Your Ah Haa Moment: The Basics of Wine Tasting

18 Jul Your Ah Haa Moment: The Basics of Wine Tasting

Bunny Freidus

The Court of Master Sommeliers was established to encourage improved standards of beverage knowledge and service in hotels and restaurants. Then as now, education is at the core of the Court’s charter. The first successful Master Sommelier examination was held in the United Kingdom in 1969. By April 1977, the Court of Master Sommeliers was established as the premier international examining body. Over the four decades since the Court’s first examination was held, 202 candidates have earned the Master Sommelier Diploma. In the service of wine, spirits and other alcoholic beverages, the Master Sommelier Diploma is the ultimate professional credential anyone can attain worldwide. The first step towards that Holy Grail is the Level 1 course and exam – which Bunny Freidus recently (and successfully) completed.

Bunny is about to share some of that knowledge in user-friendly form in the two-hour overview she is offering through the Ah Haa School for the Arts –Wake Up Your Senses: The Basics of Wine Tasting. The class takes place Monday, July 22, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. at The Depot, Ah Haa’s home base.

“The course I am teaching is a basic wine course with an emphasis on waking up all the senses, which is the essence of understanding and appreciating wine with its many aspects. We will use the famous “Le Nez du Vin” smelling kit created by Jean Lenoir used in sommelier schools around the world to help fledgling wine drinkers identify the different and distinctive aromas that are characteristic of red and white wines, including aromas:  oak, berry, flowers, vanilla or citrus. We will also focus on understanding the importance of the other senses:  taste (salty, sweet, bitterness acidity) and vision(color). Addressing the senses allows us to begin to understand what to look for when drinking different types of wine.”

Bunny comes by her nose naturally. Her dad was a winemaker.

To learn more, click the “play” button and listen to our brief chat.