1850 Madeira Miles Malvasia Solera Fortificado

Description

The company that would eventually become Miles Madeira was originally known as Rutherford & Brown, founded on the island of Madeira in 1814. In 1856, Henry Price Miles left England with his family and arrived in Madeira. Having worked as an apprentice from the age of 12 under the tutelage of James Rutherford, he gained solid knowledge and experience in the workings of the Madeira trade. In 1872 the Rutherfords moved to London (because Phylloxera was destroying most of the vineyards in Madeira) and started a wine import business at Old Trinity House on Waterlane. This led Miles to purchase the company and its shares, and later he made a gentleman’s agreement with Rutherford that any Madeira sold by them in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia or Russia would be bought through HPMiles and Co. A Madeira Wine Company was originally an association of several Madeira wine producers who decided to join forces to strengthen their purchasing and production capabilities. This association was founded in 1913. During the years of turmoil, the old family firms of Blandy's and Leacock joined, followed immediately after by a dispute between Miles and Cossart Gordon, thereby creating the largest Madeira wine producer and exporter. Whatever the size, preserving the unique characteristics and style of each individual company was at the heart of the association’s focus. By the late 1970s, interests in the Madeira Wine Company—by that name—had been reduced to just a handful of the original families, with the Blandy family holding the controlling share. In 1989 the Blandy family, needing to strengthen the sales and marketing side of the business, invited the Symington family from Porto, Portugal, to join them in partnership. This partnership has continued to this day, allowing the Madeira Wine Company to play a leadership role in the development of the Madeira wine trade. The year of bottling may not correspond to the image presented. (Illustrative image only)