I harvested my first full size tomato today, well at least a small version of a full size. My Cherokee Purple gave me a little one but boy it was good. I had it in an egg white omelet with fresh grated Parmiggiano-Reggiano cheese and a little dill. Anyway, while I was outside pulling a few weeds, harvesting my tomato and a few beans, I caught a couple of amazing scents in the air. Now that the temperature has kicked up a few plants have started to bloom and that is filling my yard with some amazing smells and many of them remind me of wine. This started me thinking; so often I have customers who say they can’t describe wine and I always tell them to relate smells to what they know. Well walking around my yard gave me some ideas of flowering plants that you can relate to some wines.The easiest of all the flowering trees to relate to wine is my Eureka Lemon, which is starting to bloom again for a second time this year. It bloomed in March and now has set at least 40 small green lemons. The blooms smell as you would think, like fresh cut lemon, but with a more floral undertone. This one fills my patio with scent and it reminds me of Russian River Sauvignon Blanc, white wines from the Rueda region of Spain and Italian Cortese from the Piedmont.Walking to the other side of the patio is my struggling gardenia. I say struggling because although I think I have a bit of green thumb, I have killed more gardenias than I care to admit. The current future victim has managed to provide us with twenty or so blooms and the sweeter aroma wafts over the other side of the patio. Gardenia is a “highlight” aroma, unlike lemon blossom which is the primary smell of many wines, gardenia appears as a secondary note in wines made from Nebbiolo and Dolcetto, as well as occasionally in Malbec.The Confederate jasmine, which is blooming on a cool trellis near a fantastic gazing ball my wife gave me last Christmas, also reminds me of the complex second tier aromas for many Pinot Noir, especially those from Yarra Valley and Santa Lucia Highlands.My favorite bloomer of the moment are our magnolias. Their aroma is piercing and citrusy, between grapefruit and lime, not unlike Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough. It is also a note in Pinot Grigio from cooler sites like Alto Adige and some areas of Friuli.These are just a few of the current things blooming and the reminders they give me of my favorite wines. Stay tuned and I will update as new things open in the garden. I am planting some new Radsunny, buttercream knockout roses, the only member of the family with scent, and will be happy to report later this summer.
Want to describe what you smell in wine, take a walk around the yard!
May 14, 2010
