Wils. Tigersette ‘Wild Court’ AM/AOS Orchid

  I headed out to our greenhouse this morning to fertilize my orchids,(especially my Paphs as they begin to bloom end of Jan, beginning of Feb.) and to my surprise I came across this beautiful blooming orchid mixed among my husbands nepenthe's.  I thought it was a beautiful sight and so natural looking.  And on this rainy December day, I need a "tropical feel."

   This orchid is called "Wilson Tigersette ‘Wild Court’ AM/AOS".  It's an easy to grow Oncidium .  

 I have done little maintenance with this plant, other than water and fertilize it and it continues to flourish.  My husband has moved it several times and it seems to like wherever he moves it in the greenhouse.

 

If you ever want an easy to grow orchid, this would be one of them.

 

 



Syncline Viognier

 

As you can tell I like viognier. The Syncline Viognier tastes completely different than the Maryhill Viognier.  Whereas the Maryhill Viognier has a peach and somewhat sweet flavor, Syncline's Viognier is  crisp with mineral or earth flavors. However, if I read the flavors on the bottle, Syncline says it has a peach and gardenia aroma with bright lemon zest and peach flavors and subtle hints of minerality.  I don't have a very refined palate, but I would say the lemon zest overpowers the peach flavor and that produces the crispness. ( I know you are probably going "duh"- remember I am a novice.).

  I make my own viognier from juice. I buy at a wine and beer shop and my viognier taste more like the Syncline.

       I decided to check out what the original viognier was supposed to taste like from Europe and this is what I discovered:

   According to  Wikipedia, the origins of the viognier grape is unknown. It is believed to have come to the Rhone Valley with the Romans via Croatia. Through disease and war the viognier grape was almost annihilate. In 1965 there was only 8 acres that were planted.

 It has since rebound and become a more popular wine.  It has grown dramatically here in the USA and is very popular in Virginia. ( Next time I am there I will have to try some of their viogniers)

According to Wikiepedia,"Viognier wines are well known for their  floral aromas,  There are also many other powerful flower and fruit aromas which can be perceived in these wines depending on where they were grown." 

Viognier is best consumed when it's young. Although the aroma  suggest a sweet wine, viognier tends to be a dry crisp wine, however late harvest grapes are often used to make a sweet dessert wine.

  So depending on whether you like a crisp drier  white wines or fruity white wine may will determine which viognier wine you will reach for.  Personally, it depends on my mood, whether and who I'm enjoying a glass of wine with.

  By the way, that's a picture of my mother and I taken years ago.

Columbia Crest Winery

Columbia Crest Winery

 Over Labor Day weekend, Andy and visited Columbia Crest Winery.  As you can see it's a beautiful winery.  I didn't get a picture of it, but there is also a nice pond with shade trees where you can have a picnic.  Andy and I brought  along lunch and after wine tasting we bought a very good Horse Heaven Hills, Sauvignon Blanc to go with our lunch.  It was sooo good that we bought another one.  I am composing this blog 3 months after we went, so the smell and exact flavor escape me, but I remember it having a slight fruit flavor.  The bottle says it "delivers aromas of grapefruit and lemongrass with delicate gooseberry, mineral and fresh pineapple flavors, and a balanced fruit flavors."  I am sure my novice taste and smell did not pick up those nuanced  flavors.  I certainly don't remember grapefruit and what does lemongrass taste like?
 If I ever come across it in our local stores, I will certainly pick up a bottle.

 

The empty bottle. 

                                                          

Roses

                                     The Roses are Blooming

The picture on the left is the beginning of my rose garden.

 The picture on the right is taken shortly after the leaves came out on my newly planed roses.
 

My first rose to bloom was the Raspberry Swirl. After seeing the roses in Rochester, New York, I knew I wanted a pink and white rose.

My mother's favorite rose was a Peace Rose and she grew them beautifully. When I decided to start my rose garden, I knew I had to include a Peace Rose. My Peace Rose was okay.  It wasn't as vibrant as my I remember my Mom's. The pinks and yellows were more muted.  Also it was very susceptible to powdery mildew in our humid climate.

This is one of my favorite roses. It's called Cabernet Sauvignon.  (Gee I wonder why I choose this one). Despite the name, it made my favorite list because of the smell and the way it unfolds as it blooms. It is quite fragrant and it turns a lavender color as it matures.




Perfect Moment and well named and also a Gold Medal winner. It deserves it. It is my other favorite. The intensity of the yellow and oranges reminds me of either a beautiful sunrise or a tequila sunrise.  I would recommend that every rose garden have this rose.

 

 

 

 

Sangria is the name of this rose. The cut rose in the jar below is more the true color of it. It was the latest blooming of my roses and was very prolific, but the blooms were not real big. The blooms start out with a apricot color and then slowly changes.

Maryhill Viognier





Maryhill Viognier

 
My wine this week is Maryhill's Viognier.

Several years ago some of my friends took me to Maryhill Winery for my birthday. Which, by the way, if you have never been to Maryhill Winery, you should put it on your bucket list. The winery overlooks the Columbia River and the patio/arbor is a great way to spend a warm, sunny, summer afternoon exploring  great wines and enjoying the beautiful Columbia River and surrounding desert. Bring food or snacks.  Although they have a small deli/snack shop, you may need more nourishment then they provide, especially if you get caught up in the atheistic of the area and end up sharing more then one bottle of wine, which is exactly what happened to me. Back to my birthday ( interesting I can't remember which birthday number it was)our drink of choice was Maryhill Viognier. We enjoyed the wine and went through many bottles and you know the rest of the story. So for several years I could not bring myself to drink it. Last week I decided to try it again.

I remembered the wine having a oak taste and only slightly sweet. I don't know if they have changed their flavor or if I have gotten better at tasting wine, but the Viognier I bought had a peach flavor and smell and it was almost as sweet as a reisling.   It was a very good flavor and reminded me of the Viognier I had tasted from Southern Oregon area, which is their specialty.

I would highly recommend this wine if you like a lite fruit flavor and a hint of sweetness. Also it maybe a wine you want to drink on a warm summer day.