Last weekend, I spent the evening with extended family on the pristine grounds at Tanglewood, the summer residence of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the Berkshire mountains. While children tossed balls and frisbees along the edge of the sprawling lawn, picnickers sat on blankets and chairs enjoying the summer night before the 8:30 concert–a performance of Berlioz’s Requiem–began.

In need of a match to light a bug-repelling candle, I wandered around in search, veering toward a table that had four votives twinkling. When I arrived in front of the table–covered in a white cloth–and asked for a light, I couldn’t help but notice that the couple who sat in front of the table was sipping their sparkling wine from crystal flutes, the bottle of bubbly was sitting in a silver ice bucket amid the votives, and there was even a candle snuffer waiting to do its job.

I went back to our much less formal spread, sat on a cozy blanket and sipped an Alexander Valley cabernet sauvignon. I’m not particularly a great fan of choral music, but as the concert went on, I became increasingly focused on the voices and truly enjoyed the music to my ears. It was a nearly perfect night (my kids’ presence would have made it completely perfect), and it made me wonder about the connection of drinking wine and listening to music. Can music actually influence how we taste wine?

According to some sources, yes it can. A joint study conducted by Scotland’s Heriot-Watt University and wine company Montes claims that music can alter the taste of wine.

The research was conducted with 250 adults. In return for a glass of wine, a group of five people were played the four pieces of music and asked to try to match each of these to one of the four perceptions investigated by the research, namely ‘powerful and heavy’, ‘subtle and refined’, ‘zingy and refreshing’, and ‘mellow and soft’

The study’s conclusion reads: Background music influences the taste of wine. The specific taste of the wine was influenced in a manner consistent with the mood evoked by the music. If the background music was powerful and heavy then the wine was perceived as more powerful and heavy than when no background music was played. If the background music was subtle and refined then the wine was perceived as more subtle and refined than when no background music was played. If the background music was zingy and refreshing then the wine was perceived as more zingy and refreshing than when no background music was played. If the background music was mellow and soft then the wine was perceived as more mellow and soft than when no background music was played. The magnitude of these effects was not insubstantial, and they were stronger for red wine than for white.

Next time you are listening to music and sipping wine, perhaps you’ll give some extra thought to the musical notes and whether or not they enhancing the taste of what’s in your glass…

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“Red red wine, go to my head, make me forget…”

There are drinking songs—songs that make you want to drink—and then there are songs that remind you of certain nights, certain drinks.

Every time I hear UB40’s song, “Red Red Wine,” I’m transported back to a night, freshman year of college, when the guy who lived across the hall from me and I decided to play “drinking” Trivial Pursuit (yes, this was back in the 80s).  Our drink of choice: a gallon jug of Ernest & Julio Gallo red.

I was pretty good at Trivial Pursuit, but there were still lots of stumpers like: Name the dancers on the Jackie Gleason show (Answer: The June Taylor dancers).

By the end of a few hours or so, my roommate walked in and found four legs, twined together. Turns out we were under the bed, making out while “Red Red Wine” looped over and over on the record player (yes, that’s how old I am).

We want to know…what’s your favorite drinking song? A literal drinking song, or a song that makes you think about drinking.

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I don’t know about you, but live music makes me thirsty. Whether it’s the soft acoustic sound of a female vocalist (which may inspire a glass of sauvignon blanc), or the pounding of the bass guitar blaring from stage speakers (definitely a Sam Adams beer or equivalent), music and drinking do not always–but often do–go together for me.

So it seemed the perfect evening when I discovered that the City Winery in NYC, a small restaurant winery/restaurant/music venue where I’d recently sat up close for a Shawn Colvin show (dining on flat bread pizza and sharing a bottle of Malbec with my hubby), was hosting a night of music and wine. Not just any music, but the Top 20 Songs of ALL TIME (voted by listeners of a New York radio sation, 104.3) played by a cover band. With my husband’s nod of approval, I booked us two tickets.

Last night, we arrived at the City Winery at about 7:00 and had our choice of tables. Once we were seated, our placemat announced the event: “Top 20 Songs Paired with 20 Wines!” This would be a night to remember. Thankfully, there would also be a smattering of 6 small food courses.

On our right sat a youngish couple–he was a music-lover and chef at nearby restaurant whose family owned the largest chain of head shops on the East Coast (no joke); his wife was a wine-loving bartender. To our left was a table of three 30-something women, all married  but clearly out for a girls’ night of fun.

The band, all the way from Long Island, got on stage and started with the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter,” which was paired with a glass of Cava, a sparkling wine from Spain. From there, musical highlights included Billy Joel’s “Piano Man,” The Beatles’ “Let It Be,” Bruce’s “Thunder Road” and of course, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird.”

As the music and wine countdown progressed from number 20 to number 1, more and more people–mostly women–got looser and got up to dance. And that’s when it hit me, live music makes people happy. And alcohol makes people less inhibited (or me, anyway) and freer to shake their booty. I watched these women strutting and waving their arms, and I knew exactly how they felt–free of judgement and inspired to move with the beat. It was beautiful. One of them even snuck onto the stage, dancing behind the band members while they played, and waving to her two friends beside me. It was hilarious.

My husband isn’t a big dancer, so I just bounced around (a lot) in my seat, clapping, shouting and waving my arms in between sips of a Cabernet or Pouilly Fume. I contemplated getting up and dancing with the gals who bonded as they boogied, but decided to stay in my seat. Music and wine. It was just pure fun.