If The Barley House’s wine and jazz nights were a sandwich filling, they would be peanut butter and jelly. The smooth sounds of jazz would be represented by creamy – not chunky – peanut butter and the sweet taste of wine would be the jelly. We’re not sure what kind of bread it would be on, but it would certainly be something more luxurious than white.
What we’re getting at is that some things just go together and much like PB&J, wine and jazz make a delicious duo.
The Barley House, 132 N. Main St., must know this because it recently unveiled wine and jazz evenings the second and fourth Monday of every month beginning at 6 p.m. This means guaranteed live jazz by either David Tonkin or Scott Solsky (Dave takes the first event of the month; Scott, the second) and $10 off any bottle of wine on the wine list. Something to keep in mind – in New Hampshire you’re allowed to cork a bottle and bring it home from a restaurant if you don’t finish it. So, even if you’re drinking by your lonesome, you can still take advantage of this deal and be a responsible drinker.
Because we like our libations with some melody, on Feb. 8 we brought ourselves to The Barley House to experience the event with our own ears and taste buds. Not only were we treated to toe-tapping music by David Tonkin but Josh Stratfod, a representative from Horizon Beverage Co., was set up in the bar’s corner with two varieties of wine for patrons to sample.
The first wine we tasted was the Mercer Pinot Gris (2007) – a clean, crisp white that goes well with seafood, chicken and hard cheeses. Josh best described it as a “porch-drinking wine,” which it certainly was. Sipping the wine we detected fruitiness (peach especially) and were immediately wishing we were someplace a tad warmer so we could sit outside and drink wine without getting frostbite.
Josh then served the Stonehedge Terroir Select Cabernet Sauvignon (2005). This medium-bodied red would go well with a variety of food ranging from red meats to chocolate. Much like the Mercer it also works well as a sipping wine thanks to its easy drinkability, but instead of enjoying it on your back porch, we’d like to call it “sitting-in-front of the fireplace wine” since its not as sweet and summery feeling.
Personally, I liked the Mercer better even though I’m typically a fan of reds. Not to diss the Stonehedge which was quite tasty, but the Mercer had a more memorable flavor to it. On the other hand, I may just be jonesing for summertime.
Luckily you can decide for yourself which wine you like better because, according to The Barley House’s Nicole Venne, both wines will eventually be added to the wine list. The only cause for delay is that they have to wait for other wines to make their way out in to free up space on their menu for the newbies.
Get acquainted with some of the wines on the Barley House’s current list by stopping by the next wine and jazz evening on Feb. 22 at 6 p.m. For more information about The Barley House, visit thebarleyhouse.com or call 228-6363.
