On Valentine's Day, there are several things that are required: wine, love songs, chocolate, and snuggles. Since you need to have each of these ingredients to prepare the perfect day, why not work to combine them to enhance their compatibility? Thankfully, one of the easiest and most romantic ways to do this is by matching your favorite love songs to the perfect glass of vino.
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Like all beautifully orchestrated romantic gestures, creating a playlist to pair with your selected bottle of libation is a time-intensive labor of love. It takes attention, care, passion, and a little knowledge about your partner.
However, there are a few songs that span generations and personalities to give everyone the warm fuzzies. They are those beautiful hymns that transcend boundaries and speak to the soul. They are the reason you fall in love as a child and they are the rekindler of relationships. In essence, they are the words you cannot speak to your love.
This Valentine's Day, add some true love to the mix. Pair these eight ballads with carefully selected glasses of wine that will make listening to the sounds of love (which can often be sappy) into a transcendent experience.
1. 'Rose of My Heart' by Johnny Cash & June Carter + Oaked California Chardonnay
The best partners the world has ever seen may well be Johnny Cash and June Carter in this emotionally wrenching duet. Overflowing with the deep, satin of Cash's voice and his wife's harmonies, you can't help but imagine this is what love would be if it were tangible.
Indulge in the silky smokiness of the duo's voices and rhythms while sipping on a glass of oaked California Chardonnay.
Find the whole beautiful album here for multiple streaming options.
2. 'Something' by The Beatles + Chianti Classico
This is the first piece that George Harrison penned for the Beatles, and it perfectly shows how the man in the back is just as full of emotion as the one in the front. Perhaps even more.
Capturing the swirling, disconcerting flow of emotion that accompanies infatuation, this song is a beautiful Valentine's anthem that pairs perfectly with an emotionally provocative and romantically inclined Chianti Classico.
If you don't already own the masterpiece, it's time to change that. Find it here with multiple streaming options.
3. 'Your Song' by Elton John + Riesling
As far as serenades go, this one is a bit jumbled in its thought process. With its incomplete musings and moments of forgetfulness, this song's fumbling lyrics give it the charm of a homemade gift.
Infuse this heartfelt song with more sincerity by pairing it with a riesling. A riesling's inherent versatility and forthright character is a great option to pair with this tune.
Looking for a full Elton John fix? Find the whole album here with multiple streaming options available.
4. 'Water Under the Bridge' by Adele + Port
If one of Adele's ballads sung in her bold, beautiful voice wasn't on this list, you'd probably question the validity of this compilation.
In Water Under the Bridge, she croons to her lover whom she doesn't want to lose to the currents of changing passions. Indulge in the sticky sweetness of this song by pairing it with a port. It's flavors will perfectly match the pitch of this anthem.
Find the whole album here with multiple streaming options available.
5. 'The Way You Make Me Feel' by Michael Jackson + an Italian Inama Carmenere
This song may not be as romantic as it is lusty, but really there's room for both emotions of February 14. The king of pop expertly tags his listeners with Cupid's arrow as they listen to him earnestly express his feelings.
So if you need a little help saying what you want to this holiday, look no further than MJ. And maybe make sure you turn it on with a glass of spicy Italian Carmenère from the Inama region.
After all, anyone who has tried this bold Italian wine knows that it makes its intentions, I mean flavors, known quickly. Find the whole album here with multiple streaming options available.
6. 'Whole Lotta Love' by Led Zeppelin + Champagne
This takes the overt love of Michal Jackson's song and turns it up a notch. But really, how can you say no to Robert Plant. You know you're just going to turn this song up.
It is recommended to do so, however, with a glass of champagne. It's bright, bubbly, and will instantly put you in the mood for anything.
Find the whole album in all of its classic rock glory here with multiple streaming options.
7. 'Amarillo by Morning' by George Strait + California Zinfandel
This is a classic for anyone who grew up where country music was played. Even if you belong to the younger generation, you were probably introduced to this Terry Stafford song by George Strait himself.
Nothing can offer you a homier view of love than a country song, and nothing can be more indigenously American than a California Zin. Rustic, wild, and all American, nothing can be a better complement to a George Strait melody.
Find the whole album here and add it to your rotating collection.
8. 'God Only Knows' by the Beach Boys + Californian Rosé
Despite the potential controversy that the title of this song could have cause at its debut, it has become a universal humanist hymn.
The ethereal sounds of harpsichords and brass lay bare the emotional vulnerability of the lyricist who yearns for tenderness, devotion, and fidelity through unconventional means.
Celebrate love in its many manifestations with the Beach Boys and a bottle of unusually delicious Californian Rosé. Find the album that defined pop music's trajectory here.
