Madeira’s South Coast Table Wine Producers & Wines: All You Need To Know If You Plan A Visit

Common Traits of Madeira’s South Coast Table Wine Producers

There are eleven table wine producers on Madeira Island. Six of them are based on the south coast of the island.

All these table wine producers share a common trait: they are small-scale operations. Often winemaking is a passion project of a single person with a subsequent effort to commercialize it. In the best case scenario, it is a family business run by just two family members, resembling garagiste wineries in their setup. The quality of the wine may not match that of typical garagiste wines; instead, you can expect wines with a more rustic character, similar to mom-and-pop shop offerings.

Most, if not all, of these wine producers, do not employ a professional winemaker or have any staff. Frequently they do not own a facility where they can vinify their grapes. As a result, they rely on Adega de São Vicente winemaking facilities to process their grapes and produce their wines.

Initially, we planned to visit all these wineries, but unfortunately, most of our requests for a visit and wine tasting remained unanswered. Below, we provide information about these producers, and we encourage you to share your experiences with our readers if you happen to visit any of them.

About Arcobom, their Wines and Visit

Considered a local hidden treasure, Arcobom is the brand name of the wine produced in the municipality of Calheita. Nestled within a private home property lot, Arcobom’s vineyard covers a modest half-hectare (1.2 acres) area. The entire vineyard is dedicated exclusively to cultivating Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.

Arcobom was a retirement project for its late owner, José Maurílio Velosa Mendes. In 2012 Mendes began commercializing his homemade wine production efforts and bottling his wine at Adega de São Vicente. During that period, he was producing approximately 4,000 bottles per year.

However, with the unfortunate passing of José Maurílio Velosa Mendes in August 2022, the future of the winery remains uncertain. Our requests for wine tasting and visits to the surviving spouse, Fatima, remained unanswered. Nonetheless, some of the restaurants in Madeira may still offer Arcobom wines, allowing enthusiasts to taste this unique local production. 

About Pedra de Fogo

Pedra de Fogo is the brand owned by Elsa Ferreira. Trained Agricultural Engineer, Elsa took the opportunity to develop her wine project in the Agricultural Park of Caniçal. In 2003, she began planting Touriga Nacional vines on a 2-hectare (5-acre) area nestled between the mountain and the sea. Her main goal was to produce a Madeiran red table wine under the Madeiran PDO classification.

Pedra de Fogo wines and visit

The first harvest, in 2007, marked the introduction of the “Pedra de Fogo” wine to the market. Elsa Ferreira does not purchase grapes from other winegrowers. She uses only the grapes of the Touriga Nacional variety grown on her property. Like the other small producers on Madeira Island, Elsa processes her grapes at the São Vicente Winery. Each year, Elsa Ferreira makes approximately 6,000 bottles of Pedra de Fogo that she sells locally.

We did not have an opportunity to taste their wines. Our emails to Elsa with a request for a visit and wine tasting remained unanswered. The address listed for this wine producer appears to be a private residence with no sign of any winemaking activity going on the premises. Because Elsa was part of the Madeiran 2023 wine festival, where she showcased her wines, we have every reason to believe that this winemaker is still in business.

Beijo Wines

Located near the sea in Caniçal, Beijo vineyards are part of a production project that began in 2005. The planted varieties include Tinta Barroca, Touriga Franca, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The yield is approximately 3,500 bottles of rosé wine and another 3,500 bottles of red wine under the “Beijo” brand.

The proprietor, John Paul da Silva, produced his first vintage of Beijo in 2009. The wine received immediate recognition, placing first for three consecutive years at the local wine competition. 

Beijo wine tasting and visit

Regrettably, we were unable to taste either red or rosé Beijo wines. Those who tried red Beijo wines describe it as 84-point translucent wine with flavours of fresh blackcurrants, savoury spices, light blueberry tones, and a hint of brambly black raspberry. 

As we were preparing to visit Madeira and searched for information about this brand, we discovered that the Beijo proprietor offers vineyard tours and wine tasting experiences. However, our attempts to contact John Paul via email did not yield any results. 

Curious History of Boneca de Canudo

Similarly to many small Madeiran table wine producers, Boneca de Canudo is a family project. This one has father and daughter collaborating to produce dry table wine called “Boneca de Canudo.” The duo has their own vineyard planted with Touriga Nacional, Merlot, and Syrah grapes on one hectare (2.4 acres) of land. 

The wine’s name has a funny story behind it. The daughter, Juvenal, a civil engineer by education, earned the nickname “doll with a diploma” (Boneca de Canudo) among the local agricultural workers, mostly men, who disapproved of this young woman’s attempt to get into winemaking. The name stuck, and Juvenal decided to use it for their new wine label.

Boneca de Canudo wine

Currently, they only make one red wine under the Boneca de Canudo label. It is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Merlot, and Syrah. Unlike most light-bodied Madeiran table red wines, this one stands out as medium-bodied with 13% ABV. You can buy it at the Barraca Ilda e Juvenal store at the provided address. They don’t offer wine tastings or vineyard tours at the moment.

Octávio Freitas: the newest table wine producer on Madeira Island

Octávio Freitas is a well-established Madeiran chef. Incorporated in 2013, he has been operating a hotel and a restaurant under his company brand before branching into the wine business. Recently, he launched Octávio Freitas Wines with its first vintage in 2021. Producing 1750 bottles in the first vintage, Octávio sources the grapes from the grounds of his property, Socalco Nature Calheta Hotel. He had the vines planted when he opened this hotel in 2020. 

Notably, Octávio Freitas Wines is not the first to combine ecotourism and farming in a nature retreat setting; this concept was pioneered on the island by Terrabona Nature & Vineyards owners, who also produce White wines from the vineyard on their property.

Octávio Freitas’s Galatrixa wine

The inaugural wine, Galatrixa, is a unique White table wine, blending Verdelho, Bual, and Terrantez grape varieties.  

A hard to find and used primarily in premium priced fortified Colheitas and Frasqueiras, Terrantez is much coveted by Madeiran fortified winemakers. This is the only Madeiran table wine producer that uses this noble and rare grape variety in the table wine. 

The native Lagatrixa lizard found among the grapes, enjoying the taste of them before they get a chance to ripen, is the inspiration for the name Galatrixa.

Octávio vinifies Galatrixa wines in mainland Portugal, a curious choice considering the proprietor’s claim of showcasing the best in Madeira’s wine. Octávio’s vision is to create upper-middle-range priced wine that reflects Madeiran terroir. Galatrixa White is the first wine produced under this brand. There’s a plan to add more wine types to the brand. Unfortunately, we couldn’t locate this wine on Madeira, leaving us dependent on Chef Octavio for tasting notes. He describes Galatrixa as an intense White wine with tropical notes, including hints of banana.

Vineyard or banana plantation?

First, there was the family vineyard. If we were to write a novella about this oldest table wine producer on the South Coast, that’s how we would have started it. Novella, it is not, but the family property that has belonged to the three generations of the Ferraz family indeed played a pivotal role in the birth of the Xavelha Vinho Madeirense company in 1999. The plot thickens as we discover that the property had a history of being a working vineyard in the early 20th century before being converted into a banana plantation. But in 1999, the Ferraz family had a change of heart, and the property was transformed back into a vineyard. The property is now planted with white grape varieties: Verdelho, Boal and Arnsburger and red varieties: Aragonês, Merlot and Syrah.

Palmeira e Voltas and Xavelha table wines

Xavelha Vinho Madeirense produces wines under two brands: Palmeira e Voltas, named after an area in the town of Câmara de Lobos where Ferraz’s vineyards are planted, and Xavelha, which is the name of the traditional boat widely used by the fishermen of Câmara de Lobos.

Palmeira e Voltas, a light-bodied DOP Madeirense White wine with a modest 12% ABV, was first produced in 2005. This White blend features the Boal grape, one of the noble grape varieties used exclusively by Madeiran Fortified winemakers. Until recently, it was the only Madeiran blended table White wine to feature Boal.

Xavelha branded wines are made in two styles – Red and Rosé. Both of these are Terras Madeirense-style wines. Both Red and Rosé are light-bodied, with just 11.5% ABV. Xavelha Red was first produced in 2007. It was followed by Rosé in 2014 as a competitive response to the rising popularity of Rosé wines among consumers.

Both Palmeira e Voltas and Xavelha are vinified at the Adega de São Vicente.

Before our Madeira trip, we read that this proprietor offers vineyard tours and wine tastings in his well-equipped indoor and outdoor spaces. Unfortunately, we have had difficulty getting a response to our inquiries. If you, like us, cannot secure a wine tasting, you can find these wines at local retail stores that carry liquor or enjoy them at some of the fine restaurants in Madeira.

Conclusion

Turning a hobby into a business can be an exciting venture. Running it like a hobby often spells disaster.

Not surprisingly, many of these table winemakers face tough odds, leading to a low survival rate. Take Paixão do Vinho, for example, known for their Primeira Paixão table wine. They used to have a wine bar in Funchal, but sadly, they’re no longer around. And there are others, like Luiz Ferreira with his brand Cabeço da Queimada, whose wines seem to have vanished from Madeira altogether.

On a more positive note, new entrants like Octávio Freitas, with his Galatrixa wine, show promise. Will he break free from the mom-and-pop shop mentality that often defines table winemaking on Madeira’s south coast? Only time will tell.

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