The Great Led Zeppelin Wine Pairing

Matching Zep’s music to Italian food and wine: it's "freakishly sophisticated and patently absurd"

On Tues., March 17, we skipped out on green beer in favor of an extreme sensory experience that could've only been improved with laser lights: The Great Led Zeppelin Wine Pairing at Becco.

"Our passion for wine is only rivaled by our passion for Zeppelin," says bigwig restaurateur Joe Bastianich (Babbo, Del Posto, most things Batali), who's partnered with hedonistic author and former 'High Times' publisher Mike Edison (pictured, also of 'I Have Fun Everywhere I Go') to pair Zep's raw, nuanced and occasionally apocalyptic music with fine wine and Italian food. Esteemed wine writer David Lynch (no, not that David Lynch) was on hand to discuss why "Black Dog" calls for an Argentinean Malbec, while Becco executive chef Billy Gallagher developed a six-course menu for the event, pairing each plate with a Zeppelin song.  

Long-time Led-head Bastianich encouraged attendees to "taste with their ears and listen with their mouths," a sensory mix-up psychiatrists refer to as "synesthesia" but Zeppelin fans call good weed. —Bret Stetka