<strong><em>W</em></strong>ine is an art that calls for multiple senses.
Glasses range from hearty red to golden white to sublime pink in color. Holding it to your nose, you can detect the hint of flavors: oak, vanilla, tropical fruit, blackberry.
Then, with the first sip, an explosion of flavors.
“Finding the comfort in some beautiful flavors, that’s what this is all about,” said Josh Ratliff, certified sommelier and director of culinary arts at Newfields.
Visitors to the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields will have the opportunity to explore the artistry of wine from around the world in its newest experience. “Pop Up: Wine” features five curated flights of different varieties of wine, from chardonnay to pinot noir to authentic Champagne from France.
To pair with the tastings, curators have found artwork and items around the Newfields campus related to it. Stand underneath towering red oak trees around the Lilly House, the same kind used to make barrels to age wine. Find paintings by William Scott, John Singer Sargent and James Abbott McNeill Whistler, artists born in U.S. who traveled to Europe to study, just as some of Europe’s best grape varieties have come to the Americas.
“In the past, we were able to tie Pop Ups to a specific gallery or a specific exhibition,” Ratliff said. “With Pop Up: Wine, this was the first time we took a wider net, and with one experience, tie into galleries and gardens from the top to bottom.”
As officials have added emphasis on experiences to accompany the static art in its collection, the Indianapolis Museum of Art has added a number of its Pop Ups.
Past features include a temporary Japanese tea house, a noodle bar and a traditional hotel bar. Plans had been in place for a version featuring a variety of sweet and savory pies, but it opened just a week before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the museum to close for the spring.
Though pandemic restrictions are still in place, Ratliff wanted to move forward with its next experience.
“Wine is something I’m very passionate about, and have studied at a very high level. It was something that I could challenge myself to bring the Pop Up up to a level that could match the treasure that was in the galleries,” Ratliff said.
Ratliff, a Columbus resident, is one of eight certified sommeliers in Indiana and member of the Guild of Master Sommeliers. He drew from his breadth of knowledge to pick both unusual and well-known to the Newfields audience.
Planning for the experience unfolded throughout 2020, as the country was roiled by the pandemic, political unrest, and social justice movements such as Black Lives Matter.
Ratliff considered those aspects as he was putting Pop Up: Wine together as well.
“We thought, people are going to want beautiful, accessible, safe things to do as these things continue,” he said. “What could we do to give people a space of reflection, with little joys and tastes and senses that could not distract, but help people process what’s going on?”
Each flight includes three selections. A flight built around oak features Sonoma chardonnay, Napa cabernet and rioja reserva, each the vanilla and baking spices flavors for wines stored in oak barrels.
The French Masters flight draws from the best of France, offering visitors samples of Champagne, Burgundy pinot noir and Bordeaux red blend.
One of the more imaginative options is the Transatlantic flight. Ratliff chose three wines grown in North and South America: Oregon pinot noir, Argentine malbec and Napa cabernet. Though famous in the Americas, those wines have their roots in Europe.
“All of those grapes were really cultivated and bred for winemaking in France,” Ratliff said. “It’s a way for us to make the world bigger and more exciting without having any of these barriers that wine is fancy or super expensive or only for the elite.”
For those not as interested in wine, the Smoke flight includes a single-malt scotch whiskey, a type of beer using smoked barley known as a rouchbier, and artisanal mezcal in which the agave plants used to make it are cooked in a fire pit.
“It’s basically just the craziest amount of smoke you can get on any beverage,” Ratliff said.
Every flight comes with pairing elements, such as Smoking Goose salami to go with the Napa cabernet, or goat cheese to go with a New Zealand sauvignon blanc.
Ratliff also wanted to connect the wine that visitors were drinking with the broader museum and its offerings. He worked with the curatorial staff to choose wines that matched the artwork in a meaningful way.
On the flight menu, descriptions of artwork and locations on the Newfields grounds direct guests throughout the campus.
With the French Masters flight, people can see paintings in the galleries by Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Cezanne and Paul Gaugin.
The Garden Shed experience features earthy flavors, and points visitors to the stunning outdoor gardens and grounds that Newfields offers.
Pop Up: Wine will run through spring, but Ratliff plans to use the format and alter the menu seasonally, providing visitors with a wide variety of options as the year goes on.
“We don’t just want you to get a glass of wine. We want to want you to engage with the flight,” Ratliff said.
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<strong>Pop Up: Wine</strong>
What: A culinary experience featuring five curated wine flights, and one beer and spirits flight.
Where: The Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 N. Michigan Ave.
When: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Closed Monday
Cost: Entrance included with general admission. Flights cost between $16 and $20.
Information: discovernewfields.org
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