Love is in the air. No, it’s not spring time, yet. But everywhere we turn there are hearts, X’s and O’s, and everything is done up in red. It is Valentine season. Here at Pairings Wine and Cheese, we’ve been busy selecting the perfect pairing of sparkling wine and cheese to cozy up next to the fire with on that day set aside for romance.
We picked the Baumard non-vintage Cremant de Loire from the Loire region of France – a Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc blend – fresh, pleasant, crisp and balanced paired with the Cana de Cabra – a Spanish goat cheese that is creamy and mild, with a full and happily satisfying flavor. Tangy citrus notes balance the rich creaminess of the cheese (www.PairingsWineandCheese.com).
As we were driving home from the pairings tasting, I was struck by how many songwriters reference wine in their lyrics. Not all are love songs, but quite a few are. If you want to make a play list to enjoy with sipping the Baumard and enjoying the Cana de Cabra here is a list that I have compiled with the help of the world wide web:
A Taste of Honey by Tom Jones
“…honey, much sweeter than wine”
Best of My Love by the Eagles
“wasting our time on cheap talk and wine, left us so little to give”
Big Shot by Billy Joel
“You had the Dom Perignon in your hand and the spoon up your nose”
Children’s Crusade by Sting
“History’s lessons drowned in red wine”
Daydream by Wave
“Sunshine, strawberry wine
a little taste of leather and lace ”
Dust on the Bottle by David Lee Murphy
“Some say good love, well it’s like a fine wine
It keeps getting better as the days go by”
Elvira by The Oak Ridge Boys
“Eyes that look like heaven, lips like sherry wine”
Half a Mile Away by Billy Joel
“Little Geo is a friend of mine
We get some money and we buy a cheap wine
Sit on the corner and have a holiday
Hide the bottle when the cop goes by”
Honky Cat by Elton John
“Living in the city ain’t where it’s at
It’s like trying to find gold in a silver mine
It’s like trying to drink whisky from a bottle of wine
Hotel California by the Eagles
“Please bring me my wine, he said ‘We haven’t had that spirit here since 1969′” … and “Pink Champagne on Ice ..”
Incense & Peppermints by Strawberry Alarm Clock
“Incense and peppermints and strawberry wine…”
Ironic by Alanis Morrisette
“it’s a black fly in your chardonnay”
Killer Queen by Queen
“She keeps Moet et Chandon in a pretty cabinet”
(Moet et Chandon is a brand of Champagne)
Lady Marmalade by Christina Aguilera etc.
“boy drank all that magnolia wine”
“we drink wine with diamonds in the glass”
Livin’ La Vida Loca by Ricky Martin
“She never drinks the water, makes you order French Champagne”
Louisiana Hot Sauce by Sammy Kershaw
“She’s Louisiana Hot Sauce
Hotter than a fireball
Smoother than strawberry wine”
Never Tear Us Apart by INXS
“If I hurt you, I’d make wine from your tears”
Scenes from an Italian Restaurant by Billy Joel
“Bottle of Red, Bottle of White”
These Are the Days by Van Morrison
“turn water into wine”
Tin Cup Chalice by Jimmy Buffett
“With a tin cup for a chalice, fill it up with good red wine”
Tiny Bubbles by Don Ho
The entire song is about Champagne 
Watermelon Crawl by Tracy Byrd
“we got a hunderd (sic) gallons a’ sweet red wine,
made from the biggest watermelons on the vine…”
And my personal favorite:
Joy to the World by Three Dog Night
“Jeremiah was a bull frog.
Was a good friend of mine.
Never understood a single word he said,
but he always had some mighty fine wine.”
Have any to add??