De Primeur

Wines that are sold and drunk very young. The most famous of these is Beaujolais Nouveau, although dozens of French wines are allowed by law to be sold the year the grapes were harvested. Not to be confused with EN PRIMEUR.

Of the five styles of Madeira, sercial is the sweetest.

Answer: False.

False. Sercial is the driest style of Madeira with 0% to 6% residual sugar. The sweetest style, malmsey, has 10% or more residual sugar. Madeira’s sweetness designations in ascending order are: sercial, verdelho, terrantez, bual, and malmsey. These are also the names of the grapes from which each style is made. Sercial grapes specifically are grown in the coolest vineyards and the difficulties they encounter in ripening make for tangy, elegant Madeiras with a bracing, crisp, almost salty grip and a dry, nutty flavor.

“When a cabernet sauvignon is unbalanced, it’s cassis poured into vodka.”

—Pam Starr
Co-owner/winemaker Crocker & Starr, Napa Valley

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