Blandy's Colheita Bual Madeira 2002 500ml Rated 95WE

Wine Enthusiast Review
Rated 95
The sweetest of the Madeira single-variety wines, this Bual is still laced with intense acidity. That brightness is contrasted by the toffee and caramel flavors, yielding a wine that is superrich while remaining so fresh at the end. This fine wine is ready to drink.

Wine Spectator Review
Rated 94
Deep, rich and exotic-tasting, with plenty of smoky accents to the dried mango, apricot and roasted pineapple flavors, featuring notes of creme brulee. Very fresh midpalate, presenting an unctuous finish of ginger and cream. Drink now through 2050.

Wine Tasting Notes
Made with Bual grapes collected from multiple small, terraced vineyards that cling to the steep mountainous slopes of the island, this is a medium-rich Madeira. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel tanks until a neutral grape spirit brandy is added to stop the fermentation. Following fermentation, the wines undergo the 'canteiro' process used for fine Madeiras. They are placed in a lodge in American oak casks and heated solely by the sun's warmth for 12 years. This heating process oxidizes the wine, giving it a very long shelf life and its characteristic nutty, rich flavors.