“Madeira is a wine like no other. It is fine wine in extremis. Heat and air, both the sworn enemies of most wines and wine makers, conspire to turn madeira into one of the most enthralling of the world’s wines as well as the most resilient. Wines from the nineteenth and even the eighteenth centuries still retain an ethereal, youthful gloss, even after spending what is, in wine terms, an aeon in cask and bottle. Having gone through this extreme and often extensive ageing process, madeira is virtually indestructible. Once the cork is removed, the wine comes to no harm, even if the bottle is left on ullage for months, even for years on end. If ever there was a wine to take away with you to a desert island, this is it.”
― Richard Mayson, Madeira: The islands and their wines

When we think of Madeira, we think gorgeous island and famous fortified wines. But it does produces other kinds of wine. The primary grapes used in Madeira wine are Sercial (white, higher elevation, dry, tangy); Verdelho (white, medium-sweet to medium-dry); Bual/Boal (white, warmer locations, rich and sweet), Malvasia (rich and fortified). Other grapes are grown there and can produce some lovely blends. 

Broadbent Madeira offers various blends and dessert wines known for richness and full body (surprise surprise). One of the most popular is the Broadbent Rainwater Madeira, which is “smooth and gently sweet” and “shows good fresh-fruit sweetness built on Madeira’s sturdy core of tart, lemony acidity.” Wine Advocate noted, “The NV Rainwater Medium Dry is an attractive wine, displaying aromas of fresh walnuts, dates and orange peel. On the palate, it’s full-bodied, satiny textured and delicately sweet, with succulent acids, excellent definition and an elegantly middle-weight, drinkable profile that’s true to the category.”

For more info on Madeira wines, check out this post on Saucey.