Otto: Wine Class Review

Otto's Vino Classes is both educational and enjoyable. The wine class instructor, Otto's sommelier Peter Jamros, helps students to feel confident as wine tasters, as well as to understand what impacts wine flavors and some background on the wine regions of Italy.

Without being stuffy or presumputious, Peter Jamros. Otto's Sommelier, provides basic information about the wines, and walks the 18 participants through the steps of observing, smelling, aerating, and tasting each. Peter helps participants to articulate the tastes they experience and encourages thinking about the flavors and how they relate to the place where the wine is made.

Peter's selections each represented different regions of Italy, as well a variety of grapes and styles of wine. Although this is an introductory class, Peter avoids cliche Italian wines, thus satisfying even a more experienced audience. He eagerly shares his wine discoveries and contagious excitement. The first series of three white wines included a Prosecco, a Vermentino, and a Lugana. To accompany the white wines, each person was served a plate with three different cheeses -- parmesan reggiano, berg casa, and baita friuli.

Cerasuolo, Aglianico, and Dattilo were the three red wines to follow, all from different regions of southern Italy, but each with distinct flavors and features. An assortment of Otto's housecured salumi was served to compliment the red wines.

Peter was eager to answer questions and offer his insight and experience. Participants left feeling more confident about wine and better equipped to enlist the help of a restaurant's sommelier or wine store owner in selecting wines.