With over 2000 years of winemaking history the Languedoc-Roussillon could be seen as a very traditional wine region, after all fortified and sparkling wines were first invented or discovered here. Many traditions still exist but also sit alongside a whole raft of innovative and cutting edge developments. No region has moved so far or so fast in the last 50 years. Using examples from regions as diverse as Pic St Loup, Terrasses du Larzac, Cabrières, Picpoul de Pinet, Corbières and Côtes du Roussillon the session will show how these two contrasting philosophies co-exist and thrive. Join us for an adrenaline-fuelled fun ride through France’s biggest and most exciting wine region!
Matthew has more than 30 years of experience in the wine trade, from importing and distribution to running a supermarket wine department. He passed the Master of Wine exam in 1996 achieving the Bollinger Medal for the best-tasting paper and the Listel Scholarship for the best Vinification paper. He has been actively involved with the Institute ever since, either as Practical Examiner, seminar lecturer or mentor.
Since starting his own wine education business in 2008 the majority of his time is spent teaching and sharing his extensive knowledge of wine.
He has been a mentor to many MW students over the years and continues to help them fine-tune the tasting skills needed to succeed in the Practical exam.
He is now a regular on judging panels for wine competitions, Panel Chair for the International Wine Challenge and co-President of the Sud de France Top 50 in China. Matthew is also the current Practical Chair of the MW Education Committee.
The third in our series of tastings like a Master of Wine. This session follows on from the previous two episodes of WSG Live : Taste Wine like an MW I, Taste Wine Like an MW II. No problem if you missed those, there will be a short recap on how to approach wine tasting in an MW way. This will then be followed by a tasting of two wines using an MW Exam style question.
Expect a festive theme and you do not need to be an MW student to attend, just turn up with an open and enquiring mind.
Matthew will be tasting two wines during the seminar to illustrate the MW approach,
Manzanilla or Fino Sherry
20 year old Tawny Port
If you can find them to taste along with him…great! If not, no worries you can still follow along with a dry tasting.
Matthew has more than 30 years of experience in the wine trade, from importing and distribution to running a supermarket wine department. He passed the Master of Wine exam in 1996 achieving the Bollinger Medal for the best-tasting paper and the Listel Scholarship for the best Vinification paper. He has been actively involved with the Institute ever since, either as Practical Examiner, seminar lecturer or mentor.
Since starting his own wine education business in 2008 the majority of his time is spent teaching and sharing his extensive knowledge of wine.
He has been a mentor to many MW students over the years and continues to help them fine-tune the tasting skills needed to succeed in the Practical exam.
He is now a regular on judging panels for wine competitions, Panel Chair for the International Wine Challenge and co-President of the Sud de France Top 50 in China. Matthew is also the current Practical Chair of the MW Education Committee.
Following on from the Taste like a Master of Wine session in May this will be another chance to test your tasting skills using an MW style approach. A quick recap on how to taste in an MW way will be followed by a tasting of two wines which will be used to answer an exam-style practical question.
No preparation is needed, the session is open to all. Just turn up with an open and analytical mind!
Matthew will be tasting two wines during the seminar to illustrate the MW approach,
White : Adelaide Hills Chardonnay or any cool climate Australian Chardonnay
Red : Rioja Reserva
If you can find them to taste along with him…great! If not, no worries you can still follow along with a dry tasting.
Matthew has more than 30 years of experience in the wine trade, from importing and distribution to running a supermarket wine department. He passed the Master of Wine exam in 1996 achieving the Bollinger Medal for the best-tasting paper and the Listel Scholarship for the best Vinification paper. He has been actively involved with the Institute ever since, either as Practical Examiner, seminar lecturer or mentor.
Since starting his own wine education business in 2008 the majority of his time is spent teaching and sharing his extensive knowledge of wine.
He has been a mentor to many MW students over the years and continues to help them fine tune the tasting skills needed to succeed in the Practical exam.
He is now a regular on judging panels for wine competitions, Panel Chair for the International Wine Challenge and co-President of the Sud de France Top 50 in China. Matthew is also the current Practical Chair of the MW Education Committee.
These are some of the questions we will be addressing in the upcoming Meeting of the Minds on July 22nd.
Wine Scholar Guild Academic Advisor Andrew Jefford, speaking from France, will be bringing together a panel of key thinkers, educators, writers and experts in four countries to discuss a world of tasting methods. UK-based Professor Barry Smith not only directs the Institute of Philosophy at the School of Advanced Study at London University, but is also founding director of the Centre for the Study of the Senses/CenSes, which pioneers collaborative research between philosophers, psychologists and neuroscientists. He is himself a philosopher of language and mind. Sommelière (and former philosophy student) Pascaline Lepeltier MS, speaking from New York, grew up and studied in the French tradition of wine appreciation but has spent much of her working life talking about wine to Anglophones. UK-based Matthew Stubbs MW is one of the wine world’s most experienced and popular educators, and has taught both on his own behalf and for WSET and IMW around the world. Finally, speaking from Nanning in China, comes Julien Boulard MW, one of the most brilliant of recent MW graduates and a wine educator in China whose mastery of Mandarin sees him regularly appearing on Chinese media.
Andrew, Academic Advisor to the Wine Scholar Guild, has been writing about wine since 1988, notably for The Evening Standard and The Financial Times among other UK newspapers. He has columns in every edition of Decanter magazine and World of Fine Wine magazine, and is co-chair of Decanter World Wine Awards and vice-chair of Decanter Asia Wine Awards. His books include The New France, Whisky Island and Andrew Jefford’s Wine Course.
A session aimed at those who are curious about what tasting like a Master of Wine actually involves. How does it differ from other established methods and can anybody do it? We will look at how to build on your existing wine-tasting knowledge and try two wines during the session to illustrate the approach.
Don’t feel you need to be an MW student to register for this webinar, it is aimed at all levels!
Matthew will be tasting two wines during the seminar to illustrate the MW approach, a Sancerre white and a California Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley or Lodi).
If you can find them to taste along with him…great! If not, no worries you can still follow along with a dry tasting.
Matthew has more than 30 years of experience in the wine trade, from importing and distribution to running a supermarket wine department. He passed the Master of Wine exam in 1996 achieving the Bollinger Medal for the best tasting paper and the Listel Scholarship for the best Vinification paper. He has been actively involved with the Institute ever since, either as Practical Examiner, seminar lecturer or mentor.
Since starting his own wine education business in 2008 the majority of his time is spent teaching and sharing his extensive knowledge of wine.
He has been a mentor to many MW students over the years and continues to help them fine tune the tasting skills needed to succeed in the Practical exam.
He is now a regular on judging panels for wine competitions, Panel Chair for the International Wine Challenge and co-President of the Sud de France Top 50 in China. Matthew is also the current Practical Chair of the MW Education Committee.
Discover the South West, arguably one of the most mysterious and least well-known regions of France. With over 130 grape varieties and 29 different appellations, it is home to a fascinating array of varieties wine styles.
In this session we will concentrate on the area to the North and East of Toulouse covering the appellations of Gaillac, Marcillac and Cahors. If you want to know the difference between Malbec and Fer Servadou or Mauzac and Loin de l’Oeil sign up for a voyage through this fascinating corner of France.
Matthew has more than 30 years of experience in the wine trade, from importing and distribution to running a supermarket wine department. He passed the Master of Wine exam in 1996 achieving the Bollinger Medal for the best-tasting paper and the Listel Scholarship for the best Vinification paper. He has been actively involved with the Institute ever since, either as Practical Examiner, seminar lecturer or mentor.
Since starting his own wine education business in 2008 the majority of his time is spent teaching and sharing his extensive knowledge of wine.
He has been a mentor to many MW students over the years and continues to help them fine-tune the tasting skills needed to succeed in the Practical exam.
He is now a regular on judging panels for wine competitions, Panel Chair for the International Wine Challenge and co-President of the Sud de France Top 50 in China. Matthew is also the current Practical Chair of the MW Education Committee.
Matthew has more than 30 years of experience in the wine trade, from importing and distribution to running a supermarket wine department. He passed the Master of Wine exam in 1996 achieving the Bollinger Medal for the best-tasting paper and the Listel Scholarship for the best Vinification paper. He has been actively involved with the Institute ever since, either as Practical Examiner, seminar lecturer or mentor.
Since starting his own wine education business in 2008 the majority of his time is spent teaching and sharing his extensive knowledge of wine.
He has been a mentor to many MW students over the years and continues to help them fine-tune the tasting skills needed to succeed in the Practical exam.
He is now a regular on judging panels for wine competitions, Panel Chair for the International Wine Challenge and co-President of the Sud de France Top 50 in China. Matthew is also the current Practical Chair of the MW Education Committee.
Carignan is much maligned and seldom celebrated. Mediocre, rustic and dilute or concentrated, layered and charming ? Would the real Carignan please stand up ?
It is true that Carignan would probably not feature in most people's Top 10 list of favourite grape varieties, but is that justified ? Why are some of the best estates in the Languedoc-Roussillon so keen on Carignan? What is the history and what are the characteristics of this often ridiculed grape variety?
Ditch your preconceptions, forget what you may have read and come prepared with an open mind. It's time to reappraise this red wine stalwart of the Midi.
Matthew began his career in the UK Wine Trade in 1987 after graduating from University with a language and business degree. He joined Seagram UK, part of one of the worlds largest drinks companies, worked for 2 years in Retail (Oddbins), and later picked up experience in marketing and sales through independent specialist wine merchants, prestige hotels and restaurants and national retailers. He received his MW in 1996.
In January 2001 he left Seagram to head up the Wine Department of Safeway, the UKs third largest wine retailer. He was responsible for a range of over 900 wines, 500 stores, annual sales of 84 million bottles with a 340m annual turnover. During this time, the company was recognised for having one of the most quality-led and eclectic wine ranges on the UK high street.
He left Safeway in June 2004 to set up his own wine brokering and consultancy company based in the Languedoc. In July 2008 he founded Vinecole, a wine school based near Carcassonne. It was a chance to realize a dream of living not only in France but also working in the most exciting wine region in the world.
Ready for your next challenge? There's still time to join the upcoming sessions!
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