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MUSIC AND WINE: HOW TO MAKE YOUR WINE TASTES BETTER AND NOT WORSE!
AUG 2012

If food, glassware, perfumes can affect the wine a glass tastes, why wouldn't music? Some songs inspires, some songs make us want to dance, some songs make us sad, some songs carry us back in time. Music, whether we realize or not, does affect our emotions and that will influence what wine we choose as well as how it tastes.

Professor Adrian North from Henriot Watt University has conducted a supermarket research playing French and German music in the background. Consumers were not told the nature of the music. The study revealed that that consumers were five times more likely to buy French wine than German wine if accordion music (French) was played in the background. When an oompah band (German) was played, consumers were twice as likely to buy German wines. (North, Hargreaves, & McKendrick 1997)

Another interesting study (Areni & Kim, 1993) explored the impact of classical music vs. top 40 music on consumers. Classical music has often been stereotyped to wealth and sophistication. The study revealed that playing classical music in the background induced consumers to buy more expensive wines than playing top 40 music.

Professor North carried the research further, experimenting if music could influence the taste of wine? Experimenets were conducted on 250 adults against various controls. The differences between with music and no music conditions were significant. Music shifted the perception of wine to the moods primed by music by an average of 37.25%. For example, if the background music was zingy and refreshing, then the wine was perceived as more zingy and refreshing than when no music was in the background. (North, Wine & Song)

How can we leverage this knowledge ? Make the wine tastes better with the right music pairing !

Below are few tips that can give you a better wine and music pairing experience:

  • Pairing is by songs. In an album, a song can pair well with a white off-dry Riesling while the next would pair well with a bold, well-structured Cabernet Sauvignon;
  • Think of melodies and moods -- a quick-beat, happy, and lively melody could pair well with a refreshing, crispy sauvignon blanc; an upbeat american pop with passionate and vibrant vocals may go well with a sexy, bold american pop red;
  • Think of structure -- a layered songs with different musical instruments can go well with a layered wine;
  • Think of origin -- a Spanish salsa would go well with a Garnacha.








The best part of wine and music pairing -- every song has a different appeal to a different person. There is never a right and wrong in wine and music pairing, just individual preference. Below are some of my favorite music and wine pairing:

感情線上, 信者得愛 (Sammi) with a refreshing Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc.
Desafinado (Bossa Nova) with Vray Croix de Gay.
Para Que La Vida (Enrique Iglesias) with Alion.
Born This Way (Lady Gaga) with Flying Horse Petite Syrah.
Tanto Tempo (Bebel Gilberto) with Dujac Charmes Chambertin Grand Cru.
Tous Les Garcons Et Les Filles (Francois Hardy) with Jean Grivot Vosne Romanee Pinot Noir.

We urge you to explore and discover yours.

Last but not least, we will have an upcoming event exploring wine and music. If interested, let us know and we will contact you when we have the event details !

 

 

 
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