A vintage year for learning new skills
SHERIE AGNEW has a good appreciation of fine wines — she grew up close to wineries in new Zealand.
the 32-year - old from tooting, South- West London, now teaches at the W est London Wine School in Fulham, which runs tastings and caters for around 120 people a week.
Sherie says: ‘i grew up around wine and started working on the restaurant side of wineries. i moved to London ten years ago and worked for First Quench retailing, which covers all the thresher and Wine rack stores. they paid for me to go through my Wine & Spirit education trust (WSet) training and become a tutor for the company.
‘When threshers went under , Jimmy Smith, who was in charge of education for the company , set up the West London W ine School in 2009 and so i joined and i’ve worked there for about four years.’
the school has four tastings a week and between 25 and 30 people attend each session. it also runs four and eight-week introductions to wine as well as sherry and tapas tastings and WSet courses.
Sherie adds: ‘We try to pitch our courses, especially at entry level, so that anyone with an interest in wine can come along , but those who know a bit more will find it rewarding as well.
‘We also do single night events that will specialise in, for example, one Bordeaux chateau or focus on one region. there’s something for all levels and ages. W e often get parents bringing their sons or daughters who have just turned 18 or 19 and want to give them a good education in wine. it’s quite sweet seeing the family together.
‘ We also get people who are retired and have always enjoyed wine but who want to learn a little bit more. it’s for all age groups.’
‘if you enjoy wine, you ’ll always get something out of it. naturally, some people are more sensitive about what they can taste than others. But if you are willing to keep tasting and doing some research, you can definitely adjust your palate and train it to look out for more sensitive flavours and aromas.’ the s c hool has Saturday introduction to wine courses, which run for six hours, including a two-course lunch, and cost £87.50. it also sells vouchers towards course costs, from £25 upwards.
‘Sometimes, wine tastings can have an air of snobbery about them, but we try to make it really entertaining,’ Miss Agnew said.
‘We make sure the information is easy to understand, so we’re demystifying the world of wine.
‘ We encourage feedback and interaction. Most courses are in the evening from 7pm to 9pm, so it’s a really nice time of the evening to try some wine, learn something new and meet like - minded people.’
www.westlondonwineschool.com