Sense of Time and Place – Txakoli and Daffodils
Txakoli – not one place, but three different regions in the Basque Country of Northern Spain where white, red and rose are produced in a fairly separatist fashion. For today’s exercise, the whites – which are often produced in a semi-frizzante style with a touch of carbon dioxide left in the bottle – are what I am interested in. Bright, citrusy, bursting with acid and minerally focus, the whites produced from the Hondarrbi-Zuri grape are often locally served in glass tumblers, two fingers worth at a time. We’ve managed to sneak in a few glasses of the spritzy stuff over the past couple of weeks as temperatures have reached into the fifties on more than one occasion. But the time isn’t right yet, so back in the wine closet my stock of Txakoli goes to hibernate for a couple of months more.
Narcissus, or the daffodil to you and me, begins to reach through the soil and towards the sky this time of year in New Jersey. The green shoots serve as a subtle hint that Spring is around the corner. Sprouts of green along the driveway are rooted in specific sense of time and place – basking in an increasing amount of sunlight and anticipation – carafes and wine glasses will be resting on the garden table sooner rather than later. It has been an unseasonably warm winter so far, but more snow, wind and Arctic air will re-emerge before our daffodils bloom in the greener months. And we will welcome them, with more than a dram of Txakoli in hand.
Photo Credits - Tiffany Heater, Teroldego & Tomatoes
