Wine tasting in Bristol and Wine courses with Clifton Wine School
Posted on: 2014-09-06
Our rating:
All in all it was a delightful evening, which I would highly recommend. The Clifton Wine School hosts regular tastings and courses in Bristol and Bath and is also available for private hire, which might be fun for a hen or holiday party.
When one thinks of ‘wine tasting’ it can sometimes conjure visions of dank cellars, dusty bottles and aristocratic proclamations of wealth and status. Happily, the Evening Tasting by Clifton Wine School at the Radisson Blu presented a refreshing take, dispensing with all pretension.
This course, running from 7pm to 9pm, was aimed at beginners but would also be suitable for the more experienced.
**Click here for upcoming events, gift vouchers and more information about Clifton Wine School**
Our tutor for the evening, Ruth, having 8 years experience in the industry was an excellent tasting guide. Her qualification as an educator with the Wine and Spirit Educational Trust meant she was easily able to deviate from her prepared notes to answer any questions from the progressively jolly crowd.
Upon arrival we were greeted with a welcoming glass of Prosecco, which was provided, I suspect, less for the taste and more to encourage conversation and participation from the group.
After a short introduction to wine regions and the wine making process we tasted our first ‘flight’ of three white wines. These varied in quality and price but were all reasonably affordable. We were tutored on how to view, smell and taste the wines and were provided with tasting notes. Our second flight contained four red wines. The selected wines were spread across the most popular countries of the ‘Old World’ and ‘New World’ wine regions.
Small nibbles were tasted with some of the wines to demonstrate certain characteristics, such as acidity and tannins, and to underline the concept of food and wine matching. This interesting topic will be explored in greater depth at the upcoming Food and Wine Masterclass to be held at the Star and Dove in September.
Our flights of wine were served in ISO rated tasting glasses and were set out on fun placemats labeled with numbers so one didn’t lose track of one’s wine - it can happen. By the end of the evening I must confess that after a particularly over-confident wine glass shuffle I could no longer identify my Chianti from my Bordeaux; sorry Ruth, will do better next time.
All in all it was a delightful evening, which I would highly recommend. The Clifton Wine School is also available for private hire, which might be fun for a hen or holiday party.
Top tip: Sit at the top of the table if you can. The bottles get passed down the table and end up with you at the end!
Second top tip: Spittoons are provided so don’t worry about the number of wines sampled. It is truly possible to taste without drinking.
.jpg "Clifton Wine School in Bristol")
Contact Clifton Wine School at:
Tel: 0117 370 6576
Web: www.cliftonwineschool.com
Email: info@cliftonwineschool.com
Article by:
Born and raised in the suburbs of Swansea, Jimmy moved to Bristol back in 2004 to attend university. Passionate about live music, sport, science and nature, he can usually be found walking his cocker spaniel Baxter at any number of green spots around the city. Call James on 078 9999 3534 or email Editor@365Bristol.com.
