Ceci n’est pas une dégustation
“The painter’s art, as I see it, is about making poetic images visible.” —René Magritte
The word curate comes from Latin’s curare meaning ‘to care for’ or ‘to take care of’ — in fact, curatus in medieval Latin had referred to a priest responsible for the care of souls in a parish. Over time, the term could be applied more generally to caring for or managing something, notably a collection of artworks in a museum or gallery.
I love going to museums and galleries for art. I enjoy exploring familiar genres and discovering new ones. It’s particularly exciting when a piece unexpectedly moves you, leaving you with those lingering feelings, well after parting. I also appreciate the thought, foresight, and meticulousness that goes into assembling a selection or entire exhibition — it’s something I’ve connected with more in my wine journey, especially with tastings as a storytelling medium. Those well-considered decisions made as to what to include, as well as what to exclude (redolent of the “silence between the notes” concept in jazz), are likely my favorite part of the experience, letting it unfold as you meander wall to wall, room from room.
I had been an exclusive patron of Impressionism, having written several papers on the topic both in high school and college. I occasionally dabbled with Pablo Picasso’s Cubism and Henri Matisse’s Fauvism, but I had never really appreciated the Surrealist stuff — at least not until one 2013 visit to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) that reframed it all.
During that fall season, MoMA unveiled its newest exhibition, Magritte: The Mystery of the Ordinary (1926-1938), which focused exclusively on the breakthrough Surrealist years of artist René Magritte. After viewing the exhibition, I became utterly mesmerized by Magritte and his themes of displacement, transformation, and metamorphosis, while enthralled by his “misnaming” of objects, elusions of all expectation, and representation of visions seen in half-waking states. This turned into a full-fledged love affair after experiencing Edible Magritte, an after-hours dinner seminar at MoMA led by artist Elaine Tin Nyo who had reinterpreted some of Magritte’s paintings as a five-course meal in collaboration with chef Lynn Bound of the museum’s Café 2.
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THE CONCEPT
Meditating on the idea of curation and curating, I cannot help but recognize the efforts and intentions behind wine tastings and pairings as indistinguishable from those for art exhibitions. Both are fundamentally ephemeral experiences, open for consumption (usually) over a limited period. Both are typically anchored to a theme or motif, to a story or message, or to an argument or postulation. What better way to examine the art of curation across these two disciplines than through a curated intersection of wine and Magritte? After all, Magritte’s work is no stranger to metaphysical inquiry.
Magritte: The Mystery of the Ordinary first opened at MoMA on September 28, 2013, so I chose to host this tasting on its eleventh anniversary to honor the bond I formed with this evocative exhibition. The number eleven can also be seen as a symbol of duality and balance, two concepts observed through certain compositions and thematic elements in Magritte’s oeuvre.
“Everything in my works comes from the feeling of certainty that we belong, in fact, to an enigmatic universe.” —René Magritte
I thoughtfully selected ten Magritte works, some of which were also featured in The Mystery of the Ordinary (see No. 1, 5, 6, 7, and 9). I sought to highlight ones where Magritte’s characteristic subversion1 of expectations in language, imagery, and emotion were more “conspicuous”, allowing for greater flexibility in pairing wines. To align with the exhibition’s anniversary and the tie-in to duality, this Sipping Surrealism tasting, in its entirety, counts as my “eleventh” selection.
THE EXHIBITION NOTES
🍇🍷 Sipping Surrealism feat. Magritte 🎩🍏☁️
No. 1: The Treachery of Images (This is Not a Pipe) (1929)
Mouzon-Leroux 2016 Champagne ‘L'ineffable’ Blanc de Noirs Grand Cru Extra Brut
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) describes The Treachery of Images as a treatise on the impossibility of reconciling word, image, and object, challenging the convention of identifying an image of an object as the thing itself. The word ineffable is derived from the Latin root ineffabilis which means ‘not able to be expressed’, a disposition adhered by one of Magritte’s most renowned paintings and so named for this Champagne bottling.
Funny enough, this cuvée has been known for having a woodsy and smoky character, falling in line with the “(image of a) pipe” as well as showcasing a wilder side of sparkling Pinot Noir.
No. 2: The Hesitation Waltz (1955)
Maffrei 2023 Langhe Bianco
French for a dance in which the partners pause for a moment, a hesitation waltz can figuratively describe an indecisive moment with successive advances and retreats.
Despite being traditionally blended with Nebbiolo for softened tannins and aromatic complexity (Arneis) or prized for its quality and assertive perfume (Nascetta), these two local Piedmontese varieties in this Langhe Bianco were both nearly extinct during the 20th century. Their rocky voyage toward revival and popularity is not unlike the hesitation waltz, especially given the difficulty to cultivate these two varieties, either due to susceptibility to powdery mildew and lower acid retention (Arneis) or due to sensitivity to changing growing conditions resulting in unpredictable yields (Nascetta).
Primary flavors for Riesling (green apple), Arneis (yellow apple), and Nascetta (pear) include pome fruits, a not-so-subtle allusion to Magritte’s signature apple motif. Plus, Arneis is derived from a Piedmontese word meaning ‘little rascal’, while Nascetta is Italian for ‘little girl’, both embodying the mischievous temperament of the masked apples.
No. 3: The Tomb of the Wrestlers (1960)
Alfredo Egia 2020 Bizkaiko Txakolina ‘Rebel Rebel’
Inspired by their discussion about Tachism (a French-style of abstract painting similar to Surrealism), New York lawyer and poet Harry Torczyner had challenged Magritte to paint a white rose in a white room with a window looking onto a snowy landscape. Magritte’s response came via The Tomb of the Wrestlers, opting to paint the rose in a “revolutionary” red color, a reflection of his sentiments on current events during the 1960s.
The Rebel Rebel cuvée draws its attitude from the song of the same name. Released in 1974, David Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel” celebrates the spirit of rebellion and self-expression that defined much of his career. His larger-than-life persona is captured in its catchy guitar riffs undulating as the song’s heartbeat, not unlike the Magritte’s gargantuan red rose overtaking the room and causing one to overlook the snowy landscape outside.
In the same vein, the wines made by Alfredo Egia are radical for País Vasco (Basque Country) due to his commitment to biodynamic farming and natural wine methods. In contrast to the lighter, mass-produced Txakoli wines found at bargain prices within the region, Alfredo is determined to harness the intense energy of local varieties that give them a different expression, shape, and vivacity.
No. 4: The Empire of Light, II (1950)
Thomas de Marne 2022 Coteaux Champenois Blanc ‘Thomas’
Between 1949 and 1964, Magritte painted an unplanned series featuring this configuration (seventeen versions in oil plus another ten in gouache), each one displaying similar key components: a nocturnal street with eerily shuttered houses, curtained windows faintly lit from within, and a lone lamppost, shining the sole source of light along the darkened thoroughfare. One can assume the residents here are asleep, with the viewer as the only witness to the bizarre vision hovering above — a night sky whose moon and stars are speciously replaced with daytime clouds, perceived daylight, and no real sense of darkness.
These paradoxes — light versus dark, day versus night, reality versus dream, serenity versus anxiety — are touchstones to the duality expressed in Magritte’s art, akin to the unusual blending of Chardonnay (light) and Pinot Noir (dark) grapes in this non-sparkling Thomas cuvée from Champagne. The Pinot Noir used is direct-pressed as a blanc de noirs, moreover adding to the diametric nature of these compositions.
Magritte’s friend and Belgian Surrealist Paul Nougé had also suggested the title of The Empire of Light, marking the sole instance in which Magritte used a name that was not of his own conception, with a notable translation from the original French as The Dominion of Light. On the contrary, this Coteaux Champenois cuvée instead bears the same name as its winemaker (Thomas after Thomas de Marne).
No. 5: The Lovers (1928)
Morgen Long 2021 Chardonnay ‘Pink Label’ Willamette Valley
The Lovers is the first in a series of four variations painted in 1928, posing another unnerving image. Magritte draws focus on an intimate moment — a cinematic-like kiss — then further escalates the drama by shrouding each of the faces in cloth.
Likewise, Morgen Long’s Pink Label Chardonnay defies expectations as a rosé d’assemblage where a small addition of Pinot Noir lees deepens color, enhances structure, and broadens the character of Chardonnay. The literal pink label pays tribute to the “romance” in this scene, while the unexpected hue in the glass could make for a surprise “blind” aspect, largely amusing given the two subjects are, in a sense, blind-folded.
No. 6: Time Transfixed (1938)
Vignobles Pueyo 2017 Vin de France Blanc ‘Hellébore’
The Art Institute of Chicago shares Magritte had painted Time Transfixed at a moment when he was attempting to elicit “poetic secrets” through his works. With that philosophy and psychology, he challenged himself to juxtapose two images in such a way to suggest in the viewer’s mind a third un-pictured thing. Time Transfixed links two highly disparate objects representing industrialism (a train) and domesticity (a fireplace) by the commonality of smoke, inducing the viewer to connect the locomotive’s billowing exhaust with the plumes of smoke that travel up chimneys, uncovering the painting’s poetic secret.
Hellébore does something in kindred. While the region of Bordeaux still adheres to the 1855 classification ordered by Napoleon III during the world’s fair, this cuvée flirts with the unconventional by fermenting and aging Sémillon on its skins for ten months in terracotta, a vessel whose use is unheard of here. The resulting wine explores untapped possibilities as its own poetic secret in this otherwise risk-averse, tradition-bound region. The name Hellébore refers to flowers commonly found in Bordeaux that are sometimes called “Christmas roses” for its blooming stage around the holiday season, making for another playful tie-in to the chimney.
No. 7: The Portrait (1935)
Icy Liu 2022 Vin de France Rouge ‘Apinost’
The Portrait seemingly depicts a simple meal, but once the unblinking eye stares back from the plate of ham, the scene turns unsettling. The perspective of the still life tilts dramatically toward the surface of the picture plane, easily interpreted as another polarity of confrontation versus invitation.
With the empty glass, one can look beyond the preternatural, seeing instead an invitation to be ready for the unknown. Coming to mind was Apinost’s back label with Icy Liu’s chosen inscription from the late Bruce Lee:
“Empty your mind. Be formless, shapeless, like water. You put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put it into a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow, or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”
No. 8: The Intimate Friend (1958)
Les Horées 2021 Coteaux Bourguignons ‘Mon Poulain’
The anonymous figure in The Intimate Friend dons a well-pressed jacket and a bowler hat, two of Magritte’s most frequently used objects. His parents likely influenced this, as his father was a tailor, and his mother, a milliner. According to Christie’s, unlike other celebrated images of the bowler-hatted man from this period, Magritte can achieve this strangely poetic power without depending on the use of exotic or fantastic elements but rather solely using very familiar components of a glass and baguette. Winemaker Catharina Sadde’s minimal intervention approach brings the same sophistication and influence on her wines, just as the ordinary objects do here for Magritte.
Moreover, Catharina’s decision not to use her family name for her label parallels to Magritte’s choice to portray an unnamed figure. The name Les Horées was inspired by celebrations during the changing of seasons held by the goddesses known as Horae (‘Hours’) in Greek mythology, paying homage to Catharina’s deep relationship with nature and winemaking ethos.
Coincidentally, a subsequent 2018 Magritte exhibition entitled René Magritte: The Fifth Season picked up where The Mystery of the Ordinary had left off, featuring a catalogue of his works from the 1940s through the 1960s, including three of my selections here (see No. 3, 4, and 10). The Fifth Season also contributed to Magritte’s exhibition history with the largest gathering to date of works from the series L’empire des lumières (see No. 4).
The connection of this cuvée to Magritte extends further than the floating bowler hats that appear on this label. Just as the bowler hat has become part of Magritte’s legacy, Mon Poulain is so named for Catharina’s own endeavor in Burgundy — while the literal term is French for ‘colt’ or ‘young horse’, poulain has a colloquial meaning of ‘protégé’.
No. 9: Not to Be Reproduced (1937)
Clément Lavallée 2021 Vin de France Rouge ‘Cuvée Éphémère #2’
Commissioned by poet and patron Edward James, Not to Be Reproduced is a portrait of the man himself standing in front of a mirror, but instead of reflecting his face, the mirror shows the back of his head, again warping anticipated imagery. However, upon closer look at the copy of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket (1838) on the mantelpiece, the mirror’s correct reflection of the book reinforces the peculiar situation. Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen chronicles the book to represent a permitted reproduction, the figure a forbidden one, and the mirror an embodiment of the irrational.
French for ‘short-lived’ or ‘ephemeral’, Éphémère is the second in a series of one-off bottlings representing winemaker Clément Lavallée’s explorations of terroir. Another curious facet is the Mourvèdre was sourced from Château Salettes in Bandol, Provence to be vinified in Côtes d’Auxerre, Burgundy. This limited, one-time bottling along with the forbidden nature of unauthorized grapes in Burgundy grant this Vin de France a true manifestation of Magritte’s Not to Be Reproduced.
No. 10: The Son of Man (1964)
Son of Man x Someday NV ‘Summer’ Vermouth
I wanted to end with The Son of Man, widely considered a self-portrait of Magritte himself, as the figure again is dressed in a well-pressed suit and a bowler hat, both iconic elements of artist’s own attire. One of my favorite scenes in cinema is the exhilarating museum heist (here then here) from The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) where Pierce Brosnan’s character manages to cleverly slip apprehension by federal agents while dressed identically to The Son of Man in order to steal a painting in plain sight. The energy and suspense are further heightened by the fast 4/4 time of Nina Simone’s “Sinnerman” scoring the scene’s staccato tempo.
Presenting himself as unknowable by planting a green apple in front of the subject’s face, this painting2 is a fascinating play on the elements that Magritte called “apparent visible” and “hidden visible”, presumably illustrating the figure can be no man (a hidden face) or every man (a bowler hat), like a post-modern take on the 1935 thought experiment of Schrödinger’s cat. Other whimsical hat tips (pun intended) can be found in Stranger than Fiction (2006) and (500) Days of Summer (2009).
In case it wasn’t obvious, I selected a special summer bottling of vermouth from Son of Man, Oregon’s first Basque-style cider house aptly named after this eponymous painting. The vermouth’s composition has Tempranillo rosé from Underwood Mountain that is fortified with distilled cider and flavored with ancho chile, grapefruit peel, hibiscus, and a half dozen other botanicals. The pairing is additionally underscored with Marcella Hazan’s Belgian apple pudding cake served alongside, a complement in gustation, nationality, and iconography.
THE MENU
With moules-frites as the national dish of Belgium, I had Tony and Geo from Scale Fish Market cater the tasting to pay tribute to Magritte’s Belgian heritage, for which I requested one classic take on moules and two non-traditional ones. I also made Marcella Hazan’s Belgian apple pudding cake for dessert.
MOULES
moules marinière: white wine, shallots, parsley, & butter
moules fra diavolo: tomato, EVOO, basil, chili flakes, & garlic
moules Thai: coconut milk, curry, & mint
ACCOUTREMENT
bread: garlic knots (thanks again for picking up, Ryan!)
DESSERT
Belgian apple pudding cake: Granny Smith apples, cinnamon, EVOO, vanilla, & egg
THE WINEUP
/ September 27, 2024 @ Paulus Hook, Jersey City /
Mouzon-Leroux & Fils 2016 Champagne ‘Cuvée L'ineffable’ Blanc de Noirs Extra Brut
$120 @ Flatiron Wines (c. 2023)
Polaner Selections (New York) | 🇫🇷 sparkling white
Pinot Noir
mineral madness ・ smoky & woodsy ・ almond pastry
Maffrei 2023 Langhe Bianco
$45 @ Leon & Son Wine
Stelle Wine (New York) | 🇮🇹 still white
Riesling / Arneis / Nascetta
Flintstone vitamins ・ grape bubblegum ・ fully floral
Alfredo Egia 2020 Bizkaiko Txakolina ‘Rebel Rebel’
$68 @ Leon & Son Wine
The Source Imports (California) | 🇪🇸 still white
Petit Courbu (Hondarrabi Zerratia) / Petit Manseng (Izkiriota Txikia)
tamed texture・ revolution & rebellion ・ Basque & Bowie
Thomas de Marne 2022 Coteaux Champenois Blanc ‘Thomas’ [Blanc de Noirs]
$75 @ Leon & Son Wine
Avant-Garde Wine & Spirits (Texas) | 🇫🇷 still white
Chardonnay / Pinot Noir
biting reduction・ incandescent light bulb ・ lively limestone
Morgen Long 2021 Chardonnay ‘Pink Label’ Willamette Valley
$58 @ Flatiron Wines (c. 2023)
Morgen Long (Oregon) | 🇺🇸 still rosé
Chardonnay / Pinot Noir
creamy structure ・ light & leesy tannin ・ rosy & reductive
Vignobles Pueyo 2017 Vin de France Blanc ‘Hellebore’
$72 @ Leon & Son Wine
Rosenthal Wine Merchant (New York) | 🇫🇷 still orange
Sémillon
Haw flakes ・ earthen tea ・ maritime marvel
Icy Liu 2022 Vin de France Rouge ‘Apinost’
$56 @ Leon & Son Wine
Grand Cru Selections (New York) | 🇫🇷 still red
Gamay
Pinot-esque ・ sans confection ・ crunchy & spicy
Les Horées 2021 Coteaux Bourguignons ‘Mon Poulain’
$150 @ Crush Wine Co.
Grand Cru Selections (New York) | 🇫🇷 still red
Gamay / Pinot Noir
passetoutgrains ・ rounded rusticity ・ smoky elegance
Clément Lavallée 2021 Vin de France Rouge ‘Cuvee Ephémère #2’
$49 @ Thatcher's Wine
Martine’s Wines (California) | 🇫🇷 still red
Mourvèdre
meaty fruit punch ・ black & blue・ Bandol in Burgundy
Son of Man x Someday NV ‘Summer’ Vermouth
$40 @ Son of Man
Son of Man (Oregon) | 🇺🇸 fortified rosé
Tempranillo / Cider
spiced sagardo ・ botanical bliss ・ vibrant vermouth
THE CODA
This Sipping Surrealism tasting proved the gravitas I’ve experienced with Magritte’s oeuvre still remains, an impression as strong as the one wine has had on me these past five years. However on the nose it may be, it was truly surreal not only to compile this tasting, but to have it play out as well as it did.
I hadn’t personally tried any of the wines prior to this evening (only some others from the same producers), so there had been a chance that my choices would go awry, especially as most of these producers (if not all) lean heavily into the “natural” winemaking genre. Fortunately, the wineup progression felt elevated and seamless, while the pairings were focused and befitting. Like Magritte had with Time Transfixed, this tasting was an exercise in linking disparate things (i.e., abstract ideas with wines), fully challenging my pairing stamina, so hooray for sticking the landing! Suffice it to say, my days as a raconteur de vin are only just beginning.
It was a pleasure to share my profound fascination with Surrealist René Magritte in the most unique way. Many thanks to my Jersey City wine crew for being my biggest cheerleaders — none of this would be possible without your support, encouragement, and participation. In the words of Magritte, my only wish is that the mystery contemplated during this tasting becomes illuminating, as the notion of Surrealism unravels, one sip at a time.
Episode 119: “This is Not a Magritte Episode” from Art Attack podcast
Episode 32: “René Magritte’s ‘The Son of Man’” from The Lonely Palette podcast
This was such an insightful and whimsical tasting 💕