Downtown South San Francisco Classes San Francisco, CA

Can you create perfect pairings or are you paralyzed by the rules? Learn pairing theories and exceptions and the progression of flavors in multi-course meals. Come play with your food and wine as we taste 36 combinations and discuss each student's impressions and preferences.  Challenging food ingredients will also be reviewed and how to overcome...

Service is much more than proficiently performing, it is an attitude. Learn the roles and conduct of the sommelier, mis en place for service shifts, responsible alcohol service and the mechanics. Standard wine service, Champagne, decanting and tray service will be demonstrated by the instructor and performed by each student.  Tools, service...

So much has changed in Spanish wine over the recent years! Join us for an overview of Spanish wine history, wine laws, geography, climate, grape varieties, viticulture and winemaking.  Then, we'll dive deep into the wine region of La Rioja. Rioja’s wine culture represents a composite of tradition and modernity. Rioja is one of Spain’s...

Learn how to navigate the 3-tier distribution system successfully in the role of restaurant or retail wine director or cellar master. Explore the workings of distributors, brokers and winery direct sales, how to decide what vendors to use and how to maximize the relationships.  Discuss options and strategies for an efficient buying process. Learn...

Join us in unraveling the mysteries of the EU labeling scheme and compare it with the rest of the world. We will look for global patterns touring the world in a glass. Take in the highlights of France, Italy, and Spain, plus various New World regions.  The tasting of 5-7 wines will focus on New World vs Old World and examples from various climates...

Continue enhancing your French wine knowledge. Journey with us in the classroom as we leave last week's cool climate wines of the north for this week's warm climate wines of the south. Study and taste the French wines that are often imitated but never duplicated. In this course, you will learn the warm climates, grapes and wine styles of southern...

Sommeliers can identify and articulate the physical structure of the grapevine and the annual cycle of the vine, how viticultural practices such as organic, biodynamic and sustainable differ from mainstream viticulture and from each other, as well as the sequence of events that take place during the winemaking process. Learn winemaking terminology,...

Restaurants, individual managers, and servers can face civil and criminal liability for violations of the alcoholic beverage law and ignorance is not a defense.  Learn the details and risks of Tied House and Dram Shop Laws, liquor license types and requirements, new account credit applications and personal guarantees. We will cover the most...

In this warm-climate wine workshop, we'll look for global patterns across the world's warmest wine regions as we travel the world by glass.  In this class, we explore ripe wines from warm climates.  We'll explore the highlights of Southern France, Southern Italy, Southern Spain, Portugal, Greece, Washington, South America, Australia and...

Learn about the physiology of taste and how to evaluate acidity, tannin, residual sugar (RS) and other structural elements of wine. Start building your wine description vocabulary. Attend this fun session to gain confidence in knowing what kind of wines you like and how to describe them. Or use this as the start of your journey in preparing for entry...

Learn to tune up your senses as you identify specific smells and tastes of various fruit, spice, herb and other elements as you blindly identify them in 12 carefully controlled sample wines.  This is a far more effective approach than commercially available wine aroma kits made with essential oils that are not consumable or in a wine solution....

Understanding the regions and categories of Italian Wine can be complicated. With extensive wine production in all 20 wine regions, hundreds of indigenous varietals, climates ranging from Alpine to Mediterranean and diverse soil types, Italian wine study can be daunting. It is critical for a CSW to have extensive knowledge to understand, appreciate,...

Join us in exploring cool climate wines of the world. We'll unravel the mysteries of the EU labeling scheme and compare it with the rest of the world. We will also look for global patterns as we tour the world by glass. Take in the highlights of crisp wines from cool climates from Germany, Austria, Northern Italy, Northern France, Oregon and New Zealand. ...

Creating a great list wine is easy, maintaining one requires immense effort. Mistakes are costly, both financially and for staff morale and customer service.  Learn to excel in the not so glamorous side of being a wine director or cellar master. We’ll review efficient and accurate ways to check in orders, code invoices, stock the cellar, program...

Can you create perfect pairings or are you paralyzed by the rules? Learn basic food pairing theories and see how different styles of wine interact with primary flavor components. Come taste many combinations and discuss the impact on your palate. Learn your preferences and those in the class and improve your confidence with new pairing knowledge! ...