Tinta Negra Mole is often called Tinta Madeira, for the simple reason it is the most widely planted grape on the Portuguese island of Madeira. Meaning ‘ink’, ‘tinta’ is a reference to the grape’s inky black-coloured skin, which lends a strong, occasionally bitter tannin structure to wines made from the grape. To combat this, Tinta Negra wines undergo a rigorous and slow oxidation process, where they are aged in barrels in a hot room during the day, and cooled at night, which softens and breaks down some of the harsher tannins in the wine over a period of years.