New Releases from Blandy and Cossart Gordon

This is a preview of the wines being released by the Madeira Wine Company in 2023. The wines are usually launched during the Festa do Vinho da Madeira held during vintage in September but this year a few of us were honoured with a little barrel of sample bottles in June for a preview. All the wines are to be bottled this year. My notes are listed below in the order the wines were tasted with a quartet of 2010 colheitas (single harvest) followed by newly released frasqueiras (vintages) back to 1976. Where relevant I have added residual sugar / total acidity readings from the tech. spec.

Blandy’s 2010 Colheita Sercial ***/****

Grapes from Seixal on the cool north coast of the island: mid-amber colour with gently toasted spiced walnut aromas and a hint of leather; wonderfully incisive crisp, savoury flavours, seemingly dry (50g/l residual sugar with 8.3 g/l total acidity) with a hint of sultana and crystalised fruit on a long, racy yet delicate finish. 16.5

Blandy’s 2010 Colheita Verdelho ****

Grapes from Porto Moniz on the north west corner of the island: mid-deep amber with a green glint; lovely lifted savoury-leathery aromas with a hint of dried apricots and raisins, very appetising; delicate leafy, greengage fruit, some richness (75g/l residual sugar) offset by zesty acidity which persists onto a long mouth-watering finish. Really lovely poise for a relatively young wine. 18

Blandy’s 2010 Colheita Bual ****/*****

Grapes from Calheta on the warmer south coast of Madeira: mid-amber with gently smoked, yet rich savoury-spicy aromas, quite seductive and evocative; lovely Elvas plum and quince marmalade richness (92 g/l residual sugar) with a spicy backdrop, balanced by fresh appley acidity and a long finish akin to a gently cinnamon-spiced Tarte Tatin. There is no substitute for age in Madeira but this shows great complexity for a colheita with a decade in wood. 18.5

Blandy’s 2010 Colheita Malmsey ****

From São Jorge, the source of most Malvasia on the north side of the island: mid-deep amber with a gentle, slightly casky, dried fig character and a hint of malt whisky on the nose;

dried fruit richness (dates and raisins) with some gently curried spice, the acidity cutting through and rising to leave a sweet yet mouth-watering finish. 17

Blandy’s 1990 Sercial ****

Unusually the grapes for this wine come from Calheta on the south coast (presumably at a fairly high altitude); lovely deep amber colour, verging on nut brown; lifted on the nose, quite powerful and intense with roast almond and a touch of toffee and butterscotch; surprisingly full in flavour for a Sercial on the palate (55 g/l residual sugar) with fresh spiced, toffeed / caramelised flavours, the acidity cutting in mid-palate (11 g/l residual sugar) leaving a typically astringent yet full greengage and apple finish. 17.5

Blandy’s 1982 Verdelho *****

From grapes grown at Porto Moniz on the north west corner of the island: deep amber - mahogany; lifted with immediacy on the nose, spiced prune, date and dried fig richness come singing from the glass, verging on high-toned (1.3 g/l volatile acidity); glorious quince marmalade richness (108 g/l residual sugar) and intensity offset by penetrating rapier-like acidity, backed by bitter-sweet astringency, lovely focus mid-palate with a long, fresh multi-dimensional finish redolent of dried apricots and citrus. Beautifully poised. 19

Blandy’s 1976 Bual *****

Grapes from Calheta on the south coast: deep amber / mahogany; rich and profound on the nose with dried fruit compote and heady intensity; wonderful intensity of flavour, the tang of tawny marmalade and powerful richness (115 g/l residual sugar) offset by bracing acidity which persists in parallel with dried fruit richness all the way through the finish. This goes on and on. Glorious wine: one of a Blandy quartet from this successful vintage. Some wines from this era have more than a touch of rancio about them but this is clean and focused. 19

Cossart Gordon 1995 Malmsey ****

Malvasia from São Jorge on the north coast: deep amber with an olive-green glint; rich- heady dried fruit compote on the nose with a hint of roasted coffee bean; intensely rich (128 g/l residual sugar) and figgy with the reassuring richness of good fruit cake mid-palate, a touch of astringency leading to a long, fresh, mellifluous finish. 18

Blandy’s 1991 Malmsey *****

Malvasia from São Jorge on the north coast: deep amber with an olive-green glint; rich but restrained on the nose, fresh greengage with bolo de mel (honey cake) and spice; gloriously fresh crystalised and caramelised fruit, the richness (135g/l residual sugar) offset by the cut (but not the thrust) of racy apple and citrus acidity and a touch of astringency which persists on the finish. Magnificent Malvasia! 19.5