Henriques & Henriques Boal 1997

This is a vintage-dated Boal madeira from Henriques & Henriques, a medium-rich style aged in cask for decades before bottling.

Madeira's Frasqueira or Garrafeira wines are the island's summit: a single variety from a single harvest, held in cask for at least twenty years and a further two in bottle before release, maturing slowly in the warm lofts of the lodges rather than by the heated estufagem used for younger wines. Henriques & Henriques is the leading independent shipper on the island and, unusually, farms a significant share of its own vineyards; it also holds deep reserves of old wine in cask and bottle, some of it well over a century old. Boal, one of the four classic noble varieties, sits between the drier Verdelho and the sweet Malmsey, so the wine keeps a good deal of sugar but stays cut through by the searing acidity that is Madeira's signature. Fortification with grape spirit halts fermentation at the required sweetness, and the long, slow oxidative ageing in cask does the rest.

Ready to drink and effectively indestructible once opened, keeping for months. Serve at 14-16°C with hard cheese, walnut tart or dark chocolate.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.