This is the youngest of the Noval Tawnies with an age indication, and made from 50% Estate fruit with the balance from A-grade producers in the heart of the Douro Valley. Alongside Tinta Roriz, Touriga Francesca and Tinta Barroca, Touriga Nacional and Sousão now enter the story. The grapes are foot-trodden and fermented in the traditional lagares of the Quinta. After fortification, the wine is moved to old oak barrels of 640 litres for ageing.

Again the note below reflects our own experiences of the wine. This could go with the dishes outlined in the Bual note above but could also take on richer desserts like plum pudding. Or it is great simply on its own at the end of a meal to lift the spirits and refresh the palate

This unique Tawny has spent a minimum of 15 years aging in old oak barrels to develop rich tawny characters. To complete the process for this expression, it has finished its aging process in Beenleigh Rum Barrels to further develop characteristics true to the style and mellow tannins and acidity. The result is a lush and opulent tawny with complex flavours of dried fruit, sweet spice, dried figs and molasses. In collaboration with Beenleigh Rum Distillery, Australia’s oldest operating distillery comes this 15-Year-Old release from Galway Pipe, an exclusive fortified producer.

Few places seem to posses the divinely ordained right to produce Bordeaux’s other iconic export, Sauternes, quite like Clos Haut-Peyaguey. Across 12 hectares of plateau-topping Premier Cru Classé vineyard, Semillon (and a smidge of Sauvignon) grapes patiently wait out summer for the noble rot to set in. We’re talking about botrytis, of course. Once it does, the sweetest grapes are handpicked for vinification before being sent for a French oak siesta. The result is one of the world’s most revered sweet white wines. Unctuous and syrypy; floral and fruity; jammy and spicy: trés magnifique!

Historically considered to be the great grape of Madeira, Terrantez, was introduced in the late 1600's. By the 18th and 19th centuries Terrantez was producing what many experts considered to be the greatest wines of the island. However, the 1852 oidium outbreak destroyed most of the Terrantez vines, followed by phylloxera which put paid to the rest. Nowadays the variety is practically extinct and efforts to revive the plantings have been hampered by the grape's low yielding nature and susceptibility to rot and to mildew in Madeira's humid climate. Henriques farm several tiny parcels of rare Terrantez, and are recognised as one of the leading producers of wines made with this variety.