Sherry and the Smell of Furniture

Palo Cortado in Solera

A well Polished piece of Furniture, indeed



Fred Seggerman is the elder statesman of the Connecticut wine trade. He's been in the business 50 years and can tell you not only about wine, but also about the people of wine. In other words, he is a terrible gossip, as am I. He can tell you who was putting Algerian Syrah into their Burgundy in the 1960's and who's putting Chilean Syrah into their Russian River Pinot Noir now.

As well as being versed in topics such as Italian Olive oil, Fred is an expert on Sherry, a topic I've never quite mastered. Not so long ago, Fred brought me a bottle of Palo Cortado. He insisted "This is old wine" , "How old?" , "Oh who the hell knows, old. Just try the damn stuff"

I had my second bottle last night, and it reminded me of my childhood and the smell of freshly polished furniture. The smell of Connecticut cherry, two hundred years old, gleaming with fresh lemon oil. The smell of a Piecrust Tea table or the Block and Shell of a well made desk, polished, and with the bitter citrus smell of lemon oil. In a room of polished Walnut paneling and the smell of a thousand things that happened once a long time ago. Wistfully I chased the scents into the glass, remembering a previous life.