WINE COUNTRY GARDENS These California wineries grow more than just grapes By: Marguerite Thomas Show me your garden, and I will show you who you are. From the humblest window box to the finest parterre, each garden has its own distinct character a verdant reflection of the person who created it. Some of the best gardens today belong to wineries. In fact, an increasing number of wine-country visitors these days are as interested in what is growing outside the winery as what is fermenting inside the cellars. And yet the phenomenon is hardly new, as shrubs and posies have been proliferating around wineries at least since 1787, when an English agronomist named Arthur Young reported that the land around Bordeaux was often more like a garden than a farm. The original winery garden was the traditional rosebush at the end of each row of vines, planted there as a barometer of the vineyard's health. From this simple floral statement, vineyard gardens around the world now include English-style cutting gardens, formal French jardins and even vegetable gardens. Truly the gardens of today, winery gardens are amazingly diverse, but in each of them, the function, selection of plants and overall design reflect the specific philosophy of its creator. As the best gardens are found in fully developed wine regions, where tasting rooms and other tourist attractions are already the norm, it isn't surprising that Napa and Sonoma counties boast some of the world's finest winery gardens. As in all gardens, summer is the best time to catch the fullest color and lushest bloom, though spring and fall also have their distinct charm. A few garden mavens love the stark winery look of a garden when, they say, the "bare bones" of the landscaping is fully visible. Most of us, however, will visit wineries in winter for the wine. "All that in this delightful garden grows, should happy be and have immortal bliss," wrote Edmund Spencer inThe Fairie Queen. Some of that immortal bliss rubs off on all who visit these winery gardens. Matanzas Creek Winery Hundreds of people come to Matanzas Creek Vineyards every year -? not only for the wine but also for INDEX the lavender. They photograph it, set up easels to paint it or simply sit on a bench and take in the undulating purple landscape in silent admiration. Originally just an element in the overall landscape rather than a commercial concept, the lavender has been so successful that the winery's gift shop now sells lavender wreaths, potpourri, oils and other products. Landscape Designer Gary Ratway, owner of Digging Dog Nursery, recognized from the outset that the site's full sun and good drainage, as well as the dry summers and rainy winters of Sonoma's classic Mediterranean-like climate, would be hospitable to lavender. He planted two types: Provence, the culinary lavender, and the oilier, darker, more fragrant grosso. While lavender is the star attraction at Matanzas Creek, it is surrounded by a cast of visually exciting supporting actors such as exotic grasses, herbs and other xerophilous specimens (plants capable of thriving in hot, dry climates). Matanzas Creek's gardens appeal to all the senses olfactory as well as visual. And like all winery gardens, one of the best things about it is that after admiring the blooms and smelling the roses, visitors may then go into the tasting room to enjoy a glass of wine.