December 2009 — “Recently I made a simple main course of skirt steak, charred in a heavy iron skillet and topped with pickled Vidalia onions, alongside some leftover Tuscan white beans and sautéed broccoli. With the meal, I served two Madeiras, both from the Rare Wine Company’s Historic Series ... One was the Charleston Sercial, illustrating the South’s historic preference for drier styles of Madeira. The other was the Boston Bual, more popular in the North. Both Madeiras were sensational with the steak. I give the edge to the sercial, which was sweet in the mouth but dry and tangy after swallowing. But the bual was delicious as well; sweeter, yes, but so well balanced that it complemented the steak and sweet-and-sour onions perfectly.”