Wine Tasting!
Last Tuesday, I went to the Punch Tavern with a few friends for one of the wine tastings that they do. I’ve gone before, to a champagne tasting there, and it was good fun.
The tastings they do at the Punch Tavern are quite informal, which is good for a novice like me. They have a guy come in from OddBins, which is a wine shop here in the UK, to do the tasting. He brings in a selection of wines and walks you through the tasting. You get 8 wines to taste through the course of the evening, and the evening costs £12.50, without dinner. The cost with dinner is £20.00. I’ve never had the buffet, but I have to say it smells pretty good.
About the tasting itself, you first get talked through smelling the wine. You’re free, and indeed encouraged, to volunteer what it is you smell. After you’ve smelled the wine, you then get talked through how to properly taste it. Once you’ve tasted the wine, again it’s a bit of a free for all. You’re encouraged to speak up and say what different tastes come out of the wine. It’s ok, though, because for people like me, who don’t normally speak up in crowds, you can easily discuss it with the person next to you and learn a lot from what everyone else is bringing forward. As the evening goes on, I find that it’s a lot easier to join in with everyone else.
Also, at the beginning of the evening, you’re given a sheet of paper with all the types of wine that you taste listed. There’s space there to take notes, and after tasting and talking through each wine, we guess the percentage of alcohol and the price, which can sometimes be quite surprising. You also will learn quite a bit about the wine making process, as the guy who does the tasting is quite educated in the wine you’re tasting.
These tastings are quite a good and simple way to learn more about wine. It seems to be a usual crowd that goes, because people seem to recognize each and they also seem to have a good rapport with guy in charge of everything. This makes it less intimidating to someone who just enjoys an occasional glass of wine and would like to just broaden their horizons a bit. This is the second tasting I’ve gone to there, and I definitely hope to be able to go to a few more.
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