GETTING SAVVY ON SPANISH WINE
A new class will teach you all about Spain’s top vineyards, grape varieties and more
Many Canadian wine lovers see Spain solely as the source of Rioja and cava.
Others might know the names of some popular Spanish producers, such as Miquel Torres or Campo Viejo, but they may not know where those wineries are located. Some simply view the country as a source of good, cheap wine.
Spain continually ranks in the top three for wine production each year, alongside France and Italy. But compared to those other countries, it’s surprising how little is known about the diversity of wines produced in Spain.
Even sommeliers and other wine experts can have a significant blind spot when it comes to the dizzying array of red, white, rose, sparkling and fortified wines made across Spain. Part of the issue is that Spain is home to a large number of native grape varieties, including Tempranillo, godello and bobal, which aren’t widely cultivated beyond its borders.
These are exotic selections for anyone whose comfort zone doesn’t extend beyond Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Chardonnay.
Each year when instructors get the examiner’s reports back from the Wine Spirits Education Trust, an educational
organization based in the United Kingdom with more than 750 approved program providers around the world, there’s a note that students don’t know enough about Spanish wine.
Those multiple-choice and essay questions are poorly answered.
That awareness is bound to improve with the start of a new certification program, the Spanish Wine Scholar (SWS) created by Spanish wine specialist Rick Fisher on behalf of the Wine Scholar Guild.
The new course will be offered online and in classrooms starting in January to selected educators.
Similar to its popular French and Italian Wine Scholar programs, the guild will supply online modules, pronunciation exercises, interactive quizzes and related teaching materials. Once the course is completed, the newly certified instructors will begin to offer courses to consumers and trade who are interested in mastering the subject matter.
Toronto’s IWEG Drinks Academy will offer the course for the first time next October. More information is available at winescholarguild.org or iweg.org Christopher Waters is the co-founder and editor of Vines, a national consumer wine magazine.