Moscatel from Madeira

Moscatel was once more widely produced than today where it has all but died out….well almost.

Moscatel at Henriques and Henriques
Moscatel at Henriques and Henriques

 

Quite what is planned for this ageing Moscatel wine is unclear as it heads for its 40th birthday at Henriques and Henriques in 2018.

It is possible that this grape is making a comeback, Porto Santo was more famous for Moscatel, or moscatel-1900-reservaMuscatel as Cossart records it. He notes that it was an accepted or good variety (castas boas), but he found it to be too sweet, not of the requisite acidity and difficult to sell in the 1950s and 1960s in London.

Bottles of aged Moscatel can be found on sale at various outlets this one dates from 1900.

IVBAM recorded 13.5 litres as commercialised in 2015, and none for the previous 5 years.