The St. Supéry Kitchen Herb Garden
By St. Supéry winery chef, Ron Barber

How Does My Garden Grow?

There are four 19” planters on the Atkinson House porch next to the kitchen. The flowers that grew in them died of neglect.  I was the main contributing factor in their demise.  Don’t get me wrong - I love flowers but I just forgot to water them. Then it was decided to replace the flowers with an assortment of herbs, thanks to St. Supéry’s vineyard manager – Josh Anstey.  My new mini herb garden consists of basil, chives, Italian parsley, English thyme, and lemon thyme; the perfect assortment to suit my particular cooking style.  Our main, and much larger, garden contains those herbs as well as rosemary, sage, two varieties of mint, tarragon, and Thai basil.  This selection will increase next spring.

My new herb garden’s close proximity to the kitchen has accomplished two things: It saves me time by not always having to make the long trek to the main garden, and because I am constantly going to the porch to snip a leaf or two I don’t forget to water them.

Herbs and Wine

I think that it can be too restrictive to make hard and fast “rules” when it comes to pairing herbs and wine; however, I usually match stronger herbs such as rosemary and oregano with full-bodied wines like Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot, and milder herbs like parsley and chives with lighter white wines such as Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon.

Herbs, Food & Wine Seminar

Because fresh herbs play an important role in cooking, and cooking plays an equally important role in the enjoyment of wine, we have decided to offer a seminar in Spring 2006 addressing the selection, planting, and uses of culinary herbs in the home kitchen.  We will also explore the effects that herbs have on different wines.  Please keep checking our website under “Events and Seminars” for dates and further details.    http://www.stsupery.com/visit/publicevents.html