Aroma and Memory Filtered Through the Epitheleum

“Whenever I smell baking bread, I think of my grandmother.” That’s what a
friend recently said to me. We had been talking about wine and aromas when the
conversation turned to the power of smells and the memories they evoke.

When aromas are inhaled, for example during the ‘sniffing’ portion of a wine
tasting, the esters, or airborne chemical compounds are filtered through the
olfactory epithelium. The epithelium is a cluster of nerve endings located in
the retro nasal passage. The nerves in the epithelium transmit the scent to the
brain. The brain then identifies the scents. The Olfactory bulb in the brain
which identifies the scent is part of the limbic system. The limbic system is
the part of the brain most closely associated with feeling and memory. This is
why smells so often trigger memories and bring up emotions more readily then our
other senses.

“Last night while watching tv with Megan, I saw an Olive Garden commercial
with the price “$8.95″ shown. The dork in me started mental calculations:
“Lessee, that’s 9, no $10 with tax, plus beverages…and tip…so basically the
four of us wouldn’t get out of there for less than $75-80….for bread, pasta
and lettuce…sure, its “endless” but the ingredients couldn’t be cheaper.”…
then a minute later I realized that I had been calculating a dinner tab for the
four of us, not 3.” This was a face book status post by an acquaintance who lost
his teenage son last year in a freak accident. His friends posted their
sympathy, but he corrected them, saying that the moment wasn’t sad but sweet to
him. I had to think about that.

So much of our daily lives are spent in an alert and focused state of mind.
But it’s in our habitual thinking, in our distracted thinking, and in our scent
memories, where we find moments when people we’ve lost, live on. With scents,
it’s almost like they are there with us physically, because we are experiencing
a physical sensation that we associate with them.

A wine with great, complex aromas is wonderful. But the best wines are those
enjoyed with great company. In those wines the memory of the wine’s aromas
become fused with the memory of the evening and the conversation. So that the
wine is no longer merely a physical manifestation of its own terroir. It becomes
a physical manifestation of our most cherished memories.

Shiraz, the Large and Small of It

Thorn-Clarke, Terra-Barossa Shiraz, 2009

I have a friend who knows a lot about wine.  She’s a certified wine specialist, she studies wine, works with wine, and has tasted many wines.  Whenever I ask her advice on a wine selection, without fail, she guides me toward the small winery wines.  This is especially true with imported wines.  Her feeling is that larger wineries, while often producing very good, consistent wines, are lacking in character.  Their wines are too consistent which makes them uninteresting.  I suppose that’s true for people who know a lot about wines.  I’m still learning about them.  I haven’t, yet, mastered what a Shiraz should taste like.  Because of this, I feel ill equipped to appreciate the nuances of a Shiraz with character.

The top wine producer in Australia is, not surprisingly, a multi-winery corporation, Foster’s Wine Estates.  They own Penfolds and Lindeman’s among others.  Penfold’s has garnered awards from professionals.  Lindeman’s is consistently solid and affordable.  Being owned by a large corporation hasn’t hurt the quality of the wines.  I think it’s fair to say, it has cemented the consistency of the wines.

Thorn-Clarke is a family owned winery in the Barossa region of Australia.  While it’s not a small winery, neither is it in the top 20 of Australian wine producers.  The Barossa region is known for its Shiraz-friendly climate.  When I tried the Thorn-Clarke, Terra-Barossa, 2009 Shiraz last night, it was easy to appreciate the wine’s earthy nose, with a beautiful, vibrant, dark cherry flavor and just a hint of kalamata olive in the back of my throat.  The black cherry flavor is typical for an Australian Shiraz.  If I had let the wine age a little longer, it would have taken on more chocolate and anise flavors that I have detected in Yellow Tail, Penfold’s, and Lindeman’s Shiraz.  Each of these wines displays the qualities of the Shiraz grape, yet each wine tastes a little different from the others.  I can’t say that the smaller winery wine is better or not as good as the big, corporate winery wine.  To me having so many different interpretations of the same grape is what makes wine interesting.

Wine and Music

I recently read the book, The Power of Music by Elena Mannes.  In this fascinating book, the author goes into great detail about how we experience music physically.  For example, different frequencies vibrate different bones throughout our bodies.  Of course it is in our brains where the bulk of the physical effects of music take place.  Different elements of music activate different areas of the brain.  We experience tempo on the parietal and frontal lobes, meter activates the basal ganglia, melody lights up the parahippocampal and cerebellar cortices.  And of course, we can’t hear the music without using the auditory cortex.  The act of listening to music creates its own symphony of activity in the brain.  No single element is more important than the other.  All must work in concert in order for our brains to experience the music.

Cupcake Red Velvet, 2009

Cupcake has come out with an unusual blend of big flavor reds.  In Red Velvet they have blended Zinfandel with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah.  No supporting characters here, each of these famous grapes can stand alone.  Together they make a powerful, yet surprisingly smooth wine.  Red Velvet is lush, earthy, and tannic with just a hit of good acidity.  It has nice red fruit and subtle spice flavors that mix well with the wine’s structure.  It’s a lovely sipping wine that holds up well with meaty Italian dishes.

Sometimes, with both wine and music, so many elements are put forth, that the thing as a whole becomes loud and confusing.  But sometimes all the elements come together beautifully and seamlessly.  While my brain or palate may be intensely stimulated by the plethera of elements, the end result is pure delight.

Thunderstorms and the Unexpected

Tonight I am in Arizona on vacation.  The papers had predicted, along with triple digit heat, a few thunderstorms.  I was hoping for the latter.  We hardly ever get thunderstorms in the high desert, so they’re a treat to watch.  It’s Thursday.  Our vacation is almost over, and still no thunderstorm.

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz, 2009

When we got here last week-end, the first thing we did was buy groceries and stock up the fridge.  At the local supermarket I was thrilled to find Penfold’s Koonunga Hill Shiraz.   The flavors are berry and anise, with  great anchoring tannins and a gentle finish.  I had just poured myself a glass and was sitting down to watch the news when my husband called me out to the balcony.  There in the far distance was an enourmous yellow cloud that stretched from one side of the horizon to the other.  At this point it was sweltering hot, at least 106.  We sat on the balcony for the better part of an hour as the enormous yellow sand cloud slowly obscured more and more of our vista.  After a few minutes, the wind picked up and the temperatures dropped by about 20 degrees.  I put my hand over my Shiraz and turned my head away to protect my eyes.  We were in the middle of a sandstorm.  It was dramatic and beautiful, and something I have never experienced before.

Sometimes what you plan or hope for just isn’t as good as the unexpected.  A good Shiraz goes great with grilled burgers.  It also goes really well with an unexpected sandstorm.

The Perception of Aging in Tuscany

Casolino Chianti Classico, 2008

Tonight I’m having friends over for a wine tasting.  I’m using one of the suggested wine tastings from my online class at Wine Spectator.  The challenge was to find a Chianti Classico and a Chianti Classico Reserva from the same producer.  Then I needed to find a Rosso di Montalcino and a Brunello di Montalcino from the same producer.  All four wines are predominantly made from the Sangiovese grape.  The Montalcinos are 100% Sangiovese.  The Chiantis can be a blend but must be at least 75% Sangiovese, and many are more than that.  So, we’ll be comparing the same grape from two different regions in Tuscany, and aged for different periods of time.  I know theoretically what the differences should be, but tonight I’ll taste and experience the differences, and reinforce in my sensing memory the knowledge I’ve gained from my Tuscan wine class.

I had to visit 5 different stores in order to find the required wines.  As I went from store to store I brought with me my manilla folder with all my wine information in it.  Something happened because of that file folder.  The customer service I received in each store was a little more attentive.  One sales person after greeting me in a mildly friendly  way, glanced at my file folder, and stood up a little straighter.  Then he asked with a bit more interest, ‘How are you today?’  I think if I’d told him to straighten his tie, he would have done it.  I suppose the various salespeople thought I was on official business, perhaps reviewing and reporting on the store.  It’s funny how a small thing like a folder can change person’s perception of a person, if only slightly.

Casisano Colombaio, 2008 Rosso di Montalcino

Of the two Chianti Classicos, the Riserva is required by Italian law to age for 24 months before it is released.  The other Chianti Classico only has to age for 12 months before release.  Likewise, the Brunello di Montalcino must be aged for 48 months before it can be released.  The Rosso is only aged for 12 months.  For any wine, the longer it’s aged, the softer the tannins become, and the more integrated all the elements of the wine become.  If it’s a good wine to begin with, aging will soften it, and give it added dimension and complexity.

The other day while I was working out at the gym, a group of senior citizens were gathered around a machine, getting instruction from a personal trainer on how to use the machine.  He passed out diagram sheets to his clients and they dispersed to other machines in the area.  I happened to be working out on the leg extender nearby.  He came up to me and began giving me instruction.  I asked, ‘Why are you telling me how to use this machine?’  He replied that he was helping all the people in the group.  I wanted to say to him, ‘I’m not with that group.  Can’t you tell?!  Those people are old!  I’m not!’  But instead I politely explained to him that I’ve been working out for over 20 years (probably for longer than he’d been alive,) and I did not need help, thank you anyway.  I’m still a bit offended by his misperception.  However, as I age, I realize that I’ll be mistaken for an old person with greater frequency.

Casisano Colombaio, 2004 Brunnello di Montalcino

Tonight my friends and I will taste the wines, and try to identify the flavors, aromas and elements of each one.  I have pre-conceived notions about them based on what I’ve read.  After we’ve analyzed and compared all four wines, we’ll mix up the glasses and see if we can identify which wine is which.  Without the labels to read, I wonder how our perceptions will change.  I hope at least that I can tell the newer wines from the two that have been well aged.

Perspective: the Great, the Mundane, and the Appreciative

Philip Togni Cabernet Sauvignon

I went to a wine tasting the other night with a group of friends.  We sampled several wines, but the one that stood out most was a Philip Togni 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon from Spring Mountain in Napa.  In it I tasted blackberry, cedar, smoke, chocolate, and earth.  After I circled all the flavors and aromas listed that I detected, I felt that there was something else in the wine that wasn’t listed on my tasting sheet.  I took another deep inhale, and  in the line for additional aromas I wrote W-O-W.  Just after I wrote that, my friend, Dana after sipping the wine said, ‘Wow!’  I laughed and said, ‘that’s what I tasted, too!’ as I showed her my description page.  We were both laughing when my husband came up from his wine and said, ‘Wow!’  We all had the same reaction to this wonderful wine.

Today in church my son played the flute.  Whenever he’s asked, he’s always willing to do it.  It’s something he really enjoys.  As we were sitting in the pew before he played, I noticed that he’d worn his sneakers, his hair was a little messy, and I suspected that he hadn’t brushed his teeth after breakfast this morning.  These are the things that ran through my mind when he was about to perform.

When the time came for Bob to go to the front of the church, the gentleman sitting in front of us leaned over and said to his wife, ‘Oh, good!  He’s going to play his flute.  He plays great!’  This gentleman also stopped Bob as he was returning to his seat after playing to shake his hand and say, ‘Thank you.  Great job.’  I don’t know the couple too well.  I do know that a few years ago they lost their teenage son suddenly and unexpectedly, something that seems to me, as it would to any parent, insurmountable.  Yet, here they are most every Sunday, friendly, warm, affable and genuinely appreciative.

There are moments when we see things in exactly the same way as the people that we are with.  Those moments are almost magical.  They are how we connect with one and other.  There are other moments when we see things very differently from those around us.  Sometimes when we see things through someone else’s perspective, we grow beyond ourselves.

A Toast to Technology

Ninetendo 3DS

I love technology for a number of reasons.  One has to do with my son.  At the beginning of the summer, my son asked me what chores he could do to earn extra money.  The new 3DS was out, and it was expensive!  ‘Chores, you say?  I think I can come up with something.’  For the past two months he’s been vacuuming, sweeping, mopping, dusting, and cleaning the bathrooms.  He’s even doing all the laundry and mowing the lawn.  This is turning out to be a very relaxing summer, for me anyway, and it’s all thanks to technology.

A great wine, a wine geek might say, will reflect the terroir and the grape.  Some believe the less intervention by humans, the better.  Maybe there’s some truth to that.  Wines can taste overly processed, with too much oak, or too much blending among variety and vineyards.  But I’d argue that without technology, Bordeaux wouldn’t be the beautiful, gravely terroir that it is today.  In the 1600′s the Dutch built drainage ditches in what was a wet marshland, but is now the Medoc.  Likewise, in the early 1900′s two brothers from California irrigated what was desert land in Australia.  That region is now known as Riverland, and it is the largest producer of grapes in South Australia.

Yellow Tail Shiraz

Yellow Tail Winery is located in Riverland, South Australia.  They make what Tyler Coleman, author of the book, Wine Politics , refers to  as a ‘gateway wine.’  It’s easy-drinking, consistent, and very inexpensive. It may lead to other more interesting wines.  The Shiraz I had the other night was smooth with some dirt and cherry flavors and a slightly chocolatey finish.  It’s not a  complex wine, nor does it reflect the terroir of its vineyard, as the grapes can come from all over South Australia.  But it’s very drinkable, and thanks to technology, widely available for about seven bucks a bottle.

The Lightness of Humor and Rosé

One day last May, my son and I were discussing the news story about Harold Camping and his prediction of the end of the world on May 21st. We were talking about why it’s sometimes quite easy to convince people of something. During the discussion my son said to, ‘Well, you know, Mom, you have to give people something to believe in. Then you have to keep them around so you can laugh at them.’ Perhaps he’s a bit cynical for a 15 year old, but I do appreciate his sense of humor.

Many of us are drawn to the quality of humor in people, in writing, in movies, and other arts. Yet, the arts that become the classics are humorless. I won’t say Dostoyevsky had no sense of humor, but I don’t recall laughing even once while reading The Brothers Karamazov. Likewise, I’ve never seen a tombstone that memorialized someone for his or her sense of humor. ‘Here lies Rachel. God, she was funny!’ It’s as if humor is a lesser quality, one we all enjoy and seek out, but never commemorate. Yet, how dull our daily lives would be without it.

Last night I tried a Finca Flichman Rosé called Misterio from Mendoza, Argentina. It was made from Malbec and Shiraz grapes, an even 50/50. The nose smelled fruity, the taste was raspberries with a lemon twist. The tannins anchored the wine, while the acidity kept it crisp and refreshing. It went beautifully with the roasted, wild-caught salmon made with Myers lemon olive oil and sea salt. Pink food with pink wine as they say.

A good, dry rosé on a warm summer evening can be absolutely delightful, crisp and refreshing. Yet, rosés will never be given the high numbers on wine ratings. They’re too light, simple and altogether un-ageworthy. Maybe it’s not what we remember for generations, but sometimes light and simple is what we need in our daily lives.

Noble Grapes

While there are hundreds of types of grapes from which wine can be made, there are only seven ‘noble’ grapes. They are Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Syrah for reds and in the whites Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay. These are considered the higher quality grapes, otherwise known as noble.

The qualities on which a wine is judged is its acidity, sweetness, alcohol, and with red wine, tannins. It’s not just important to have each of those qualities, but they must be in balance with each other to make a good wine.

Marketta Formeaux of Chateau Potelle says that, “I like to compare making wine to raising children, because both are long-term procedures where you make decisions on a daily basis. And the sum of those decisions makes the final product.” When we raise our children, we want them to be lively, kind, warm, and have strong character. We also want our children to be well-balanced.

Last Sunday, our Pastor led the service even though he had recently lost his father, and had just been to the memorial service the day before. My friend’s son, Ryan, stepped up to be worship leader. He had just graduated from high school the day before, and so was functioning on very little sleep having been up late with friends. During the prayer, our Pastor choked up a bit and paused to collect himself. Without hesitating, Ryan walked over to the pastor, and put his hand on his shoulder, and stood with him.

We’re so proud of our kids when they accomplish things like graduating from high school or earning their PhD from Seminary. At the front of the church last Sunday I saw two sons, one meeting his obligations even though he was so newly mourning. One comforting the other without hesitating. I don’t think either one could have done anything to make his parents more proud of him then these simple acts that expressed for each his noble character.

Seeing the Good, Embracing the Whole

Painted Wolf Pinotage, 2008 South Africa

I recently read about a South African wine called Pinotage. It’s a grape that was bred from a cross of Pinot Noir and Cinsaut. It was developed in South Africa, and as far as I know, that is the only region where it is grown.(I have since been corrected by Peter F. May author of the book, PINOTAGE: Behind the legends of South Africa’s own wine. See comment below.) I had read that it made a very intense and focused wine, but with soft tannins. It sounded good. I wanted to try it. My local wine merchant recommended Painted Wolf. She said this brand was very typical of Pinotage, and that’s what I wanted. I wanted to know what it was supposed to taste like. Robert Parker had given the 2007 88 points. For every day drinking it was a little pricey, $17. But with two good recommendations, I’d take it home. I trusted that it would be worth the money.

I recently read an article in the New York Times by John Jeremiah Sullivan about a trip to Disney World. It was very well-written, as one would expect from a Pushcart award recipient. But it left me feeling sad. I love Disney. We’ve taken our kids three times to the land and once to the world. They have been the best trips we’ve ever taken. There are negative things about Disney to be sure. As Mr. Sullivan points out, it’s very artificial, yes! It’s for profit, yes! It’s hot and crowded, yes! But if you only focus on the negative, you miss the magic of Disney. When we’re there, the four of us, my husband, our two kids and myself, we do nothing but play! It is the only place in the world where we can all play together for such an extended period of time. We all love it. After I read the article, I realized that I was under the mistaken belief that the enormous cost of a trip to Disney keeps it exclusive to those of us who really love it. Apparently, I was wrong. Along with that I had to think, well, atheists go to church sometimes. But I don’t really want to hear what they think about it. Maybe the atheist in church on Sunday would have had something to say about God, when the woman across the aisle asked the congregation to pray for her 4 year old grandson who has such severe epilepsy that he has siezures 24 hours a day. Maybe the atheist would ask, ‘What kind of a monster are you praying to that would allow a child to suffer like that?’ Maybe that atheist was me. But maybe knowing that her church community was praying for her grandson gave that grandmother some comfort.

Not everything about Disney is good. Not everything about religion is good. At first, you just love it. Then you ‘put away childish things’ and become critical of it. But if you are able to see the dark pieces, and still embrace the whole for the good it offers, then you can love it, enjoy it and benefit from it again.

The Painted Wolf Pinotage had a spiced plum flavor, and very soft tannins, but medium weight and good structure. It was vibrant with a long, gentle finish that had a briny olive taste to it that I just loved, especially with the earthy flavors of the eggplant and mushrooms in our ratatouille. Still, it wasn’t as elegant as I had hoped it would be for $17. My husband loved it. He wasn’t thinking about the price. He was thinking about the soft tannins, the vibrancy, and that unusual briny finish. I stopped thinking about the price of it, too. And then I really enjoyed it.