia, Madeira
19% alcohol. Sweetly aromatic, this is complex and spicy with notes of lemon and raisin. Very fine, with sweetness but also nice acidity. Tight, spicy and linear and quite profound. 95/100
Barbeito Tres Amigos 50 Year Old Madeira NV Portugal
Very lively aromatics with spice and marmalade, old furniture and some resinous qualities. The palate is powerful and vivid with great acidity and intensity, showing high acidity under the nuts, wax, raisin, marmalade, spice and lemon notes. Very powerful and lively and really long. 97/100
Vinhos Barbeito Sercial Curtimenta Colheita 2014
This is the first skin-contact Sercial in Madeira. Just 1000 kg of grapes used here, with three months of skin contact after fortification. Once a week it was all mixed by hand. Then it was basket-pressed. Beautiful complexity on the nose: grapefruit, marmalade, pear and spice. The palate is concentrated, pure, fresh and intense with nice acidity and very fine spicy detail, with lime, apricot, marmalade and even a touch of honey. Some tannic structure here as well as acidity, giving a sense of freshness and brightness, as well as some sweetness. Complex for a young wine, and this has a long future ahead of it. There’s a salty minerality on the finish. 95/100
Vinhos Barbeito Vedelho Frasqueira 1981 Madeira
This comes from 35 000 litres of Madeira from an old family that had built up, but which were in danger of being destroyed by not being looked after properly. But the guy who built this up was also supplying Barbeito. He’d made his own wines, and so Ricardo used these high acidity wines (50%) with his own wines aged in his cellars (50%). The vineyards are located 150-200 m from the sea. His warehouse was next to the sea, and with the vineyards this gave the wines some salinity. Astonishing complexity on the nose. Has wax, pear, apple and spice, with old furniture and some honey notes. The palate is complex and intense with some structure to the powerful wood, furniture polish, spice and orange peel. It’s really powerful with high acidity, showing great complexity and focus. It’s sweet, but this is beautifully countered by some structure and keen acidity. Salty, intense and quite profound. So fresh. 98/100
Barbeito Araújo Malvasia 1895 Madeira
Brown with some green on the rim. Astonishing aromatics of nuts, lime, marmalade, wax and old furniture. The palate has some sweetness but also lovely savoury characters of nuts, lime and citrus peel, with spice and tart cherries. This has astonishing complexity and an eternal finish, and is truly remarkable. 99/100
Older notes:
Tasted in October 2008:
Veramar Boal Reserve
Dense, sweet and expressive with bright citrussy notes. Rich and full bodied. 89/100
‘VB’ Verdelho-Boal Lote 1
Complex spicy nose is sweet and full with a lively citrussy, tangerine-like edge. The fresh lemony palate is lively and complex. 93/100
Boal 10 Years Old Reserve
Waxy, complex nose is thrilling, nutty and expressive. The palate is just beautiful, with bright orange and citrus fruits, together with dried fruits, and some sweetness. 94/100
Malvasia 10 Years Old Reserve
Malvasia is often referred to as Malmsey in Madeira. This is sweet, fresh and complex with some nutty notes. Bright. 91/100
Sercial 10 Years Old Reserve
Complex, pungent, herby, citrussy, nutty nose. The palate is fresh, bright and tangy with some citrussy fruit. 93/100
Malvasia 20 Years Old Reserve Lote 7199
Deep, complex, intense nose leads to a super-concentrated, limey, spicy, broad palate with sweetness and acid in lovely tension. 93/100
Malvasia Special Reserve 30 Year Old
Deep orange colour. Madly complex nose is really thrilling, with orange, lemons, nuts and spice. The off-dry palate is viscous and super-concentrated with complex spice and citrus characters. Eternal finish. 95/100
Single Harvest 1997
Complex, herby, fresh, dense and lively. Delicious. 92/100
Malvasia Colheita 1994 Single Cask 232c
Very rich, intense and concentrated, with raisin, casky notes, herbs and citrus. Broad and quite sweet. 93/100
Boal 1982 Fransqueira
Complex nose showing old furniture, spice, nuts and herbs. Viscous, broad palate wit a nice citrussy finish. Thrillingly bright and expressive with a crazy long finish. 95/100
Tasted in May 2004:
Barbeito 1996 Single Harvest
This is made from the Tinta Negra Mole grape, and is the follow on from the hugely successful 1995. Lovely intense lemony, spicy nose is quite complex and savoury. The palate is fairly rich and vivid with spicy complexity and great intensity. Sweet but savoury at the same time; brilliant stuff. Very good/excellent 93/100 (about £15 for a half)
Barbeito Sercial Reserve 10 years old
Complex and spicy with a lifted lemony acid edge to the nose. Bright high-acid palate with lovely complexity. Fresh and nutty, vivid and rich. Really nice. Very good/excellent 92/100
Barbeito Boal Reserve Veramar
Slightly shy nutty nose with some subtle spice notes, too. The palate is rich and concentrated and has an unusual acidic edge. Very appealing and with great length. Quite sweet. Very good/excellent 90/100
Barbeito Boal Reserve 10 years old
Rounded, nutty caramel and spice nose is quite restrained. Nutty, open palate with unusual acidity and great concentration. Spicy, long finish. A thoughtful, complex wine that’s quite sweet. Very good/excellent 91/100
Barbeito 20 year old Malvasia
Complex, intriguing nose with nutty, spicy, caramelly notes. The palate is rich and quite sweet with good acidity. Quite powerful with a spicy, raisiny complexity dominating. Great balance and length here. Very good/excellent 94/100
Barbeito Verdelho 1980
Subtle, complex nose of crystalline fruits, spice and lemony lifted acidity. Very unusual complex palate showing high acidity and a nutty, lemony character. Interesting stuff. Very good/excellent 92/100
Barbeito Verdelho 1981 (cask sample)
Very complex intense, spicy nose with notes of tar, spice, caramel and fudge. The palate has lovely rich complexity with high acidity in an explosive mouthful of flavour. Quite lovely. Excellent 95/100
Barbeito Malvasia 1994 (cask sample)
This will be a single cask release. Very sweet spicy, toffee and caramel nose. Complex, sweet and spicy on the palate with some raisiny notes and good acidity. Nice spiciness. A rich, complex style. Very accessible with some woody notes. Very good/excellent 92/100
Barbeito Malvasia 1885
Orange brown. Lovely complex nose of sweet raisins, tar and spice – very beguiling. The palate is explosively rich with lovely acidity. Deep, complex and incredibly long with some caramel and spice. Breathtaking. Excellent 98/100
Barbeito Malvasia 1886
Profound, intense nose of tar and spice with some caramelly notes. The palate is explosively rich with great concentration, high acidity and complex flavours of caramel and tar. Great length. Excellent 96/100
Tasted in May 2003
Barbeito Single Harvest 1995
I’ve had this a number of times now. It’s made from unfashionable Tinta Negra Mole, a cross between Grenache and Pinot Noir that’s been grown on the island since the 19th century. Made in a medium-dry style, it has a lovely complex, spicy nose with a touch of marmalade and raisins. The palate has some sweetness and lovely vivid acidity, with a nice orange peel bitterness. Lots of complexity. Very good/excellent 92/100 (Around £14, various outlets including Berry Bros)
Barbeito Boal Reserve Veremar
Complex nose with raisiny, caramel notes and an acid lift. The palate shows a good concentration with a medium sweet character and high acidity giving freshness. Lovely. Very good+ (£8.99)
Barbeito 10 year old Boal
Lovely smoky, spicy complexity to the nose with raisiny caramel notes. Really lovely spicy palate showing a lemony edge and good acidity. Some sweetness but overall brilliantly balanced with marmaladey complexity. Very good/excellent 93/100 (£20)
Barbeito 20 year old blend Malvasia
They’re the first company to try this: a blend of four different Malvasias, the oldest 30 years old. Intense, herby, spicy nose with freshness from the lifted lemony acid. Complex and beguiling on the palate: spicy, intense, rich and full. Complex and well balanced. Very good/excellent 94/100
Barbeito Malvasia 1993 Colheita Single Cask
Just 549 50 cl bottles of this made. Lovely forward nose is warm, rounded and spicy with some caramel notes. Marmaladey and spicy. Explosive palate is spicy, rich and intense with high acidity and lots of complexity. Very good/excellent 94/100 (£17.95 for 50 cl)
Barbeito Verdelho 1980
This comes from three 620 litre French oak casks whose contents were blended before bottling. The nose displays nice savoury, slightly herbal spicy complexity. The palate is savoury and rich with a spicy edge. Fine and elegant with high acidity, a waxy texture and a hint of sweetness. Very good/excellent 91/100
Barbeito Verdelho 1902
Some 200 litres came from this cask, which was bottled directly from the cask itself. It sells for around 250 Euros ex cellar: this was the wine served at Ricardo’s mother and father’s wedding. Deep orange brown colour. Massively complex tarry, caramelly nose which is quite unusual, with woody, savoury notes and an acid lift. The palate is hugely complex, showing tarry, spicy, vanilla and raising notes together with lots of acidity and a massive length. Quite amazing, and presumably an immortal wine. Excellent 98/100
Barbeito Malvazia 1900
Complex herby nose is herby, leathery and spicy with some sweet raisiny notes. There’s lovely caramelly and raisiny complexity on the palate with huge acidity. Bracing and spicy with enormous length. Marmalade and citrus fruits on the finish. Excellent 95/100
