Event Description
This course will help you enhance your enjoyment of wine as you explore the world's major grape varieties. It covers what they taste like, where they are grown and how to pair them with food.
In the 1st week we'll show you how to taste wine - how to sip, slurp and sniff like a professional. We'll show you how to identify the different aromas and flavours of some of the world's major grape varieties . We'll also introduce the factors that influence why a wine tastes like it does and explain why a wine made from the same grape can taste quite different depending on where the grapes are grown and how it is made.
In the 2nd week we'll focus on the world's major white grape varieties including Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Riesling. We will taste them with you to identify their key structural characteristics and main aromas and flavours and explain how grape ripeness and how they are made affects the style of the final wine. You'll identify which styles you like and why and what foods they pair well with.
In the final session we'll turn our attention to the world's major black grape varieties - Cabenet Sauvignon , Merlot and Syrah/Shiraz.
In each session we will also introduce a couple of new grape varieties so you'll have some new wines to try.
The course runs over three consecutive Wednesday evenings; 10th, 17th and 24th May, 7pm to 9pm.
By the end of this short 3 week course you will know:
- How to recognise the world's major white and black grape varieties by smell and taste
- How grape ripeness influences how a wine will taste
- Which grapes/styles you like and why
- The region's and countries in which the world's major grapes are grown
- How to recognise wines made with the major grapes in supermarkets, wine shops and on restaurant wine lists
- What foods they pair well with
- Some alternative grape varieties that you can explore at home
During the course you will taste at least 18 wines and nibbles will be served each week to illustrate how to pair the wines with food.