What’s in My Glass
New-Wine Tastings!
Would you like to liven up a book group, party, indeed, any gathering of friends, family, or business colleagues? You bring the group, we’ll bring the wine, the glasses, and, above all, the knowledge. With long-time aficionado, wineseller, and barman Jeff Rowe, formerly of The Clown in Portland and Provisions in Brunswick, I will come to your private setting anywhere in the midcoast Maine area, from Portland to Damariscotta.
Jeff and I are offering a number of tasting presentations in which we cover both the basics of winetasting and the specific characteristics of some of the wine world’s most interesting regions. For example, we offer an evening tasting some of the wines I write about in my books, and my travels and research enable us to turn our focus to other French regions, as well. As Jeff’s particular expertise runs to Italian and Spanish wines, we also offer presentations that allow a glimpse into the remarkable range of wines that are found in the heart of the Mediterranean. Finally, we both have an interest in West Coast wines, which, given the tradition of single varietal wines in American winemaking, enables us to offer presentations that focus on the wines made from a single grape, such as chardonnay or pinot noir or Zinfandel.
How does it work? Drop us an e-mail, and we’ll begin by establishing your interests and your budget. Minimum group size is ten people with a maximum of thirty. Our fees vary slightly with the length of the event and the number of wines, but are based on $25/person for a two-hour event involving five wines. The wine, provided by our suppliers, is additional, its cost determined by your selections. (To give you an example on the moderate end, the wine cost for a recent evening with 28 guests tasting one sparkling wine, one white, two reds, and a dessert wine, all from southern France, was less than $17/person, glassware and wine linens included.)
If you’re interested in serving food we can advise on menus that would work well with the wines and suggest area caterers, as well.
Bonnes dégustations!
Michael Sanders, theyard@gwi.net
Jeff Rowe, jeff@craggyrock.com