Taste Great Wines & Spirits From Around The World

Our tasting evenings are designed to appeal to people who appreciate fine wine and/or spirits.

They are relaxed and informal in style. The tutor will give some background information and then simply introduce each wine or spirit and encourage discussion. A tasting sheet and, where appropriate, maps will be provided but not detailed notes.

Unless otherwise indicated, tasting samples of 8 wines or 6 spirits will be tasted. There will be mineral water and water biscuits to refresh your palate between samples.

What else do I need?

You will need to bring 6 wine glasses to each session. If you really want to sharpen up your taste buds, a set of the International Standards Organisation (ISO) glasses used by the professionals is recommended (the tutor will have boxed sets of 6 crystal ISO tasting glasses for sale at £15).

Who are the principal course tutors?

The tastings will normally be introduced by Vivienne Franks, John Ducker, Pippa Hayward or Sandy Leckie. All have extensive lecturing experience, are members of The Association of Wine Educators and/or Circle of Wine Writers and travel widely to keep up-to-date.

Book Places

Here are details of the tastings we are organising in London over the next few months.  To book places at any of these, select the number you want from the little drop-down menu on the left, enter your personal details in the form at the foot of the page and click the submit button. A member of the Wine Education Service team will then send you confirmation and information about payment methods by email.

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  • Apr 2019

    £35.00Pinot Noir – The "Heartbreak" Grape • Monday, 29th April, 19:30-21:30 in London – Holborn

    They call it that because Pinot Noir is particularly difficult to grow and vinify successfully, but for red wine makers around the world, creating the perfect Pinot Noir is the ultimate challenge. We will taste fine examples from Australia, Bulgaria, California, Chile, Germany, New Zealand, South Africa and, of course, Burgundy.

    Tutor – Pippa Hayward with Sandy Leckie.

    May 2019

    £35.00It's All Happening In Alsace • Thursday, 9th May, 19:30-21:30 in London – Holborn

    It’s all happening in Alsace. A new generation of young, passionate and talented vignerons and vigneronnes is challenging tradition and pushing boundaries. Bland, off-dry whites are being replaced by pure, crisp, fruit and terroir-expressive wines, simple, deep-rosés by reds of almost Burgundian style and quality.

    £35.00Our Wine Picks Of The Year • Monday, 13th May, 19:30-21:30 in London – Holborn

    Every year, at about this time, the Association of Wine Educators, to which all the best wine educators in the country belong, publishes a list of 100 wines that its members have enjoyed tasting and can recommend others to try.

    We were delighted to see that WES tutors Carol Brown, John Ducker, Pippa Hayward, Vivienne Franks and Sandy Leckie had a total of 14 of their recommendations accepted for publication in the 2019 edition and have selected 8 of these to share with you at this tasting.

    To read the digital version of 100 AWEsome Wines 2019, just follow this link.
    Tutor – Vivienne Franks with Malcolm Franks.

    £45.00Chateau Musar – 8 Mature Reds From A Fabled Lebanese Estate • Thursday, 23rd May, 19:30-21:30 in London – Holborn

    Another chance to taste a range of mature wines from this world-famous Lebanese estate. This time, we will taste the 2011, 2006, 2001, 1999, 1997, 1995, 1993 and 1991 vintages of the Hochar family’s warm, spicy, Rhône-like red. All the wines will be carefully decanted before the tasting.

    Tutor – Sandy Leckie with Malcolm Franks.














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May 2019

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