There seems to be an increasing number of wineries broadening the experiences they offer with live music events. The styles of music we can experience at local wineries are as expansive as the range of wines they produce, from kick-back country to roll-on rock and everything in between.
The combination of enjoying fine wines together with tasty tunes is seemingly a winning experience. So, does the style of music actually enhance the quality and characteristics of wine?
If we gravitate towards a certain style of music or a specific band or artist, then there’s a better than an odds-on chance that listening to this music puts us in a good mood. Same with wine – we all have preferences for styles and varieties of wine which also elevate us into a happy place. It stands to reason then that if we combine the music we like with the wine we love, the experience is heightened to a level greater than the sum of its parts.
A study into this phenomenon was carried out by Professor Adrian North at a Scottish university around a decade ago. A report on his work indicates that the Prof. conducted a study with 250 students and had them taste the same red Cabernet wine or white Chardonnay wine and then listen to various styles of music.
The characteristics of the music were categorised as “Zingy/fresh”, “Powerful/heavy”, “Mellow/soft”, and “Subtle/refined”. The students were asked to rate the wines from zero – “The wine definitely does not have this characteristic” to 10 – “The wine definitely does have this characteristic”.
With the results in, the same wine was judged as being more zingy and fresh by those who were listening to Zingy/fresh music, more powerful and heavy by those listening to Powerful/heavy music and so on. Enough of a result to suggest that the taste of a wine can be influenced by the music in our ears. The results were put down to “cognitive priming theory”, where the music sets a tone for the brain to respond to wine in a particular way.
An enterprising Chilean winemaker called Montes decided to level up the investigation and zero in on specific music tracks and grape varieties that combined to produce a more positive experience. Some recommendations he made include Cabernet Sauvignon with ‘Honky Tonk Woman’ by the Rolling Stones, Chardonnay with ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It’ by Tina Turner and Merlot with ‘Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay’ by Otis Redding.
So, the next time you’re having a drink, chilling out and tapping a toe to a tune, stop and think – yeah, nah, well, maybe!
Cheers! Brent Lello
