IF it weren't for wine courses I wouldn't be here. I don't mean to suggest that my parents got carried away after a night of earnest, wine minded discussion about body and legs and mouth feel, only that I'd never have come to write a syllable about wine without the smattering of basic knowledge that classes, over the years, have helped to provide. And I probably wouldn't enjoy drinking it half as much, either.
There's no doubt wine appreciation courses contribute handsomely to the pleasure of wine both by fine tuning the senses by which we judge it, and by providing an opportunity to taste a wider variety of wines than might otherwise be the case. In my experience, the modicum of refreshment involved (and its direct link to future sociable occasions) makes wine classes infinitely appealing.
The usual format is for each class to begin with a talk (usually on a particular region or grape variety), then move on to a tasting session with about six wines. Beware, any of you who have sniffed in derision at the flowery descriptions of wines in this column, week by week. You'll be smelling petrol and pencil shavings, mangoes and manure in your glass before you know it. Next, you'll be asking questions about carbonic maceration, volatile acidity or, heaven preserve us, millipore filtration. Wine is more than a drink it's an endless fascination. And it's fun.
I'm not the only one to think so. All over Ireland, consumer thirst for information about wine has led to an astonishing increase in the number of courses available. The Wine Development Board of Ireland, the main education body in this country, reports an 80 per cent increase in student numbers last year alone. Whereas five to 10 years ago, most students would have been involved in the wine or restaurant trade, now the majority are enthusiastic amateurs. Many become so immersed that they go on to take some of the higher courses offering internationally recognised qualifications. Passionate amateurs can go all the way up," says David Power, a Wine Development Board lecturer. "Interest in wine is growing enormously, and so is knowledge. Five years ago, people coming to the appreciation classes might have thought Chardonnay was a brand name. Not now"
Among the many courses run by the board is one by Sandy O'Byrne, a former Irish Times wine correspondent and indeed one of the first lecturers to propel me in new directions. She is giving a six week course on Wine And Food an exploration of those perfect but sometimes elusive partnerships we all seek, especially the day before a dinner party. Not only is Sandy a wine lecture, a trained chef and a cookery teacher, but she is mid way through writing Matching Wine and Food A Handbook for Connoisseurs due out from A&A Farmar next spring.
"A wine can taste completely different with food from the way it tastes on its own and it can make the food different too," Sandy says. "If you hit on the right combination, both can taste better, so it's worth putting a bit of thought into." Those who sign up for this course, in Dun Laoghaire on Saturday mornings, will be able to sharpen their taste buds with multiple food and wine combinations some traditional partnerships, others innovative new pairings.
Their are countless other wine courses on offer many under the aegis of the Wine Development Board, in all parts of the country some connected to wine shops, and some run by third level institutions. Whichever you are thinking of joining, don't deliberate too long. With demand higher than ever and many courses starting in September, enrolment is already well under way. To those who sign up enjoy it. To those who don't a scrap of guidance from wine lecturer Mary Gaynor to mull over in the meantime. "The one thing I try time and again, to get people to understand is that they must be prepared to pay a bit more for quality. I've seen women dressed from head to toe in designer gear refusing to pay £6.99 instead of £5.99. Only a miserable pound!