As the wine blogosphere has rapidly expanded in the number of participants over the last few years, so have the diversity of approaches to the subject of wine writing. The urge to take a different approach than the status quo has led to some creative approaches. Chateau Petrogasm, for example focuses on reviewing wines by using pictures, while Red Wine Haiku does the same by using…well, haikus. And while there are many blogs which touch on the theme of wine and food pairing, this Wine Blogging Wednesday is a response to, or maybe an encouragement to introduce yet another avenue of creative expression – wine and music pairing.
The idea of pairing wine with music is an interesting concept to me, because unlike wine and food, we consume music differently. You can’t smell or taste music. Yet despite its un-nutritional nature, the idea of combining some tunes and some vino seems meaningful, although it necessitates a different approach.
While judging a wine or pairing it with food, we attempt at objectively identifying the combination of flavors, the way wine hits our mouth and integrates with the flavors of the food, where we taste sweetness or bitterness, acidity or tannins, spice, etc. There is no equivalent science to music, no theories about how high tannin levels mold well with a 2/4 time signature or the piano.
Wine does, however, share a characteristic with music that I believe can be paired in a non-traditional manner. Be warned, it is extremely subjective in nature. I will make no attempt what so ever to justify this combination with objective descriptors. I choose the music I play based on my moods. Certain moods that I believe work best for particular types of music are based mostly on MY experiences.
Some wines can be very similar in that sense – when I think of “that” wine, I do not think of “earthy, spicy, rich, etc.” but rather remember the general feelings associated with the events surrounding drinking the wine. What I am trying to get at here is that I approach pairing wine and music by identifying what music and what song (or album) have led to similar emotive responses INDIVIDUALLY and put that wine and music together to see if they groove.
With that lengthy introduction out of the way, on to the music and wine. This song, and the rest of the tunes from this album for that matter, I put on when I am feeling down an need a boost. I don’t know if you have heard of this project, “Playing for Change” – basically it is a conglomeration of street musicians from around the world, all intertwined in every song. Armed with laptops, mics, and earphones, the crew behind the scenes started in Santa Monica, CA and recorded one person playing “Stand by Me.” They continued their journey to New Orleans, then Europe, Africa, South America, and on….finding more street musicians who in turn added their part to the track by listening to what their predecessors recorded. The result is amazing…the concept, brilliant. Music is a worldly language, and though we have different instruments, harmonies, and rhythms, it is a language that can get people to relate to each other despite discrepancies moral or political beliefs, geographical locations, etc. Listening to the songs, and watching the videos never fails to bring a smile to my face, and some joy to my heart.
The wine that I associate with this type of exuberance is one that I have fallen hopelessly in love with (hopelessly, because its price tag is a constant reminder that we were never meant to be together…at least for long). A wine, that is described as, “a vineyard in a bottle” – 2007 K Vintners “the Boy” (90% Grenache, 10% Syrah). Like I said, I will not bring in tasting notes here, because for the purpose of this pairing, they are of little importance. Every single time I have tried this wine, its liveliness has lifted me up (no, it was not just the alcohol). The grapes for this wine are sourced from one of Cayuses’ vineyards, which are farmed biodynamically, and produce a low per-acre yield, resulting in amazingly expressive fruit. I’ve had the wine during dinner, at the winery with some friends, at my house by myself, and every single time, despite the fact that the circumstances surrounding the wine differed, I felt more optimistic, more hopeful, more positive.
This is why I have paired this wine with the “Playing for Change” experience. The wine, like the music, fuels a transformation from pessimism to optimism. From “half-empty” to “half-full.” From “this world is spiraling towards self-destruction” to “we just might make it after all.”
Here is the video of the song that started it all. Please visit their website and support this movement, and watch some of the videos, they’re great!
