I had been meaning to attend the Wine 101 Class by Wine Story Academy for months. But because of tight schedule, booking a class did not seem possible. Finally, I freed up one Saturday just before the week of our wedding to attend the wine appreciation class in Wine Story Parker Room at Serendra, BGC. For two hours, we had a cool opportunity to sample a range of wines as Wine Education Manager Carla Santos provided us a solid foundation in understanding and appreciating wines even more. In this post, I’m sharing the top 3 lessons we learned (aside from the aroma, palate, and tasting notes of wines).
Top 3 Lessons Learned from Wine 101: Wine Appreciation Class (Wine Story Serendra, Philippines)
1. Wine can be intimidating but it doesn’t need to be.
Some people are not comfortable with the thought of tasting or drinking wine. Especially to those that are not familiar, it can be a confusing topic. Attending the Wine 101 Class has removed our fear and hesitation about learning what we have always wanted to learn about wine.
Since the class had a small group of students (12 per session), our inquiries and questions were all entertained and answered. Carla started with an overview of the basic terms and principles about wine and then proceeded on covering topics such as how to properly taste wine and how to make a good selection in a restaurant or a store. We explored the process of making wine from picking the grapes in the vineyard to bottling the wine.
The short course gave us a good insight to the introductory aspects of wine and wine tasting. At the end of the class, we felt more knowledgeable and more confident in choosing good quality wines over bad ones.
2. There is much to learn and enjoy during an actual wine class and tasting session.
We can always read tasting notes and wine characteristics from websites and online tutorial pages (Udemy and Coursera, for instance), but having the “taste” experience is still better and more preferable. Knowing the different flavors, mouthfeel, acidity, aromas, and colors as well as the grape varieties, food pairings, and origins requires more than just reading text from the computer screen (or mobile phone).
The beauty about attending Wine 101 is the act of tasting different wines and making sense of what we tasted relating to description, quality, style, type, preference, drinking context, etc. It allowed us to practice wine tasting with sensory evaluation and discover our preferences in a relaxed environment. All materials were included. No prior knowledge was required.
3. Aged wine is not always better.
I had the misconception that wines are all meant to be aged and that aged wines are higher both in cost and value. The truth, as it stands, is that 90% of wine must be consumed within a year of production.
Aging does bring out an array of exotic smells and tastes. (A correctly aged Pinot Noir can gain aromas of truffles; a Syrah can become fragrant with rich spices.) However, there’s science involved in wine aging and it’s not as simple as storing it in a dark room in your home for decades and expect it to taste great. Factors such as temperature fluctuations, excess vibration, and excessive light can hasten the deterioration of wine.
Each crop of grapes is different. Each bottle of wine ages a little differently from the next; the perfect time to uncork a particular grape varietal will change with the region, the year, and the specific process the grapes undergo as they are being smashed and fermented into wine.
WSA: Approved Program Provider of WSET
Wine Story Academy (WSA) in the Philippines accommodates wine lovers’ desire for further wine education from any level of experience. For beginners, Wine 101 is an excellent starting point to know more about wine in a casual and organized setting. If you want something unique for your next date or acquire newfound knowledge with family or friends who love wine, booking a slot here is highly recommended. In this course, we learned how to improve our palate, overcome wine anxiety, widen our technical knowledge, and set aside any wine prejudices we have arrived with.
For those wanting to take things a step further, WSA offers four levels of Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) qualification courses as an Approved Program Provider. The WSET is a worldwide organization providing high-quality training and qualifications for professionals working in the wine and spirit and hospitality trades.
Wine Story is a luxury store in Shangri-La Mall, Serendra and One Rockwell. There is no other wine store quite like it… not in Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai or even Tokyo. Wine Story offers up to 16 wines by the glass for sampling before you buy. The cutting-edge store design, state of the art ambiance and the finest wine selection of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone, California Cult and large format bottles will simply take your breath away.
[schema type=”review” url=”https://www.facebook.com/WineStoryPhilippines/” name=”Wine 101: Wine Appreciation Class by Wine Story Academy” description=”Visit Wine Story’s website at http://http://winestory.com.ph/ and follow its Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/WineStoryPhilippines/ to inquire about its classes. Email info@winestory.com.ph or call 637-8888 from M-F 9am to 6pm to reserve a slot.” rev_name=”Wine 101 by Wine Story Academy” author=”Rochkirstin Santos-Sioco” pubdate=”2017-05-18″ user_review=”5″ min_review=”0″ max_review=”5″ ]
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