8-3-19 Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens

We recently visited this wonderful place together.

Located in San Marino, about 5 miles from where we used to live in Alhambra, is the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens. Over the years we had visited this lovely spot to explore the art collection and see all the amazing gardens. Then, after Janeen retired 10 years ago or so, she became a volunteer – docent in the Herb Garden and loved the experience tremendously (as a result of her time in the Garden, I have now realized that periodically we need to visit gardens where ever we are – Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, Luxembourg Gardens in Paris, Monet’s Garden in Giverny, Tivoli Garden in Italy to name just a few). While visiting in SoCal on this trip she has been to the Huntington Gardens three times already.

The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, colloquially known as The Huntington, is a collections-based educational and research institution established by Henry E. Huntington (1850–1927).

Henry and- Arabella Huntington’s Home. This now houses a large portion of the artwork.

Henry was an avid collector of art, books and plants from all over the world. As a result he amassed a huge collection that overflowed his home and extended into several buildings on his property. With over 120 acres of specialized botanical landscaped gardens including world famous Japanese Garden, Desert Garden and an ever expanding Chinese Garden, he left the entire estate to a foundation to continue his dream of expanding the place. The overall estate is divided into three categories: Library, Artworks and Gardens.

George Washington seen hanging out in the Scott  Gallery.

The Library contains a substantial collection of rare books and manuscripts, concentrated in the fields of British and American history, literature, art, and the history of science. Highlights include one of eleven vellum copies of the Gutenberg Bible known to exist, The Ellesmere manuscript of Chaucer (ca. 1410) and letters and manuscripts by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln. The Library’s Main Exhibition Hall showcases some of the most outstanding rare books and manuscripts in the collection, while the West Hall of the Library hosts rotating exhibitions. The collection is available for scholars to do research.

The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough, c. 1770. This is currently being studied and restored.
Sources of the blue used to paint Blue Boy. Part of the display as the painting undergoes its restoration.

The Art Collection is displayed in both a permanent installation and special temporary exhibitions in several buildings on the property. The European collection, consisting largely of 18th- and 19th-century British & French paintings, sculptures and decorative arts, is housed in The Huntington Art Gallery, the original Huntington residence.

Taking a brief break before going into the newest wing of the Scott Gallerys

Also included in the art collection is a spectacular collection of American art from the 18th century French tapestries, porcelain, and furniture. Complementing the European collections is a collection of paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures and photographs dating from the 17th to the mid 20th century. Interestingly, Huntington did not originally collect American Art.

A beautiful example of four kinds of quilting in one. On display in one of the galleries.

The institution started this collection in 1979 with the gift of some 50 significant paintings from Virginia Steel Scott – since then significant works by American craftsmen and artists are displayed in the Lois and Robert F. Erburu Gallery, a modern classical addition designed by Los Angeles architect Frederick Fisher. Highlights among the American art collections include Breakfast in Bed by Mary Cassatt, The Long Leg by Edward Hopper, Small Crushed Campbell’s Soup Can (Beef Noodle) by Andy Warhol, and Global Loft (Spread) by Robert Rauschenberg. As of 2014, the collection numbers some 12,000 works, ninety percent of them drawings, photographs and prints. Addition of the American wing highlights quilts, furniture, fabric arts and paintings under the banner Becoming America.

One of several fountains. This were not working for the longest time due to the water problems in California.
Janeen happy to see the fountains running again.

Botanical Gardens – clearly the most important part as far as Janeen is concerned – consists of over 120 acres and showcases plants from around the world. The gardens are divided into more than a dozen themes including Camellia collection, Children’s Garden, Desert Garden, Herb Garden, Japanese Garden,

Japanese garden with Wisteria blooming
Japanese Garden bell

Rose Garden,

Rose Garden with the Temple of Love

Chinese Garden

The Chinese Garden – lovely and restful place to visit.

and other themed  areas.

The Desert Garden, one of the world’s largest and oldest outdoor collections of cacti and other succulents, contains plants from extreme environments, many of which were acquired by Henry E. Huntington and William Hertrich (the garden curator during Huntington’s time).

World famous Desert Garden

One of the Huntington’s most botanically important gardens, the Desert Garden, brings together a plant group largely unknown and unappreciated in the beginning of the 1900s. Containing a broad category of xerophytes (aridity-adapted plants), the Desert Garden grew to preeminence and remains today among the world’s finest, with more than 5,000 species. Hertrich is rumored to have travelled all over the southwest (including Mexico) digging up various plants to bring back to San Marino.

Desert garden is filled with cacti and succulents

One of the interesting things I’ve learned is that when transplanting  a large cactus , it really must be planted facing the same way(compass direction) from its original planting to be successful.

The Herb Garden – truly the most important Garden to Janeen where she spent the most time and was an active Docent for a number of years including helping to train volunteers, was constructed in the 1970s.

Kelly, the Herb & Shakespeare Garden main gardener.

This garden contains many unusual herbs as well as many that are well known. Favorites from grandmother’s day, such as horehound, licorice, lavender, mignonette, and heliotrope, evoke happy memories for many visitors.

Herb Garden in the off season – not much blooming

The garden is arranged according to the uses made of the herbs: medicines; teas; wines and liqueurs; cooking, salads, and confections; cosmetics, perfumes, and soaps; potpourris and sachets; insect repellents; and dyes.

The Southern California climate allows The Huntington to grow many herbs and even some spices not found in traditional herb gardens.

Some of the displays in the Herb Garden that Janeen helped to create.

These include, but are not limited to, plants that produce coffee, tea, mate, hops, and jojoba.

The  18th century well in the Herb Garden wrought iron with a grapevine motif.
One of the benches in the Herb Garden dedicated to Gene Roddenberry.

Many larger and shade loving herbs are planted outside the beds, along the perimeter of the garden. Janeen particularly enjoys the scented geraniums, lemon verbena, mints, almond verbena, allspice and lavender.

A field of Agapanthus “Lillies of the Nile” bloom year round to the delight of bees and humming birds.

 

 

 

 

 

7-28-19 The International Pinot Noir Celebration

Over the last 20 years, we have traveled to the wine country of the Willamette Valley almost every year.  These trips have certainly given us a good appreciation of the area as well as the opportunity to see it change over the years.  Our early visits included introductions to some great winemakers and we have been able to stay in touch with these folks over the years.  As a result of all of this interaction with folks, we learned about the International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC), which is held each year the last weekend of July.  Over the years we have been able to attend this event a number of times.

Coupled with the IPNC are a number of special events that occur around the weekend.  One we were excited to attend was the release party for the History Wines. 

Melissa Burr with a bottle of her History Wine.

This wine series is a new partnership between Stoller Family Estate and the Director of Winemaking, Melissa Burr.  Melissa’s family purchased a property in Washington that had a very early planting of Cabernet Sauvignon and she had wanted to make wine from it for sometime.  This resulted in her development of the History Wine program that seeks to source fruit from some of the oldest vineyards in the Pacific Northwest to make limited quantities of ultra-premium wines.  The release party was held July 20th at the Stoller estate and featured several wines produced from some of the oldest plantings in the area.  Wonderful way to start off our visit to the area.

The following Thursday, we joined with our friends from Pasadena ,Jessie and Phil for a lovely Pre-IPNC dinner held at Résonance Winery. 

Phil and Jessie at the Résonance dinner.

Résonance is a brand new facility started by a French producer, Maison Louis Jadot, and the tasting room was just completed about a month prior to the evening’s event.  Dinner, great wines and conversations with the Pierre-Henry Gagey, President of Maison Louis Jadot and his son, Thibault Gagey Director of Operations provided a wonderful insight into their feelings about starting an operation in Oregon and their commitment to the project.  I found my conversation with the winemaker, Guillaume Large very enjoyable. 

Janeen and winemaker Guillaume Large at Résonance

He has been active in the decisions on how new vineyards are to be planted and what varietals are used.  Unlike most (read that 99%) of the vineyards in Oregon they are planting a number of different varietals as a “field blend” not as specific blocks or areas.  The field blend they feel gives them a better representation of the terroir.

The next day started the actual IPNC experience. 

Each year, my sister makes us name badges for this event. We make a few for friends a special wine makers.

Held on the campus of Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon, this was the 33rd annual gathering of Pinot Noir lovers from around the world.  The Celebration is both educational, featuring a Grand Seminar and courses as part of the University of Pinot combined with an abundance of great Pinot Noir paired with the delicious bounty of Oregon prepared by the Pacific Northwest’s most talented chefs .  Voila ,you have a great food and wine event.

Over the course of three days of tastings, seminars, vineyard tours and gourmet dining there is the opportunity to taste Pinot Noir wines from over 70 carefully vetted wineries from several continents. 

All the winemakers at the event get to introduce themselves and of course have their picture taken.

This year’s Master of Ceremonies and Grand Seminar moderator was Steven Spurrier who guided an in-depth discussion of the wines of the Côte Chalonnaise, “The 3rd Côte.”

Aaron Bell, Assistant winemaker at Domaine Drouhin Oregon where we are Wine Club Members #1.

The Grand Seminar had a panel of French Wine Producers and their wines.  It was a lively discussion along with some very tasty wines.

Grand Seminar is held in the gym on campus.
Tasting of Burgundy wines at the Grand Seminar.
The Panel at the Grand Seminar

After a fantastic lunch served outdoors in the Oak Grove, I went off to a seminar with Steven Spurrier while Janeen headed to a discussion of Pinot Noir and Riesling and changing terroir. 

David Millman and Seven Spurrier at the discussion panel
Steven Spurrier

My seminar was a small group of people where Spurrier was asked questions by David Millman and covered the historic 1976 blind tasting between wines from California and France, the Judgment of Paris that forever changed the world’s view of New World wines and his lengthy history in the wine environment.

After our small group programs we went back to our room and regrouped for the afternoon and evening events.  We decided to pass on the walk around tasting – where some 40 or so wines are presented and just hung out at our apartment.  Dinner, a grand affair, held on the Intramural Field featured a wonderful meal along with more great wines.

The Afternoon lunch under the Oaks
The food prep tent for the Grand Dinner on Friday evening.

Saturday had us board a bus and head out to a winery.  The actual location is unknown until we were on our way and we discovered we were going to Ponzi Vineyard.  Ponzi is one of the pioneer vineyards in the valley having been established in the late 60’s by Dick and Nancy Ponzi.  The vineyards are now owned and run by their daughters, Anna Maria Ponzi and Winemaker Luisa Ponzi the second generation.

Janeen with Anna Maria Ponzi and Winemaker Luisa Ponzi

At the winery there was a panel discussion with 5 winemakers – 4 from Oregon and 1 from California with a discussion about winemaking procedures, methods sources of fruit and other quite interesting topics. 

The panel discussion at Ponzi Winery
Janeen getting ready to ask the panel a question.

It is always interesting when winemakers have to taste their wines blind – most of the time they are unable to pick out their wines from the selections available and this was no different from prior panels we have been to over the years.  All and it was a great afternoon and I would admit  that the Arneis

If you find this wine, buy it and enjoy!

they served at lunch was so good I ordered some!

Janeen and winemaker Alex Sokol Blosser

The afternoon, after getting back to the campus, had another walk around tasting with an additional 40 or so producers that we also missed.  The evening had the traditional Salmon Bake – a large area under the oak trees is set up for cooking salmon, pouring wines, dancing and the eating of great food.

Salmon is baked over open flame – boy is it good.
The “meat” table at Salmon Bake
Did I mention the Dessert table at Salmon Bake?
More Desserts then you can sample

Sunday, the final day of the weekend ,is a sparkling brunch with several different food stations and lots and lots of sparkling wine.  A wonderful end for the weekend and a time to say goodbye to old and new friends.  While we have enjoyed our time both in the Willamette Valley and at the IPNC there is no guarantee when we will get back to this part of the world as there is a lot of world yet to explore.