Country + California Zinfandel
The Music
Essence: Stems from folk expressions of rural American South and West; a uniquely American form that found its greatest success crossing over with other popular styles; often romantic and melancholy
Listen: Patsy Cline, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Garth Brooks, Taylor Swift
The Wine Style
Essence: Rustic, wild and all-American, California Zin embodies a unique style all its own. Boasting comforting flavors of wild berries and briary herbs, top pours also feature lush, silky notes and hints of vanilla.
Drink: Kenwood 2011 Jack London Vineyard Zinfandel
Grab your favorite Zin and try out the pairing with this playlist:
Jazz + Oregon Pinot Noir
The Music
Essence: Twentieth-century genre that fuses African tradition with popular American idioms; both technical and intuitive; improvisatory and ever-changing; never experienced the same way twice
Listen: Duke Ellington, Fats Waller, Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis
The Wine Style
Essence: Like jazz, Oregon Pinot Noir riffs on the classics, marrying modern and traditional winemaking. Top producers draw inspiration from Pinot’s spiritual home, Burgundy, but allow themselves to play with the grape’s inherent complexity. The best bottles reveal focused layers of cherry and chocolate, deep notes that linger long after the last drop.
Drink: Domaine Drouhin Oregon 2012 Pinot Noir
Chill out with an Oregon Pinot and some tunes:
Indie/Alternative + Finger Lakes Riesling
The Music
Essence: Highly individual and not made for mass appeal; has basis in iconoclastic artists of the 1970s; takes from familiar elements to create something new; can be soft and sweet, or intense and discordant
Listen: The Smiths, Arcade Fire, The Replacements, Grizzly Bear, Nirvana
The Wine Style
Essence: A versatile performer wherever it’s grown, Riesling varies in style from rich and unctuous to austere and brisk. Rock-star somms love the grape; in particular, the myriad great bottles coming out of New York’s Finger Lakes. You won’t find mom and dad’s Blue Nun here. These pours sing with lemony citrus and green notes, rocking fresh peach and mineral flavors.
Drink: Red Tail Ridge 2012 Dry Riesling
Drink in some Riesling with this indie playlist:
Classic Rock + Australian Shiraz
The Music
Essence: Powerful style that found mass popularity in the 1960s through the ’80s; generally comfortable and nostalgic, with wide appeal; artists may have been radical at first, but now verge on mainstream
Listen: Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, Queen, Journey, Tom Petty
The Wine Style
Essence: Like that great Scorpions anthem, Australian Shiraz will rock you like a hurricane. An electric blend of bright fruit and warm, mouth-filling texture, Shiraz straddles power and grace.
Drink: Kaesler 2010 Stonehorse Shiraz
Pair this curated playlist with a bottle of Shiraz:
Rap/Hip-Hop + Slovenian Orange Wine
The Music
Essence: An expression of the young, urban and challenged; innovative and socially aware; uncompromising, often funky and controversial
Listen: N.W.A., Tupac Shakur, MC Lyte, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar
The Wine Style
Essence: Hip-hop redefined the music scene by challenging the status quo and questioning established norms. Orange wine—that is, white wine that has seen skin contact—is divisive in its own right, with fans and detractors vociferously drawing lines in the sand. Expect au courant orange wines to pack funky flavors and in-your-face tannins.
Drink: Movia 2008 Lunar
Give the pairing a go with this playlist:
Classical + Bordeaux
The Music
Essence: Serious form rooted in established Western tradition instead of popular trends; goes back millennia; includes pioneers tweaking tradition with new interpretations
Listen: Ludwig Van Beethoven, Igor Stravinsky, Richard Wagner, John Cage, Michael Nyman
The Wine Style
Essence: No wine embodies “classic” as much as Bordeaux. The region from which many winemakers take their cues, these wines represent the pinnacle of greatness and tradition, imbued with smoky, woody aromas, and, in young age, overtures of deep fruit perfectly balanced with leather flavors.
Drink: Château Lagrange 2011 Saint-Julien
