May be very, very old Madeira.... maybe not

I wouldn't call 19th century Madeira common, but I wouldn't call it unusual. Due to the production methods, it's damn near indestructible. Oldest I've had is 1862, but have read notes on 18th century ones. Enjoy!

I have the three Great Vintage Wine books by Michael Broadbent, with the first being published in 1980, but he does not mention either of the wines that concern you. He has tasted other 1874 Madeira for which he gave a fair, but not top, rating. He does not mention the year 1881 at all in any of his three books. Broadbent likely has tasted as much old Madeira as anyone.

I collect old vintage Madeira, and have some from the very early 1800s. When from a good year and producer, it can easily last this long, and longer, if given decent storage. Of course if the cork has fallen in and much of the wine has evaporated, you can not expect much. However, most of the very old Madeira I have seen has a very heavy sealing wax capsule and this will prevent leakage in the case of a failing cork, provided that it is not cracked. Of course many old vintage Madeiras were kept in glass demijohns for many years and sometimes not bottled until several decades after the vintage, so the corks often are much younger than the wine.

Although the cost of old Madeira has increased, it still usually is a very good relative bargin compared to other wines of like age that will keep well.

Absolutely, because they can have been bottled after decades in cask plus possibly decades in demijohns.

Probably the most extensive list of vintage Madeira is to be found on this page:

or directly

The wines are not listed, however. There are other 1874s, but no mention of any 1881.

M.