At West Side Wines & Spirits we believe there is always something more to learn about wine. Our newest venture is to offer classes to inform, educate, and taste in a comfortable environment. We have a room in our store just for classes, and our small class size, 14 seats, will ensure individualized attention.

Every quarter we will offer classes ranging from single session, topical "master classes" to multi-session courses. Courses are offered at three levels: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced. The basic level will be represented mainly by a five-session "Wine 101" that covers the basics of how to taste wine, an overview of white wines, red wines, fortified wines, and sparkling wines. The intermediate level will be comprised mainly of five-session courses focusing on the key wine regions of the world. Examples of feature regions are Italy, Spain, France, Germany & Austria, South America (Argentina & Chile), California and the Northwestern U.S.A. (Washington State & Oregon). Advanced level courses delve more deeply into specific varietals and wine appellations. Finally, master classes will offer single session classes that run the gamut from a focus on the wines made from a specific grape variety to classes where we welcome a wine maker or other experts from around the world to lead the class; to special tastings of unique high end wines.

Sign up now for a fun way to learn more about wine!

Note: Students must be over 21 to attend a class.

Upcoming Classes

Date

Wine 101
Where to start to learn more about wine or to broaden your experience with wine? Right here. This five-week course is a comprehensive survey of wine with extensive tasting. You’ll gain a framework of knowledge about the major grape varieties and wine types through a critical approach to tasting and a foundation for broader understanding of wine and the wine world. This course is not only for those new to wine, but also for those who want to learn about wines beyond a well-known few.

9/11/2008

Wines of Italy
For just about anyone who enjoys wine, Italy, with its ancient wine culture and incredible diversity of wines, holds a special interest. This intermediate-level, five-week course explores the major wine regions of Italy with an emphasis on key wines and grape varieties. Each week you’ll taste the key wines of a region and we’ll present the geography, history and culture of that region. Knowledge of Italian not required.

10/16/2008

Wine Storage from Simple to Stupendous
Whether you have just a few cases of wine on hand for short-term needs or you have collected some wines you’d like to age, effective, proper wine storage is more accessible and doable than you might think. In this class Joel Nowakowski, principal of Nutmeg Wine Cellars, LLC, will present strategies and options for wine storage as well as how to design wine storage to fit your needs and budget. We’ll also discuss ways to optimize the selection of wines in your “wine cellar.”

10/1/2008