The Second Glass

There’s nothing like this most recent, New England brand of bone-chilling spring monsoon to put one in the mood for music of heartache and loss: the kind of songs that bring a tear to your eye, put a frog in your throat and just make you want to curl up inside a bottle somewhere.

The preceding was prompted by The Magnetic Fields’ “Love is Like a Bottle of Gin,” a lonely martini-sipping track, that popped up on my iPod after I hit shuffle. Creepy, the way even electronics can pick up on the general malaise. I was on my way to work. There’s nothing like a song about alcoholism to put me in the mood to work at the bar.

This of course led me thinking about what my ideal wine-drinking soundtrack would be. Is there one particular artist, genre or track that could go with any style of wine, regardless of the occasion? Of course not! As I see it there’s a song for every bottle. . As I have said in a previous post, the Shays’ Pinot Noir is a natural match for Shakira: that smooth, silky pour begs for a set of hip-swiveling beats. Beaujolais Nouveau, with its bubble-gummy goodness and ephemeral grace will always make me long for the days when Britney Spears actually fit into that red cat-suit.

Feeling more refined? A fine Cabernet driven Bordeaux is a symphony in a glass, and as such practically screams for a blast of Beethoven. Why not Mozart? His subtlety and finesse are more reminiscent of a Pinot Noir, preferably one from the Cote de Beaune. A more modern

This is not to imply that the whites should be left out of the fun: Viognier, in all its honeyed, vibrant glory could share the spot-light only with Neko Case. Nico of Velvet Underground fame is an entirely different story: that haunting, steely austerity would be the perfect complement a similarly bone-dry Reisling. But who needs vocals when you are drinking Gruner-Veltliner? This white-pepper-and- peach pizzazz of this Austrian bad-boy needs something electronic, instrumental and a beat that you can dance to. I even have Appellation America to back me up on that one!

I’m already having too much fun with this; I think I’ve discovered a new drinking game. Want to play? I’m in good company, Neil of Neil Drinks Wine has a Blogspot chock full of music references. Beau Jarvis of Basicjuice.com, posted his “random 5″ songs along with his wine review. One blog at a time…