Learning to expand and mature my palate.

On our last visit to Sonoma, about a week ago, we had the most beautiful view in all of Sonoma while at a wine tasting; I just couldn’t grasp the concept of these wines though. I didn’t know if I really liked them or if I just needed to find the right pairing for them. Was it like meeting someone for the third time that I just couldn’t find any commonality with?

As I read the tasting menu at Robert Young Winery, I realized that I was unfamiliar with the aromas and flavors the wine had. When the wine was poured by a family member of the 5th generation, he explained by pointing to the valley as far as you could see, that they used to grow nothing but prunes before they started growing wine. (Huh? I thought it was apples.) Not knowing this and not having a mature enough palate, it would make sense that it might be that I was rather unfamiliar with the flavors of herbs, prunes and black tea leaves in my wine.

Learning about the history of the winery and the land, I began to understand the character of these wines. When I decided to learn about it and open myself up to the possibilities of what these wines had to offer, I began to ask about the foods that would pair with them. I’m sure this would certainly expand my appreciation for them.

This is what wine does. Wine is either loving and fun from the get go, or perplex and unfriendly until you get know how loyal as hell it is. If wine has character, it’s good to understand where it’s character comes from.

 Meet wines of the Alexander Valley.

Sure, everyone has a wine preference they like - just like the foods they know. However, as wine gets more popular, it’s good to understand that wine is not just a drink. It’s a drink that is trying to feature the land it’s comes from. We either have an appreciation for art, or we just like something to cover the wall. I get it.

However, those who have an appreciation for wine, have an appreciation of different aromas and flavors of wine that make it art. It’s like savoring foods from different regions of the world that make them unique. Take for instance, Nissa Pierson, a magazine contributor who describes how flavors from the “Middle East, South America, Europe, and Africa; basically everywhere except the U.S,” can contain much more robust flavors that it’s forcing the U.S. palates to change; “a result of more cuisines leaping border walls.”

In the February 2020 edition of edible Marin & Wine Country magazine, the article, Vermouth, The Sipping Spirit, Pierson describes how you can make a distinct Vermouth from Sonoma wines that have the just the right amount of balance and minerality. Fortify them with herbs from your garden especially in the Spring and Summer months, and an typical martini becomes a Sonoma Vermouth straight up you can drink as an apéritif.

Wine can sometimes be like comfort food. It’s what we know and what can hinder our diet and we have to have it.  I’m not talking about an addiction. I’m talking about a true love of wine. Napa wines are popular because of the ability to fortify their red wines with flavors like chocolate, berries, and vanilla. Melon, citrus, apples and peach in white wines, can also be friendly, loving and sure as heck, fun to drink. And why shouldn’t they? Most of the Napa Valley used to be citrus, apples and raspberries. This is the terroir of Napa: it’s what has historically been grown here.

Wanderers don’t just stop in Napa and call it a day though. They discover other areas in search of other aromas and flavors.

In Sonoma, you’ll find these herbs, loganberries, prunes and plums, along with root botanicals in the flavor uncharacteristic of any flavors I’ve known.

It’s like when I tell friends how much I love lamb, oysters, a strong goat cheese and caviar, they might look at me funny. What’s not to love about all that?

Wineries rich in history that once grew herbs, prunes and loganberries might be difficult to culminate in a wine. The legacy to highlight the land and still bring a broad yet distinct joy for me, is like finding a cocktail with rosemary rather than a coconut. It’s like having a cucumber gin & tonic instead of a pina colada.

If the aromas and flavors are what distinguish the wines, the terroir in the character of the wine is vying for your attention. Good quality wines stay loyal to its land (or terroir), where I’m learning to be the wanderer in search for the artist who can best represent their land.

As I drank these unfamiliar wines and started to learn more about this winery on my 3rd visit, I asked my fellow young pourer what to pair these wines with but how would he know? He was raised on the farm and unfamiliar with these fancy food pairings, (duh). This is the country for crying out loud.

Although I’ve had tons of wine tasting experiences, I quickly had an epiphany that maybe my palate wasn’t mature. I hadn’t quite understood the importance of terroir until now, as I sipped my wine and thoughts of pork loin rubbed with thyme, lamb shanks with rosemary, and lemon artichoke danced in my head.

The views are beautiful and is a good enough reason to visit, no doubt about it. The first time I tasted these wines, it was heaven. The second time on a girls getaway, not so much as I worried what everyone thought of this unique wine. The third time I visited, we sat with Napa cabernet sauvignon wine lovers and I also wondered what they thought. The winery was one of a handful that were open during the pandemic.

Personally, as I tasted and read about these wines, I realized they might have more to offer than meets the eye as the aromas and flavors were unique as finding the beauty of oak trees that pepper the hills.

Visit Robert Young Winery the next time you’re in the Alexander Valley. Personally, the Alexander Valley is my favorite AVA in Sonoma County. I love the reds that come out of this appellation for their richness yet linear taste. The reds satisfy but are not lingering.

If you’re not into trying new dishes, new flavors or working on expanding your palate, that’s ok. That’s the beauty of wine. It just might be what your palate had in mind.