iYellow Wine School ~ Wines of Argentina

Not sure about you but when I think of wine class, I always imagine a boring class full of technical terms with old professional "wine taster". But I have heard so many positive things about iYellow Wine Club (@iyellowwineclub).

You can join iYellow Wine Club for free, they are a Toronto base social wine club where they organize various events, tours and classes.

They offer wine school classes every week with a different theme and the class we attended was "Wines of Argentina". For $45 per person, you get an hour long class which include tutored tasting of 6 different wines plus selected cheese pairings.

 I was lucky to be one of the first to attend classes at their newly open Wine Cave, located at the back alley of 243 Queen Street W. which felt very mysterious and intimate.

 Angelo (@angelaaiello), the iYellow founder herself school us that night and love how the class was very interactive and fun, nothing pretentious here!

Although wine goes so well with food, at a wine tasting where we want to clinically study wine (the essence), we were told that it's best to have it on it's own.

 5 Easy Steps to Tasting Wine :

1) Sight ~ Look at the wine, focusing on its color. Is it dark or light? Transparent or opaque? Color can help determine age and varietal.

2) Swirl ~ Swirl the glass to open up the wine and release its aromas. Look at the legs forming on the side of the glass - how quickly do they run down the glass?

3) Smell ~ Place your nose in the glass and take short, small sniffs. What is the wine's bouquet? Fruit, a countryside, a memory?  

4) Sip ~ First, swirl a small sip in your mouth. Then take another sip, and try to inhale some air to aerate the wine in your mouth. Leave the wine in your mouth for a bit before swallowing.

5) Savour ~ Enjoy the wine's flavour and take note of its finish. Was it long, dry, short or sweet? Also consider: did you enjoy this wine, and would you buy it? Is it worth the cost?

Did you know :
~ Argentina is the 8th largest country in the world & 2nd largest in Latin America
~ People says that wine is the official drink in Argentina
~ With warm & dry climate such as Chile & Australia, they were able to produce very rich dry red wines

White :
Graffigna, Pinot Grigio 2012 Reserve ~ $12.95
Crios, Torrontes 2012 ~ $12.95*
Alta Vista Premium, Chardonnay 2012 ~ $14.95

Red:
Trapiche Reserve, Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 ~ $11.95
Masi Tupungalo, Pasfo Doble 2011 ~ $13.95
Salentein Reserve, Malbec 2011 ~ $17.95*

I am not an expert at this, so I won't be describing the wines since I don't want to give the wrong idea. Personally love White #2 which had a lychee very perfume-y aftertaste long finish (almost like a Viognier) and Red #3 which was rather spicy, extremely smooth & full bodies.

 At the end of the tasting, we were offer an amazing Cheese & Charcuterie Platter provided by Sliced (@slicedgourmet) and if you want, you can get more of the wine you like during the tasting to go with the food (^_^)

~Piave, Brie, Chevre Noir, Aged Cheddar, Duck & Pistachio Pate, Locally Prosciutto, Handmade Spicy Salami, Handmade Fennel Salami, Mediterranean Olives & Sundried Tomatoes and Handmade Crisps & Taralli

And as a treat we were offer 2 dessert wines from Argentina

Verdict :

Had so much fun and very interactive,confirmed my thoughts of no right or wrong about wine tasting

Hope I get to attend another Wine Class soon.

Definitely change my mind about wine tasting

 *** This class was complimentary but opinions are my own ***