If My Life Were a Playlist: Love, Cabernet, and Accordion Solos

Track 1: “La Vie en Rose” – Edith Piaf
Picture this: a ten-year-old me, feet dangling off a barstool in my parents’ Napa Valley tasting room, twirling a glass of sparkling apple juice as Edith Piaf’s crooning floated through the air. (I didn’t know a lick of French yet, but that didn’t stop me from belting out what I thought were the words.) This song was my first flirtation with romance—the kind you felt in the air but didn’t yet fully understand. My parents were glowing hosts, pouring vintage reds for guests who leaned into one another, murmuring over charcuterie boards and candlelight.

From then on, "La Vie en Rose" became an anthem for those hazy, magical moments suspended in time—sharing a glass of something rich, losing yourself in a stranger’s eyes, or simply walking home after a dinner where the laughter flowed as freely as the wine.

For me, it’s a reminder that romance isn’t always about the grand gestures; it’s the little rhythms. The clink of glasses. The accidental brushing of hands. (And, okay, sometimes an acoustic French accordion doesn’t hurt either.)

Track 2: “Landslide” – Fleetwood Mac
The first time I had my heart broken, the vineyards turned to sepia. If you’ve ever cried into a glass of Merlot, you’ll know what I mean—there’s nothing quite like harmonizing with Stevie Nicks as she gently destroys what’s left of your pride. Late one summer, after a long-distance love crumble (a tale involving too many trans-Atlantic emails and not enough phone calls), “Landslide” played on a loop, narrating my emotional avalanche.

Looking back, I see that year not as a landslide but a harvest. Heartbreak forces a reckoning. You whittle yourself back down to what matters. It’s when I rediscovered my love for storytelling, throwing myself into food writing as a way to process emotions, practice gratitude, and, above all, heal.

To anyone weathering their own breakup soundtrack: Feel every aching note but remember, the grape only becomes wine after it’s been crushed.

Track 3: “Harvest Moon” – Neil Young
Dating in Napa Valley comes with its own quirks. Want to charm someone? Take them to a secret barrel tasting and casually identify a hint of black cherry in your glass. Want to scare them off? Pair oysters with Pinot Noir and admit you’re out of your depth.

On one memorable date beneath—you guessed it—a harvest moon, Neil Young crooned from the speakers of my beat-up Subaru as we shared a picnic of brie, baguette, and a questionable rosé. The man? Forgettable. The wine? Surprisingly good. But the song? A keeper for life.

“Harvest Moon” is my reminder to slow down and savor the now—the sway of tall grasses in the evening light, the crisp snap of an apple shared under the sky. Whether you’re on a date or just learning to fall in love with yourself, romance lives in these quiet gestures.

Track 4: “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” – Beyoncé
Sometimes, you just need Beyoncé to knock some sense into you. My best friend and I made this our anthem during our “Single Summer Reset”—an 8-week pact to stop romanticizing past flings and start celebrating independent bliss. And by “celebrating,” I mean wine-powered backyard karaoke sessions and a lot of foot stomping in the kitchen.

Being single in your thirties can feel like an odd wine pairing at times. (Am I still bubbly prosecco, fun and carefree? Or am I an aged cabernet, "complex" and a little broody?) Either way, “Single Ladies” is a mood booster for those moments when you feel like the only person left filling out their own RSVP for weddings.

Because let’s be real: Beyoncé taught us that you don’t need a plus-one to own the dance floor.

Track 5: “Perfect Day” – Lou Reed
One evening in Bordeaux, I found myself sitting at a café, a notebook in one hand and a cup of espresso in the other, as Lou Reed’s gravelly voice spilled out into the cobblestone street. The sky was impossibly pink, baguettes were tucked under the arms of passersby, and somewhere in the background, someone was trying—and failing—to parallel park a tiny Peugeot.

That was my first solo trip anywhere, a spontaneous post-college wanderlust adventure. (Well, “adventure” might be pushing it; I mostly ate pain au chocolat and regretted my inability to drop the phrase à point while ordering steak.) But it was also the trip where I learned to embrace my own company, to romance myself. Dinner for one, but make it a three-course affair.

“Perfect Day” is that slice of time where nothing’s happening, and yet, everything feels just right. It’s the feeling of stepping outside your comfort zone and realizing that you’re your own perfect company.

Track 6: “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen
Let’s end this on a lighter note, because few things rival the sheer joy of screaming Queen lyrics as you drive through the Napa Valley hills. Admittedly, this “track” doesn’t have some deep lesson attached to it. It’s just my go-to for unleashing all inhibitions—whether I’m celebrating good news or need a cathartic break after answering one too many vague text messages like “You up?”

Here’s the thing about soundtracks: They’re messy and change with the seasons, evolving faster than a glass of wine when it hits the air. And that’s the beauty of it. The songs that define us aren’t always love ballads or poetic reflections; they’re the ones that remind us to laugh at ourselves, to take risks, and to keep pressing play, no matter what.

So, what’s on your playlist?