Tasting wine is a joy, a pleasure and a passionate pursuit and while I don't believe it should be a pretentious endeavor, I do believe it is possible for any taster to hone her analytical skills, to enhance his appreciation of what is in the glass by understanding where the wine came from, how it was made, why it tastes the way it does, and why one likes (or just as importantly, doesn't like) the wine.

Why? For one thing, understanding wine greatly increases your odds of getting to drink wines you love because you understand what you want. And it's also fun. Wine is a great vehicle for sharing, and in a good wine course, you'll not only learn about wine, you'll meet like-minded people, some of whom may become regular tasting partners as you develop your skills and increase your pleasure. You'll find more reasons to take a wine class here

It's my pleasure to work with several WSET providers, including Florida Wine Academy in Miami, Commonwealth Wine School in the Boston area and Fine Vintage, Ltd, North America's largest provider of courses of the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, in Washington, DC and Chicago. On the individual course pages I list upcoming dates when I’ll be teaching for WSET and local providers.

WSET and Great Wine

One of the key tenets of the WSET approach to wine education is that you cannot learn about great wine by drinking mediocre wine. We take great pride in the quality of the wines we use in our courses and often do side-by-side comparisons of wines made from one grape in two different regions, or wines from the same region but of different quality to point up the subtle elements that make wine so enjoyable. Is the $15 Chilean merlot a better value to you than the $100 St-Émilion poured alongside it? You decide what is subjectively best for your budget, but here you will learn the objective differences between the two.

The Wine & Spirit Education Trust was created 60 years ago to provide dependable, consistently high quality wine education to both consumers and the wine and hospitality trades. Today, a certification from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust is considered the gold standard of wine education with its broad emphasis on how wine is made from vineyard to glass, why it tastes the way it does and how best to describe and communicate what you are tasting. Whether you are a complete novice beginning your wine adventure with a Level One foundation course, honing your existing skills in Level Two, pursuing an advanced certification with Level Three or plan to go all the way to achieving the coveted Diploma, WSET has a wine course that is a perfect fit for you. In addition to the WSET curriculum I also lead many seminar and masterclass for wine-producing regions of Austria, France, Italy and Portugal among others.

The Courses We Offer

To learn more about a particular course and the date(s) it is being offered in your city, or to register for one of our entertaining programs, follow the links below.

WSET Level 1 Award in Wine - the "Foundation Course"

This is WSET's introductory course, ideal for everyone who likes wine and wants to learn more about it. This qualification provides a hands-on introduction to the world of wine. You’ll explore the main types and styles of wine through sight, smell, and taste, while also gaining the basic skills to describe wines accurately, and make food and wine pairings. We are offering a wonderfully entertaining exploration of wine fundamentals in a one-day class that is fun, entertaining and very informative, and it leads to your first WSET certification. In addition to the wines we taste, our day includes numerous “taste tests” to show you how wine and food interact (wine and food pairing are a big part of WSET’s final exam).

WSET Level 2 Award in Wine - the Intermediate Course

This intermediate course is given over two or three full days of tasting and discussion. By the end of the course, you'll have tasted more than 30 wines to give you a solid grounding in the world of wine. Click the button for a full description of this entertaining and informative course. Please note that you can often take Level 2 immediately after Level 1 - you don't need the results from your Level 1 exam to register. Or, if you prefer, you can start directly with Level 2 as long as you have some familiarity with wine - it’s a great adventure!

WSET Level 3 Award in Wine - the Advanced Course

This advanced course is designed for avid consumers as well as people in or who hope to enter the wine trade. WSET mandates a minimum of 30 hours of classroom study for the Level Three but depending on where or when you take the course, there may be more hours in class.  In short, Level 3 is serious business and we take it very seriously. I teach the Level 3 course in Miami, Chicago and Washington, DC. For more information check the Level 3 page on this site.

Fine Vintage's Sensory Masterclass

This course is suggested for wine lovers of all skill levels - whether you are a practicing sommelier or a relative novice as a taster, this course will significantly increase your ability to smell and taste wine, build your vocabulary and give you an in-depth knowledge of the components of wine aroma and flavor. Your tastebuds are limited to sensing the five basic flavors - sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. It is your olfactory sensor that expands on that foundation and creates a perception of flavor.

The only prerequisite for this course, developed with a world class perfumer and our own Master of Wine James Cluer, is that you have a passion for increasing your knowledge and awareness of wine. If you are a professional in the wine trade and have tasting exams in your future, this course is an essential aid to your ability. You will be astonished how this guided experience will enhance your skills. For details on what the course entails, and upcoming dates and locations, click the button below.

Fine Vintage’s American Wine Professional Course

As hard as it is to believe now, when Robert Mondavi opened his eponymous winery in Napa Valley in 1966 it was the first new winery in the famous wine region since the end of Prohibition more than 30 years before. There was a wave of exhilaration in Napa at the time, but in the 1960s, just 60 years ago, the idea of American wine competing on the world stage seemed preposterous to many Euro-centric wine lovers in the United States. Times have certainly changed - some of the greatest wine in the world is being produced in the U.S. and not just in Napa Valley or even California. Pinot Noir in Oregon, Cabernet Sauvignon in Washington State, Cabernet Franc in New York, Syrah in New Mexico….the list of possibilities today is endless.

We’ve created a wonderful two-day course to show you just how great American wines have become. We devote one day to the traditional (at least for a couple of decades into the 1980s) wine hot spots - California, Oregon and Washington. And on day two, we travel across the rest of the country to explore wines from New York, Virginia, Texas, New Mexico and more. Today, wine is being produced in every state of the Union. We won’t taste it all, but I promise to give you a good overview of what is happening in the U.S. You’ll taste more than 30 wines and perfect your tasting techniques useful for the WSET courses as well and best of all, you get to spend two days with like-minded individuals on a wine adventure! For more information on the course and upcoming dates, just click the button below.

Fine Vintage's French Wine Professional Course

Many countries grow grapes and make wine but I think it is safe to say that the single country with the most famous wine regions, the most prized properties and the most classic wines is France. Wine did not begin here, though for many of us, our love of wine may well have begun with a bottle from France. In this course, we have crafted a two day celebration and exploration of French wine: where it is grown, how it differs from region to region and, in each major region, the classic grapes and types of wine. Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, the Loire and more are given extensive treatment in both discussion and tasting. Altogether,  you will taste nearly 40 wines from a dozen regions and, at the end of the course, an exam will certify your accomplishment as a French Wine Professional. There is no prerequisite for this course other than a love of wine. For more details on what the course entails and upcoming dates, click on the button below.