Okay, I'll admit it. I'm not as up on current music as I used to be. Play most any song from the late '70s and the '80s and I can name that tune (a skill that recently earned me a Lava Flow at Pool Bar Jim's in Hilton Head Island). So when I first tried a red wine called "Verse & Chorus" I had to ask "who is Mat Kearney?" I pay more attention now to wine labels than record labels.
Maybe not knowing him or his music made me be totally skeptical about another musician fronting a wine label. But I was pleasantly surprised when I tried this soft, rich and fruity wine, with notes of cherry, violets and chocolate. I liked it so much I immediately went to Whole Foods, where Verse & Chorus is sold exclusively, to buy more.
I got to learn even more about Mat Kearney thanks to my friend Monique Soltani. She's the host of Wine Oh TV and recently started the Wine Oh TV Wine Club, inviting four friends to join her to taste and dish about a wine she chooses. Think book club without the book (there's always more wine drinking than book discussion, isn't there?). We were also going to try the just-released Verse & Chorus Sauvignon Blanc.
Turns out that Verse & Chorus is a collaboration between Mat with Peju Winery in Napa Valley and Ian White (@InsiderNapa). In a post I did about the Whole Foods Wine Guys, Doug Bell says, "Where can you get Napa Valley Merlot and Cabernet grown right in the middle of Napa for under $30? That's a unique product made with somebody with soul."
The winemaker for the red blend Verse & Chorus (a Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon blend) is Rob Lloyd, a rock star himself, who also makes wine at Jessup Cellars. I have worked with Rob twice now on wine and perfume pairing events for Jessup's annual Dress to the Vines weekend. So I thought it would be fun to bring a few fragrances to pair with the Verse & Chorus red.
Joining me and Monique, three fabulous gals, all with different perspectives on wine, which makes the discussion fun and totally unpretentious. There's Gianna "Momma Wine Oh," who puts buying diapers for her newborn before wine; Chasta "Rockin' Wine Oh," who rocks it on air on a San Francisco radio station; Deb "Budget Wine Oh," who brings her accountant's eye to the mix. Me? I'm Mary "Fashionista Wine Oh."
Without further ado, check out this awesome Wine Oh TV video. Monique did a Skype interview with Mat, where you find out which of his songs he pairs with his wine. We also coin a new term for a perfumista and sommelier: perfummelier.