What do you think about go back to school ? The art of appreciating fine wine is a subject WITH has plenty of surprises in store for you !
If you like wine and would like to acquire an insight or if you wish to enhance your knowledge to better appreciate its finer points, the protagonists in the wine tourism sector offer activities adapted to your level to share their passion with you, and introduce you to the art of appreciating fine wine.
Some tourist offices such as the one in Villefranche-sur-Saône, welcome you to areas specially devoted to this theme. For instance the “Espace des vins du Beaujolais” where you can enjoy tastings of all the wines from this vineyard all year round.
The Beaujolais region is also where the first viticulture and wine theme park, the Hameau Duboeuf, was built.
To familiarise yourself with wine/food pairings or the art of tasting, the Bordeaux Ecole du Vin offers one-day courses, evening classes or workshops, whilst its campus runs special training courses for students. The Cercle Lynch- Bages allows you to experience total immersion who live and work there, combining learning and discovery in the heart of the vines.
Other vineyards have schools such as the Ecole des Oenophiles at Bergerac with its wine tasting courses and conferences, or the Ecole des Vins de Bourgogne, an oenology centre of renown.
The Champagne region also has an abundance of wine learning centres such as the Villa Bissinger in Aÿ, Educavin in Reims, the Ateliers du Cellier Saint-Pierre in Troyes, or the champagne museum, Champagne Bauser in Riceys. Finally, the Maisons des Vins, proper tourist offices dedicated to the vineyards, offer an entertaining, enlightening introduction before you head off to explore the terroirs, the various AOCs, tourist routes and wine cellars. In Val de Loire, no less than 8 Maisons du Vin offer a variety of themed packages.
The Espace des Vins du Beaujolais:
http://www.villefranche-beaujolais.fr
The Hameau Duboeuf, the viticulture and wine theme park:
http://www.hameauduvin.com
Ecole du Vin de Bordeaux:
http://www.bordeaux.com/fr/ecoleduvin
Ecole des Oenophiles de Bergerac:
http://www.vins-bergerac.fr/ecole-des-oenophiles
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