Sauce Madère (Espagnole, Demi-Glace, Madeira)

This 3rd generation mother sauce derives from Sauce Espagnole and Demi-Glace. Madeira wine is named after the Madeira islands in the Atlantic ocean off the coast of Portugal, where the grapes for it are grown. Once upon a time, 500-600 years ago when Portuguese ships ruled the seas, the sailors discovered that their wine kept going bad on their long voyages. Someone quite sensibly suggested adding more alcohol, in the form of brandy, to the wine, and lo and behold, not only did the wine not spoil, but it tasted great, and so-called "fortified wines" were born. Fortified wines such as port, sherry, Marsala, and Madeira are the surviving legacy of this ingenious innovation.Madeira has a sweet, caramelly flavor, but it isn't overpoweringly sweet. There's a smoky, nutty undertone to it as well. The original demi-glace was made with Madeira wine. (If you think demi-glace is complicated to make now, you should've seen the original recipes for it.) These days what we think of as Madeira sauce is simply a basic demi-glace that's been enriched with Madeira wine. If you go this route, then making this Madeira sauce is easy enough - it's simply a matter of stirring some Madeira wine and butter into a demi-glace. A perfect choice for red meats, roasts, and steaks, it's also bold enough to accompany venison.

2 cups demi-glaze (500 mL)
¼ cup Madeira wine
1 Tbsp. butter, cold, to finish (15 g)
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
fresh thyme or parsley, chopped

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the demi-glace to a simmer, add the Madeira wine and reduce for about 3 minutes.

Swirl in the butter, stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with thyme or parsley and serve right away.

Makes 8 (2 oz) servings.