Wine pairing can be an interesting challenge, embarrassing to stumble over in the wrong company. Wine and food are easy, or at least routine, compared to pairing wine and music; especially the music at this year's Outside Lands Music & Art Festival. Deadmau5 and a Napa Valley syrah? A bit of John Fogerty with a sip of chardonnay? Phish and… well, there will be fish there too.
The celebration of music, food, wine, and art takes place this weekend in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. As music festivals go, this has distinct California twist: a lineup to rival the Lollapaloozas and Boonaroos of the music scene with enough delicious food and wine to overwhelm and art installations throughout to showcase the west coast's most talented artists. When I first heard of Outside Lands earlier this summer, I immediately purchased a ticket to enjoy the lineup alone; it's been a continuous treat discovering everything the festival has in beyond superb music. I can't wait.
Muse, Phish, and Arcade Fire headline the three day festival. Phish will be leading off the event Friday night with a show hopefully as unique as the festival itself: Phish is known for improvisation, extended jam sessions, and outlandish costumes and visuals. No two Phish shows are intended to be the same. To follow, Muse will be rocking Saturday night. Outside Lands is one of a limited number of stops the alt-rockers are making this year. Rumor is they're concurrently developing an album to follow 2009's The Resistance. The festival shuts its doors Sunday night closes with Arcade Fire, here to share indie love with San Francisco after winning 2011 Grammy for Album of the Year for their third studio album, The Suburbs.
Beyond those acts are plenty of musical treats to go well with a glass of Cabernet: previously mentioned Deadmau5 and John Fogerty (of Creedence Clearwater Revival fame), the soulful sounds of Erykah Badu, the bluesy rock of Ohio-natives The Black Keys, Girl Talk, The Roots, MGMT, The Decembrists and more.
Beyond a strong music lineup, Outside Lands pays respect to its San Francisco roots (no pun intended) by greening the entire festival. On arrival, revelers will be greeted with free bike valet. The hope is anyone able will cycle to the festival, thereby reducing traffic congestion and keeping Mother Nature happy. Ambitious green initiatives continue inside the festival, most notably a heavy reliance on solar power. Paper Diamond and Sonny & the Sunsets, two artists playing on the Panhandle stage, have the Mr. Sunshine to thank as the entire stage is powered by the sun. Additionally, Outside Lands includes a locally-grown farmer's market and urban agriculture workshops to introduce San Fran urbanites to city garden-growing strategies.
For those who won't be packing a lunch for the weekend, San Francisco restaurateurs are in full force for The Taste of the Bay. A few examples to paint you a delicious picture: crisp-toasted and gooey gourmet grilled cheese from the American Grilled Cheese Kitchen, locally raised and grass-fed burgers from 4505 Meats, innovative food creations like the buttermilk fried chicken sandwich with apple jalapeno slaw from Brass Knuckles and creamy shakes from Milk Shake Werks. More than 50 restaurants in total make Outside Lands a foodie paradise.
As the week nears a close, one of the most exciting weekends in San Francisco is upon us. If you're in the bay area this weekend, enjoy the sounds of Arcade Fire and STS9, a sip of world-class California wine from Bonny Doon vineyards and a bite of Frozen Cup frozen yogurt sandwich while you walk through art installations and local galleries. It should be a quintessential summer event with a California twist.
