If you’ve ever visited us, you know wine and music aren’t just themes at Bells Up — they’re the foundation. Dave doesn’t simply make wine; he composes it.
Each blend is shaped the way a conductor balances an orchestra: tension and release, brightness and depth, movement from opening note to final resonance.
So a question we hear all the time is:
“Okay… but what does the music actually sound like?”
To answer that question, we created a Spotify Playlist showcasing the music that inspires names, textures, structures, and sometimes even the emotional goal of a blend. You don’t have to have the Spotify app to listen; you can just click the link below to access the playlist and hear the music via your Internet browser.
Listen to Bells Up's Spotify Playlist Here
Why Dave Builds Wine This Way
Music gives Dave a language for balance.
- Where does the wine enter?
- How does it rise?
- What resonates at the end?
Those aren’t just poetic questions — they shape real blending decisions. Maybe that’s why people often tell us our wines feel alive. They move. They unfold. They resolve. Like great music.
Here’s a guided listen through the cellar…
Rhapsody Estate Pinot Blanc
Named for: George Gershwin – Rhapsody in Blue
Expressive. Fluid. Unmistakably American.
Gershwin blurred boundaries between classical tradition and modern voice. Rhapsody Pinot Blanc lives in that same beautiful intersection. Bright opening notes give way to texture and length, creating a wine that feels both vibrant and sophisticated. A melody you want to replay.
Helios Estate Seyval Blanc
Named for: Carl Nielsen – Helios Overture, Op. 18
Sunrise in a glass.
Nielsen’s piece traces the arc of the sun from dawn to blazing day, filled with warmth, light, and momentum. Helios carries that brilliance — crisp, energetic, and glowing with freshness. It awakens the palate and sets the tone for everything that follows.
Joy Estate Seyval Blanc Brut
Named for: Ludwig von Beethoven – Symphony No. 9, “Ode to Joy”
Triumphant. Universal. Radiant.
Beethoven’s theme has a way of lifting everyone in the room, whether you’re hearing it for the first time or the hundredth. Joy does the same. Fine bubbles, vibrant acidity, and a brightness that feels like celebration from the very first sip. This is the wine that turns a moment into an occasion.
Prelude Estate Rosé of Pinot Noir
Named for: Franz Liszt – Symphonic Poem No. 3, Les Préludes
Graceful. Romantic. Full of anticipation.
Liszt’s music moves through shifting moods — tender, dramatic, hopeful — never standing still. Our rosé follows that arc. It opens fresh and delicate, then gains depth and expression as it lingers. A wine of nuance and movement, inviting you forward. A beginning worth savoring.
Fireworks Estate Rosé of Pinot Noir Brut
Named for: George Frideric Handel – Music for the Royal Fireworks
Festive. Regal. Impossible to ignore.
Handel composed this music for a national celebration, and you can hear it — grandeur, brilliance, and pure spectacle filling the air.
Fireworks brings that same sense of occasion. Lively bubbles, radiant fruit, and a flourish of elegance that makes any gathering feel just a little more momentous.
Pop the cork and the performance begins.
Titan Estate Pinot Noir
Named for: Gustav Mahler – Symphony No. 1 “Titan”
Power with poetry.
Mahler builds vast landscapes of sound — intimate one moment, overwhelming the next. Titan, our flagship Pinot Noir, carries that same scale. Deep fruit, firm architecture, and layers that keep revealing themselves long after the first impression. This isn’t just a wine you drink. It’s a wine you feel.
Jupiter Estate Pinot Noir
Named for: Gustav Holst – The Planets and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Symphony No. 41 “Jupiter”
Noble. Expansive. Majestic.
From Holst’s sweeping grandeur to Mozart’s brilliant, sky-reaching finale, Jupiter represents elevation — music that seems to lift upward and outward at the same time. In the glass, Jupiter is generous yet precise. There’s richness, but also light. Complexity, but also joy. A wine that reaches for the stars while staying beautifully grounded.
Candide Estate Reserve Pinot Noir
Named for: Leonard Bernstein – Candide
Sparkle, spice, velocity.
Bernstein’s overture dances — quick, clever, and utterly charming. Candide captures that spirit with lively aromatics, energy on the palate, and a finish that makes you want another sip. Serious craftsmanship. Not-so-serious personality.
Maestro Estate Reserve Pinot Noir
Named for: Maestro John Williams, film score composer for Star Wars, ET, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Harry Potter, and many more.
Leadership. Storytelling. Emotional clarity.
Williams writes music that stays with you forever — bold themes, unforgettable lines, and the sense that every player is contributing to something bigger. That’s Maestro in the glass. Made primarily of the brightest Pinot clone, accompanied by others in harmony, guided with intention. Structured, expressive, cinematic. Close your eyes and escape into a fantastic story.
Firebird Summit View Vineyard Syrah
Named for: Igor Stravinsky – Firebird Suite
Color. Drama. Transformation.
Stravinsky begins with mystery and builds toward blazing brilliance. Firebird follows suit, offering depth, spice, and elegance wrapped in power. Bold, yes. But always artful.
New World Summit View Vineyard Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
Named for: Antonín Dvořák – Symphony No. 9, “From the New World”
Bold. Searching. Deeply expressive.
Dvořák’s symphony captures discovery — Old World tradition meeting new horizons. That spirit is at the heart of this Cabernet. There is power and depth here, certainly, but also lyricism and soul. A wine that bridges heritage and possibility, familiar yet thrillingly new.
Villanelle Tonnelier Vineyard Reserve Pinot Noir (Library Wine)
Named for: Paul Dukas – Villanelle for Horn and Piano
Elegance. Purity. Voice.
Written to showcase the beauty and agility of the French horn, Dukas’ piece is both refined and expressive — a perfect metaphor for a wine crafted entirely from free-run juice, untouched by pressing. Silky, detailed, and increasingly rare, Villanelle is a quiet virtuoso.
If you find a bottle, you’ve discovered something special.
Morceau de Concert Estate Reserve Pinot Noir (Not Yet Released)
Named for: Camille Saint-Saëns – Morceau de Concert, Op. 94
Showpiece. Precision. Brilliance.
Saint-Saëns wrote this as a spotlight for the horn, demanding beauty, power, and finesse. Our Morceau de Concert follows that same philosophy. Made entirely from free-run wine, it is pure expression — poised, focused, and destined for center stage. Currently still in the wings… but rehearsing for something spectacular.
Via Appia Estate Schioppettino (Not Yet Released)
Named for: Ottorino Respighi – Pines of Rome (I pini della Via Appia)
Anticipation. Power gathering in the distance.
Respighi’s famous movement begins quietly and builds into an unforgettable procession — bold, dramatic, inevitable. That’s the inspiration behind Via Appia. Resting. Evolving. Preparing for its grand entrance. Trust us… It will be worth the wait.
Ready to Listen Along?
Put on the playlist, pour a glass, and discover what you hear. You might find a connection we never imagined. (We love when that happens.) Because at Bells Up, the final interpretation always belongs to the listener.
Listen to Bells Up's Spotify Playlist HereWant to sample our wines in person? Call 503.537.1328 to book your winemaker-hosted tasting experience, exclusively for one group at a time.
