Happy Friday!

And happy August!

This week's song pairing came out of my listening research for Monday's tunes I'm singing with the Ted Nash Big Band at Dizzy's -- for those of you who can't come, I'll explain next week after it's all gone down.:)

Enjoy and cheers!

Juice

It seems odd to recommend something based on what it isn’t, or what hasn’t been done to it. But I suppose in wine, as in art, what’s left out is as important as what’s in.
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This week’s wine is a stunner because the glass is, to this point, both half full and half empty.
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Let’s start with the full part: Domaine de l’Idylls’s “l’Itentitè d’un Terroir” mondeuse 2020 from the Savoie region in France is an intriguing and uplifting expression of this lesser known grape from this alpine area.

Licorice, mint, lavender and cardamom waft out of the glass, the aromatics intensifying the longer it’s open — and a tart, restrained black cherry fruit segues to a gracefully dry finish. It's my first mondeuse, and I know it will be the first of many!

The winery is organic, independent and sustainable. Which means a lot of things aren’t in there (pesticides, additives, additional sulfites*) and no oak means the fruit speaks with purity. These decisions of omission, in this case, make the wine a true and compelling expression of its terroir.

*sulfites, like oak, aren't a bad thing. It's just a choice made for this bottle. I have a lot to say about the demonization of sulfites in general, but Marisa Ross says it best in this piece.

Jazz

I love lyrics. I won’t sing a song if the lyrics don’t feel right to me, and when I write them, they guide all my musical decisions thereafter.
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This week’s song pairing is from a singer who can create entire soundscapes, and travel worlds, entirely devoid of them. Bobby McFerrin’s “Beyond Words”(Blue Note, 2002) is as the title suggests, a musical journey that is fuller for not having a word uttered.

I chose the track “Kalimba Suite” because it has the deft lift our wine this week has. McFerrin paints a sonic portrait of Africa in watercolor with his precise, breath infused tone. It’s not so much that he isn’t speaking words, he’s letting the music, and the place, speak for itself.

This record is filled with many terroirs , my other favorite being the invigorating “Ziggurat.”

Kalimba Suite Bobby McFerrin PREVIEW   ​

I loved reading your responses to last week's pairing! Let me know how you enjoy this one.

Till the next,

Kristen

P.S.: If you have a wine/jazz curious person in your life, feel free to send 'em along to the main page where they can check out the archive, and maybe subscribe! Thanks for sharing.:)