Over 5 years ago, we introduced WineSense Wednesdays, a series of seated educational tastings that were the most innovative and educational wine seminars in the city. Although there are now several places doing educational tastings we’re raising the bar on our mission to provide a fun, lighthearted evening that is a both a great value and an unparalleled wine experience on Wednesday nights this Fall at Cork & Bottle.
All tastings begin at 6:30 SHARP unless otherwise noted and you can click on the links below to sign up for a tasting on-line or you can call us at 504.483.6314.
Our Fall 2008 Schedule is as follows: |
 September 10 – Explore: Sake it to Me, $15 
Do you think Junmai was an annoying movie in the mid 1990’s starring Robin Williams? Does Namazake sound like a the name of a yoga pose? If you’re not certain if Daiginjo is something you should eat or drive then you’re in need of some Sake’ education. Joining us this evening is Morgan Hartman of Vine Connections, perhaps the best Sake importer in the business to lead us through the subtle delicate beverage that is Sake. After Morgan is done you won’t know whether to say “Domo arigato” or “Kanpai!”
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 September 17 – You’ve Got a Friend in Cheeses, $25
Which goes better with cheese: Wine or Beer? This is the question we pose for the first of two cheese seminars we’re doing this fall and to help us answer the question will be Dan Stein, owner of Stein’s Market and Deli and beer geek extraordinaire who will go toe to toe with Jon Smith as the two of them lead a tasting on which beverage is better with cheese (oh, and you might learn something about beer and wine in the process). This is a tasting four years in the making. . .you’d better believe its going to be a good one.
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 September 24 – After the Fire: The Wines of Burgundy from 2006 and beyond, $35
The wines from the 2005 vintage of Burgundy's “Vintage of the century” are all but gone, so our question is “What’s next?” Well, we’ll answer this question in our lone Burgundy tasting of the Fall as we pair up with our good friend Mr. Alan Unruh from Stacole Wine Importers to lead a tasting of some real stars from ’06 and ’07. It’s a great class if you’re looking to learn something about Burgundy and it’s a fantastic class if you’re a fan of the Cote d’Or and want to get into a really neat comparative tasting of what’s next from Burgundy. (Oh, and we might even just stick our toe in the water on the 2004 vintage as well)
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 October 1 – Justin Vineyards Wine Dinner with Chef Chris DeBarr, $80 (inclusive)
On this night we take a trip to the beautiful loft office of Purveyors of Fine Wine in the Warehouse District (the site of the Spring Fling) and welcome Master Sommelier Joseph Spellman who is the winery sommelier for Justin Vineyards as he leads us through a 5 course wine dinner prepared by Chef Chris DeBarr. Chef Chris is going to be on fire (not literally) as he puts out an amazing dinner to pair with the beautiful wines of Justin Vineyards. Menu forthcoming. . . Limit 50 people.
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 October 8 – You’ve Got a Friend in Cheeses II, $30
Decadence is the theme of this seminar featuring Richard Sutton of St. James Cheese Company. Richard is going to supply a bevy of over-the-top exotic, decadent and amazing cheese from around the world and Jon is going to pull out the big guns from Burgundy and the Napa Valley for this unabashed, hedonistic, pull-no-punches wine and cheese seminar. There will be a supplemental menu charge for the Lipitor, but then that’s what red wine is for.
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 October 15 – Roam the Rhone at Cork & Bottle, $20
Tour the entire Rhone Valley at Cork & Bottle with the wines of Robert Kacher Selections. From the Chateauneuf du Pape and the Villages of the Southern Rhone to the intense, focused Syrah from the Northern Rhone, the Rhone Valley might be the most diverse and varied wine region in Europe and we’ll have Mr. Craig Baker, National Sales Manager for Robert Kacher Selections, in the house to help us draw a map of the Rhone including not only wines from the “traditional Rhone Valley” but also wines from the emerging areas to the west that are coming along strong and even giving the rest of the valley a “Rhone” for its money. This is our lone “reception” style tasting of the fall and for fans of the Rhone one you won’t want to miss.
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 October 22 – Wine for the Confused, $15
Borrowing a line from John Cleese, this class is the ultimate Wine 101 and is designed to teach you everything you need to know about the basics of wine and more. We’ll explore winemaking, grape varieties, emerging regions and everything in between. Show up confused and leave a pro. . .all for only $15!. |
 October 29 – Explore: Organic and Biodynamic Wines, $15
Once stigmatized as “weird wine”, Organic wines surely have all the health benefits of "regular wine” and as we become more health-conscious and we continually focus eating and drinking organic foods in their purest forms we’ll pose the question: Does Organic Matter when it comes to wine? Also, what does Bio-Dynamic Farming mean (and does it matter). This will be a fascinating class where we will discuss the differences between Organic and biodynamic and show you how great organic wines can be!
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 November 5 – The Italian Job starring Antonio Molesini, $35
If Robert Parker, Robin Williams and Roberto Benigni all got together and had a love child it would definitely be Antonio Molesini. Part showman, part walking Italian wine encyclopedia Antonio is a pro’s pro when it comes to Vino Italiano and he will be on hand this night to pull out the heavy guns of Italian wine. We’ll take a tour of Italy focusing on rare and reserve wines from Tuscany, Piedmont, the Veneto and Umbria. This is your one chance to catch Antonio at Cork & Bottle this fall so don’t delay – book your seat soon, his tastings are always sell outs.
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 November 12 – Cult Wines: The Best of the Cabernet Sauvignon Grape, $40
This is just an evening to sit back, relax and enjoy some sheer hedonism! Now, more than ever, there are more great Cabernet Sauvignon based wines coming out of California, Bordeaux and Australia than the world has ever seen. Still though, many people want to dismiss these Cabernets as a big, heavy, dense wines. . . and they're right, but with strength also sometimes comes beauty and it is our goal for this evening to show how some of the "cult" Cabernets from California match up with their counterparts from Bordeaux and how the new blockbuster Cabs from Australia fit into the mix. 7 Cabernet Sauvignon based wines at an average retail price of $65 or so all with instruction by Jon Smith on the individual components of a Bordeaux Blend. Its going to be a good one — and a SCREAMING value, we think.
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 November 19 – Bubbles, Bubbles, Toil and NO Troubles: The Holiday Champagne Throw Down Returns!, $35
Ahh, the memories. For years we always wrapped up our WineSense Fall series with a tasting of some unreal, under the radar small Champagne properties and this fall our most fun tasting of the year is back! Join Jon and Jenny as they walk you through they myriad styles of wines from the Champagne region of France, highlighting on “Grower Champagnes” – wines that are made by the person that grows the grapes and have an individual focus and character that the big houses couldn’t match if they tried. This is a great way to kick off the official 6 week stretch we in the wine retail business affectionately refer to as “Hell” but first, certainly some bubbles are in order.
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The Fine Print:
- All tastings begin at 6:30 sharp unless otherwise noted.
- All seats must be pre-paid to guarantee a reservation. Because of the limited nature of our tastings we CAN NOT give refunds or rain-checks for same day cancellations. If you must cancel a pre-paid tasting, please do so before close of business the evening before the tasting to obtain a refund or store credit.
- Please refrain from wearing cologne or perfume, if you show up smelling like a Parisian House if Ill Repute you'll be asked to attend another tasting. . . at a different wine store.
- Please respect others and silence your cell-phones and other noise making devices, after all you're at a wine tasting, how important can that call be? If you must take a call we ask that you step away from the table before doing so, but just know we will drink all of your wine while you are gone taking that call. Hope its worth it.
- Unless otherwise noted, we do not serve food at these tastings and we do encourage the "taste and spit" at all WineSense tastings. Although the amount of wine served at WineSense tastings is well within the reasonable amount of wine an adult can and should consume in an hour, please judge your ability to enjoy the tasting while maintaining your faculties. Snack before hand if you feel you need to help soaking up your wine.
- If you have enjoyed your WineSense tasting a bit too much and feel you have reached your limit, we will call United Cab to drive you home. Guests who become inebriated and refuse a taxi will not be allowed to attend future tastings, so please don't be a knucklehead - don't drink and drive.
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