Aromatherapy

We had some fun and learned a lot at our last Friday Night Flight on Aromatherapy! Our goal was to taste a selection of wines in a category that is increasingly popular: aromatic whites. These are wines,sometimes dry, but also a bit off-dry, with a distinctive aroma/bouquet/scent.

It was fascinating to taste first the popular Susanna Balbo Torrontes, then to finish the evening with the same grape, same producer, but in late harvest style. We found clear family resemblance between the two, while each claimed a distinct personality.

Gewurztraminer is a highly aromatic varietal whose classic bouquet is sometimes described as lychee, rose petals, or spices like nutmeg.Because it has such a strong personality on its own, it is rarely blended. But a favourite at La Boutique is the Hatley’s Fuse blend of Gewurtz and Pinot Gris from the Blasted Church winery near Okanagan Falls in British Columbia. We loved the exotic off-dry style, perfect with sushi.

There is growing interest in the Muscat grape and its versatility. In the south of France muscats are drunk as both an aperitif and dessert wine. In Italy slightly sweet bubbly moscatos are fun and refreshing. We are seeing more and more still and dry moscatos from California and Australia consumed as regular table wines or at receptions. We tasted the Two Hands Brilliant Disguise Moscato and decided that its grapey and lemon-limey personality would be beautiful as an aperitif with melon and prosciutto, or for dessert with a fruit flan.

Aromatic reds are not as obvious. But we found a beauty in Umani Ronchi’s Lacryma I di Morro d’Alba. This is a local varietal from near Ancona in the Italian Adriatic region of La Marche. It is very dark in colour, and on the nose it is redolent of blackberries, plums, and violets.Outstanding value.

Occasionally Cabernet Sauvignon shows off a distinct hint of eucalyptus or mint on the nose. Cabernet Sauvignon’s parents are Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, so one can only hypothesize the minty note in some Cab Sauv clones comes from some genetic pieces of Sauvignon Blanc, which can have a minty note. We tasted something new, the Thelema Vineyards “The Mint” Cab Sauv from near Stellenbosch, South Africa. A beautiful wine.

The other goal of our tasting was to show what a big role the nose plays in our overall appreciation of wine. We carefully pinched our noses, sipped some wine, and found that we could hardly taste it. But when we released our noses, the flavours of the wine really popped on the palate. No dry cleaning bills were incurred! And we learned how much our taste of wine owes to our noses. The nose knows.

Next stop on the Friday Night Flight: Spain on 18 November. We look forward to seeing you there!