Madeira.
Wine is first mentioned as a product of Funchal, the capital of Madeira, in the fifteenth century. In 1662, when Charles II. married the Infanta Catherine of Bragança, English merchants began to settle in Madeira. The principal varieties of Madeira are Malvasia, Bual, Sercial, Tinta, and Verdelho (the Verdea of Tuscany). In England, Madeira is now within the reach of all. At the beginning of this century, it was known only to connoisseurs. The “fine rich old Boal” is fairly familiar, and if we may trust the wine merchants, the “Very Superior Old,” variously described as full, soft, golden, delicate, and mellow, is gradually winning its way into public favour, since that same “soft fulness,” added to a delicious and yet pungent flavour, produces a drink “altogether superior” to the best Sherry.