The subject of wine tasting used to seem to me to be a posh way to describe having some mates round with a few bottles of the good stuff, and if this was the case then most of us have done a fair amount of “tasting”. It was during these tastings that I started to get more interested in the flavours that I was detecting which in turn led to me taking up wine courses at Plumpton College. Once I started on the wine courses I soon found out that a little knowledge can go a long way in when it comes to tasting. I realised that sense could be made of wine when put in the context of grape type, the country and place the grapes are grown and winemaking techniques.

Having been through these wine courses I can honestly say that a short amount of time spent learning about wine and, very importantly how to taste wine will bring you great rewards. It will make your wine drinking a much more meaningful and pleasurable experience and you will be able to make sense of Restaurant wine lists.

Being in the trade has meant that I’ve been to a number of tastings and also joined many wine courses, most have been good, they get the info across but to me the range of wines has been a let down. One course that I have hooked up with recently is the Brighton based GrapeTrain - www.grapetrain.co.uk. Having joined a class for an evening I can highly recommend this wine tasting course run by Lisa McNulty & Paula Gregory. Lisa is a WSET (Wine & Spirit Education Trust) recommended tutor and Paula has completed the WSET Advanced course. The courses are very well structured and the teaching style relaxed, the range and style of wines are impressive, they cross into organic and biodynamic too. The next exciting thing about the course is that once you have got to grips with the basics you have the chance to go and learn more with the GrapeTrain in Provence.

If you are looking for a wine tasting course in Brighton I can highly recommend this course if you want a taster of how to get to know wine a bit more in a informal atmosphere with folk that are just as into learning as you are. The class sizes are fairly small which makes it easier to get to know each other and have a laugh.

If you want more info just give Lisa or Paula a call - 01273 557589/01273 701475.