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I was eager to start the

introductory wine tasting course

at King’s College London and this

surprised me, as I’m not usually

a big advocate of the alcoholic

beverage, with my experience

of wine limited to the odd glass

offered at a party. I’m more of a cider

man, really. Nevertheless, I was

interested to learn about what makes

wine taste like it does, to know

which specifi c regions I preferred,

and generally to see what all the

fuss is about. Little did I know,

my ears, then mouth, and fi nally

my mind would be opened to

this new world.

ASPIRING CONNOISSEURS After a few minutes negotiating

the halls, I quickly found the correct

room, signposted by a group of fellow

students, eagerly awaiting the arrival of

Vivienne, our evening’s tutor. Vivienne

is a member of the Association of Wine

Educators and the Circle of Wine Writers.

She is a professional freelance tutor for a

variety of courses across the country set

up by The Wine Education Service, and

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o

has been teaching this particular course

for four years. It was evident that she still

gets a kick out of teaching the class as

she arrived with two armfuls of bottles

and a warm smile.

RED OR WHITE?Before I could contemplate the

organisers’ heavy use of paper

tablecloths, wondering ‘How messy

can drinking eight bottles of wine

get?’, I quickly became embroiled in a

conversation about the course with my

fellow students, discussing the merits of

white and red varieties. My initial fears

of pretention were instantly quelled as

it became clear that people were here

for two reasons: fi rstly to learn more

about wine itself – what exactly they’re

drinking, to discover what they like, and

how to match what they like to what

they eat; and secondly to have fun. After

all, learning is much more fun in a group

than on your own at home. Especially

when it comes to drinking wine.

The course runs once a month, every

month from October to June. After the

introductory session, the course moves

DO YOU WANDER AROUND THE WINE AISLE AT SUPERMARKETS FEELING BEMUSED AND UTTERLY CONFUSED? MANY OF US SECRETLY LONG TO WAX LYRICAL ABOUT WINE, BUT DON’T KNOW WHERE TO START. WE SENT OUR THIRSTY REVIEWER JAMES WORMALD ALONG TO A WINE TASTING COURSE RUN BY KING’S COLLEGE LONDON TO TEST HIS KNOWLEDGE…

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COURSE Introduction to

Wine Tasting

VENUE King’s College, London

Strand Campus

WHEN IS IT?

Wednesday, 7-9pm

WHAT YOU NEED

A keen palate and an

interest in fi ne wine

COURSE REVIEW

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14

hotcourses | COURSE REVIEW

on to more specifi c wines from different

areas of the world, including some

brand new, up-and-coming regions. At

the end of each session, the organisers

send out a feedback sheet to all their

students so they can incorporate

suggestions into the following class.

SCIENCE STUFFAs soon as we were settled, Vivienne

loaded up the projector. We were

taken through a brief explanation of the

science behind wine – how different

tastes are created through differences

in grape varieties, climate and soil; as

well as viticulture (how the grape is

grown) and vinifi cation (how the wine is

matured). It certainly whet our appetite

before we reached for the corkscrews!

The fi rst practical lesson was how to

taste wine and why it’s important. You

might want to give an astute description

to a fellow enthusiast, to assess the

quality before you commit, or make

your own label – surprisingly, there are

over 350 vineyards in the UK. You could

simply want to discover what you like

and what you don’t, without having to

buy a whole bottle every time.

SWIRL, SNIFF, SLURP, SPITThe fi rst bottle (a 2009 South African

Sauvignon Blanc, bought from Majestic

for £8.79) was our fi rst test subject. We

were taught what to look out for when

reading a wine’s quality: colour, smell,

taste, and the correct language to use

when discussing it. We also learnt tips

such as putting it against a white

background to judge the colour, as

this can give clues about grape

variety and whether it was aged

in wood. Everyone was a little

tentative at fi rst, but before long

we were nose deep inside a particularly

potent Austrian Grüner Veltliner, sloshing

it around our gums and pulling silly faces.

Armed with our new skills, we began

our wine journey and seven more

concoctions stimulated our senses for

the next hour. As well as tasting wine, we

were also encouraged to try the wine with

different foodstuffs – bread to cleanse the

palate, apple to stifl e the sweetness and

different cheeses to soften the blow of a

particularly harsh wine.

SAVOUR THE FLAVOURAt the end of the class, we were

encouraged to stay behind and continue

drinking our favourite bottle. More than

anything, it really feels like a friendly

night out. Only instead of a headache,

you leave with more knowledge.

I walked away from the class actually

knowing what wines I like, and now I

feel confi dent in choosing a bottle to

complement a meal. I left with a list of

my new favourites, searching in the dead

of night for an off-licence. Just like any

other night then…

In her work previous life, Vivienne

was a food buyer for Marks

& Spencer. Wine tasting was

initially just a hobby for her, but

she started attending more

professional courses to improve

her knowledge of wine. Before long

she had turned her hobby into a

career. That was 12 years ago and

she’s never looked back. Vivienne

explains: ‘Wines change, so I’m

constantly learning more and more

about them.’ Even though she

leads the wine classes at King’s

College London, she always sees

herself as one of the students;

constantly inspired by others’

contagious enthusiasm to learn.

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EVERYONE WAS A LITTLE TENTATIVE AT FIRST, BUT BEFORE

LONG WE WERE ALL NOSE DEEP INSIDE A PARTICULARLY POTENT

AUSTRIAN GRÜNER VELTLINER, SLOSHING IT AROUND OUR GUMS

AND PULLING SILLY FACES

AS WELL AS TASTINGWINE, WE WERE ALSO ENCOURAGED TO TRY THE WINE WITHDIFFERENT FOODSTUFFS

THE TUTORMeetVivienne Franks

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