Vinhos Barbeito was founded by Mario de Vasconcelos on the island of Madeira. It is today still run by the de Vasconcelos family though it is now partly owned by Kinoshita Shoji, a Japanese wine and spirits distributor. In the world of fortified wines, Vinhos Barbeito is known for its forward thinking approach to improving the reputation of Madeira wines. The estate makes a portfolio of Madeira fortified wines, including single harvest wines and specially aged wines. Unlike most Madeira producers, for instance, Vinhos Barbeito no longer adds caramel to the wines but lets them age and darken on their own. Jancis Robinson has called Vinhos Barbeito “the established star” of the island of Madeira. She noted that the wines are “super-pure, almost crystalline” and are made by the “gifted Ricardo de Freitas,” Barbeito’s chief of winemaking.