Champagne house Krug has a habit of teaming up with musicians, and its latest collaboration might be the most immersive yet. From 28 to 30 September, the house is taking over Larrabee Studios in North Hollywood — the studio where the likes of Michael Jackson, Fleetwood Mac, Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys and Blink 182 have recorded — for a series of intimate tasting dinners that blend champagne with live music-making.
The concept, called The Art of Blending Krug and Sound, works like this: a small group of guests gathers in Studio 6, one of the most acoustically refined rooms in the business, alongside studio owner Manny Marroquin (a 15-time Grammy winner) and producers Scott Tibbs, Nick Rosen and Mike Bennett. Everyone tastes through a line-up of top Krug cuvées, including the Krug 2013 vintage and the Grande Cuvée 169ème Édition, and talks through the memories and emotions each glass stirs up. The composers then turn those reactions into an original piece of music, performed live — which means no two evenings will sound the same.
It's not just a gimmick, at least according to Krug's chef de caves Julie Cavil, who frames the project as a conversation between taste and sound. Food is part of that conversation too: Oscar Torres of LA restaurant Verse has designed a paired menu for the dinners, and a further selection of Krug cuvées will be poured alongside it.
If you can't snag a seat (tickets are being sold through Tock, and capacity is tiny), there's a backup. Torres's paired menu will be available for one month after the studio sessions at both Verse and its neighbour Mensano, so diners in Los Angeles can still get a taste of the collaboration.
Music is a running theme for Krug. Oscar-winning composer Max Richter recently staged a one-night concert at London's Roundhouse built around a piece inspired by drinking Krug, with the audience sipping paired pours as he played. Before that, the house worked with jazz pianist Jacky Terrasson, Belgian electronic artist Ozark Henry, and even The Clash's Mick Jones, who joined forces with Krug in 2016 for a one-day festival on a private island.
Why should a traveller care? For fans of wine and food experiences with a twist, this is the kind of ticketed event that rarely comes around twice — a studio most people will only ever hear about in album credits, opened up for a handful of guests per night. If you're in Los Angeles in late September and can justify the splurge, it's worth a look on Tock. And if the dinners are gone, the month-long restaurant menu at Verse and Mensano is a more attainable way in.