4 Best Podcasts to Learn More About Madeira Wine
Coming up on December 11th, we’ll be doing a webinar on connecting theory knowledge about Madeira (the growing environment, viticulture & unique winemaking) with blind tasting clues to help you in exams identify Madeira compared to other fortified wines like sweet Sherries, some Ports, white Vin Doux Naturels and Rutherglen Muscats.
While preparing for the webinar, I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts and these are the four most helpful ones that I’ve found.
Matthew’s World of Wine and Drink
This is a podcast series done by an English MW Student living in California and is a tremendous starting point for anyone at Diploma or Advance Somm level. In fact, I suspect that Matthew Gaughan uses the WSET Diploma text, along with other supplemental sources, for his podcasts so this provides a way to hear the material almost in an audiobook form.
With Madeira, he broke it down into three 11-12 minute episodes that are easily digestible.
Introduction and History
Climate, Viticulture, Grape Varieties
I’ll Drink to That! Episode 329 - Ricardo Fretias of Barbeito
With nearly 500 podcasts in the book, Levi Dalton has provided wine students with a wealth of content and insights from producers across the globe. I was surprised that, so far, he has done only one episode with a Madeira producer but it is certainly a good one.
The episode begins with Dalton’s podcasting partner, sommelier Erin Scala, doing a fascinating intro to Madeira. Then Dalton’s interview with Fretias follows it up with a masterclass on the many different winemaking decisions that go into making Madeira.
XChateau Episode 43 - The Quintessential American Wine: Madeira with Bartholomew Broadbent
XChateau is a podcast series that takes a wine business and marketing focus with its topics. While wine lovers all adore the romance and artistry of wine, we can’t forget that fundamentally it is a business. This is a perspective that is vitally important for wine students—especially those seeking higher levels of certification that go beyond just memorizing regions and grapes or knowing how to read a wine label.
This interview with Bartholomew Broadbent of Broadbent Selections showcases that very well. Not only will you learn a little bit about the importing and negociant side of the business as they cover the history of Broadbent Selections and its relationship with the Madeira house Justino’s, but the episode spends considerable time talking about the marketing challenges of selling Madeira. For folks studying other fortified wines like Sherry and Port, you will find a lot of overlap here.
GuildSomm Podcast Episode 25 - Madeira
I really hesitate with recommending this podcast because the two (former) Master Sommeliers involved have been thoroughly disgraced for their treatment of women. This podcast episode, at over 8 years of age, is also a little outdated and doesn’t reflect some of the new changes in Madeira such as the allowance of Tinta Negra now to appear on varietally labeled wines.
However, there is, unfortunately, a dearth of good content about Madeira. With these posts, I like to give at least 5 examples of podcasts, webinars, books or other resources that can help with wine studies. But as hard as I searched, I could only find the 3 podcasts above—which I very enthusiastically recommend—and then this one.
So despite the unsavoriness of the messengers, I will note that there is worthwhile content in this podcast episode on Madeira. You just have to take it with a colossal grain of salt.