Spring into Wine

 There is nothing quite like that first spring dinner on the patio. After months of sitting inside while the cold and snow reign, enjoying a meal outside with the grass greening, birds flitting from one budding tree to another, and the breeze carrying a warmth and scent of the just awakening lilac bushes and strawberry plants is truly a magical moment, a magical moment made even more enchanting with a perfect glass of wine.

               Sitting on my patio is my happy place. Thanks to the position of our backyard and our large maple trees, we are able to enjoy our sanctuary at almost all hours of the day spring through fall. There have been many a great conversation, meal, glass of wine, simple relaxation moment, and bird, bat, and butterfly watching adventure spent in our colorful oasis. So, for me, there is no moment more special than when the temperatures start to rise, and dinners can once again be consumed outside.

               My husband and I recently had our first dinner on the patio, and to commemorate the event we made one of our favorite “to enjoy on the patio” dinners, farfalle pasta tossed with a white wine sauce, spinach, tomatoes, onions, and feta. Besides its epic taste, one of the things I love most about this dish is that it goes well with so many styles of wine - crisp whites, bright pink rosés, and light-bodied reds with coursing acidity. As this dinner marked the start of spring for me, I was compelled to go either white or rosé, as both of these wines conjure up images of warm sunny days.

               Looking at the options I had prepared in my chiller, my eyes couldn’t help but land on my bottle of Comte Lafond Sancerre Blanc 2009. A 15-year-old Sauvignon Blanc from Sancerre, part of the Loire Valley region of France, its amber coloring melded with notes of apricot, lemongrass, almond, cream, thyme, and undertones of flint kept pulling me towards it. Sauvignon Blanc, particularly from New Zealand, has become a popular porch sipping, warm weather wine choice.  Though there are differences between the Sauv Blanc grape from New Zealand and Sancerre, where the New Zealand versions tend to have more tropical fruit notes mixed with the typical herbal and grassy elements, and the Sancerre quaffs tend to be more mineral with hints of flint or wet rock and have apricot type fruit notes, I just couldn’t help but feel this was the wine for me. No, it really wasn’t a wine I would generally lean towards for this dish, but my gut said this was the perfect choice for this particular evening. I had found my wine for my first 2024 dinner on the patio.

               Along with both cats and the dog, we headed outside with our flavor packed pasta bowls and settled down for a wonderful evening. Though unique, I found my Sancerre and pasta to be an excellent wine pairing, with the herb notes in both the meal and wine coming to the forefront. Along with that, the hint of cream in the Sancerre made for a delectable treat after our bowls were empty and we simply watched twilight slowly descend. Already ranking high in my book, sipping this wine on such a delightful night made it seem more tasty, more amazing, more memorable. I was incredibly glad that I had branched out from a more typical option.

               As I will be doing, I know many of you will begin purchasing crisp Sauvignon Blancs that pair beautifully with spring, summer and all the veggies and produce that come with this glorious time of the year, but after this patio experience, it is my personal goal to continue to branch out and try something new. Having had the opportunity to try a handful of Sancerre wines over the past year, and loving each one, I will continue to buy up different bottles and learn all I can about what this region has to offer. It is also on my to-do list to try some Sauv Blanc offerings from Chile. Having a high recommendation from a friend, and recently reading a lot about them in various wine mags, I’m ready to start my own Chile Sauvignon Blanc journey. But, no matter what your wine spring palate is, I hope each and every one of your bottles of choice this season is as magical as watching the days get longer and warmer. Cheers to the return of patio sipping!