If you endeavoured to make this the first year that you stopped passively drinking wine and started actively tasting it, then have I got news for you.... Our winter tasting line up is here to whet your whistle, cull your curiosity, and make a marvel of the mundane winter nights.
No-Low with Marina Beck of Wine Alliance
January 22 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
A zebra-striping event featuring no- and low-alcohol options for your damp January. Explore a range of ciders, wines, and cocktails that keep the taste and vibes high and the next morning even higher!
Drenched January
January 29 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
The New Year was a whole two weeks ago. Time to get back into it! In this tasting, we explore styles at the rim of their relative % strengths. Cask-strength and overproof spirits, strong beer, fortified wine, Amarone, and others. Water included. Are you ready?
Wine Safari: South African Wines
January 31 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
Put on your fatigues and hop in the Jeep, we're going on Safari! Join comedian and wine professional, Mollie Risa, on a tour of some seriously wild wines. From old-vine Chenin Blanc, to Pinotage, and everything in between, this tasting will astound and delight as we taste through the history and science that make South African wine truly special!
Reinheitgets-What?! A Beer History of Germany
February 6 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
With the history of beer being so storied did anyone know that the longest-upheld law in the world was actually about beer? Come sit down and learn about stellar Bavarian beers, the history and safety of making beer, and dense German Legalese (just kidding)(or are we?). Join Beer Dork Chris for a night of The Best of the Wurst!
Chardy Party
February 19 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park
So you think you don't like Chardonnay? Some say it's like Mozart - too easy for beginners and too difficult for virtuosi. Come experience what this chameleonesque grape variety is really capable of, from Blanc de Blancs Champagne through Chablis, Canada, Burgundy, Oregon, California, and maybe even Australia. One thing will be certain: you'll fall in love again.
Junk n' Juice: Pizza Party!
February 20 6pm @ Vine Arts 17th, Calgary
When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie... that deserves a good glass of wine! Join in the fun with comedian and wine professional, Mollie Risa, as we walk through wines that are perfectly suited for the best kind of party: a Pizza Party! *Note, all pizza provided will contain gluten, dairy, and likely meat!
No-Low with Deena Harris of Crush Imports
February 26 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
The explosion of great drinking in the no- and low-alcohol genre continues! Explore the wines, liqueurs, and cocktails that are redefining our relationship to flavour and experience.
Whisky and Wood with Chris Arnold of Renaissance Wine Merchants
February 26 7pm @ Vine Arts Edmonton
Discover how wood transforms whisky in ways you never imagined. We will begin with the timeless foundations of traditional cask aging in ex-bourbon and sherry casks, and then explore the exciting world of cask finishes. The "double maturation" in specially chosen casks that previously held red wine, port, rum, or even tequila, creates whiskies that are complex, modern, and delicious. Come taste how creative cask finishing is pushing the boundaries of whisky today. This one-of-a-kind event will allow you to taste several whiskies alongside the original liquid that was in the cask: red wine cask-finished whisky with red wine, sherry cask-finished whisky alongside sherry, etc. Limited seats are available!
Gin It To Win It!
March 6 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
London Dry, French Nouveau, Scottish, Japanese... who doesn't have their head spinning with all the options? Let's work together to demystify the Gin world of its lore, its legends, and its styles. Join us to sample across the world of gin and pick out where styles have been, where they're going, and have a little tipple of Mother's Ruin!
The Garden of France: Loire Valley Wines
March 26 6pm @ Vine Arts 17th Ave, Calgary
The Loire Valley, oft referred to as 'The Garden of France' is a wine region filled with a calvalcade of wonders. From crisp and mineral-driven whites to spicy herbaceous reds, the Loire does it all and they do it well. Join us for a night of exploration as we traipse through the garden and taste along our way!
Drinking Bittersweet: Vermouth Across the World
April 17th 6pm @ Vine Arts Victoria Park, Calgary
