Scent of Katsura
“The Lover’s Tree.” It’s almost Autumn and the scent of the Katsura is in the air. If you’ve ever smelled this tree, you’ll know what I mean . . . it’s Autumnal AF! Burnt sugar, toasted marshmallow; hint of smoke & roasted almonds. The scent of the Katsura coupled with the approaching Autumn, makes me melancholy and nostalgic; full of longing for something I cannot name, because I don’t know what it is! It defies description. All I can say is that at this time of year, I want to turn my life on its head and dump out all of its contents, go through all of the crumpled thoughts, and see if there are any worth saving . . . The wines above are all conducive to and inspired by this scent and to me, are endemic to the season . . .
The Wines:
I have two wines from Afianes, a family producing wines on the island of Ikaria, Greece in the Northeast Aegean Sea. Like civilizatiion itself, the tradition of winemaking goes back thousands of years in Greece and on the island of Ikaria in particular. The varietal, Begleri originated in Syria, but is now grown only on the island. The Afianes are a family who started producing wines on their land twenty years ago, with father, son, mother, and daughter Begleri is the grape for both of these wines, with Litani ($40) being more saline, fresh, and light, compared to Pithari ($70) which is richness, smokey quality, and is vinified in Qvervi (Amphora). Both have some degree of skin contact in their fermentation process and so have taken on degrees of smokey gold in their hue…the Pithari being the more traditionally orange of the two.
Solera! ($39) from Francois Pinon, is indeed a solera style wine, incorporating multi vintages (‘18,‘19,’20) of Chenin Blanc from their vines in Vouvray. This is a rich and opulent rendition (of the only grape that matters!) from a family whose wines are top top, full gas! You may have had their single vineyard cuvées, Silex Noir and Les Trois Argiles and some of these vines are in the wine. This is slightly off-dry with all of its glycerol goodness! Just the slightest amount of honey combined with a subtle brightness that keeps it from spilling out of its robe . . . and the perfume, well, think of what I’ve described above, throw in a bit of bee’s wax and pear and there you have it!
Horus! ($48) from Philippe Viret, author and practitioner of Cosmoculture, employing knowledge of the Earth’s energy fields, know as Telluric Currents. He is the author of this term and actually, has patented its practice; which is not dissimilar to Biodynamics, the practice of following Lunar influences upon the Earth’s cycles (keeping it simple). Horus, named in homage to the Egyptian sky god, is a blend of Grenache Gris, Vermentino, Viognier, Muscat d’Alexandrie, and the rare Arenel. The wine is macerated for 6 months on the skins, in a 50/50 mix of Amphorae and steel. The result is this amazingly energetic, golden nectar of the sun! Spicey, with apricots and god’s own juice, this is a wine to be savored over several days, if you have the patience! If not, savored over the day…opening in the morning and tasting every so often to see how it blossoms.
Ageno! ($60) from one of the mightiest producers in the world…ha! that is a huge word to describe this humble(?) estate, nestled along the Trebbia River in the Piacenza region of Emelia Romagna. I use the word mighty because they loom so large in the world of natural wine and, spanning over a century of honest unfuctwith growing, in harmony with the cycles of the seasons and the rythm of the earth, as do all of these producers here! Ageno is their extended skin maceratedTrebbiano- of a hue and scent that embodies the whole of the season- dried leaves, dried apricots and plums, blackberries that are shriveling on the branch, dust underfoot, the desperation of the Yellowjackets gathering sustenance in a last ditch effort before the cold and advance of rain!
There you have it! Please get in touch here: Cantina Sauvage if you would like to order! It will be an email address; let me know what you’d like; you’ll be invoiced via Square and I will deliver to you.
Because of pricing in this offer, there is no minimum to bring me to your door!
When you order, please provide your address!
Best to you and much love,
Marc