Can you tell your white wine from your red wine, blindfolded? Join us for a fun and interactive  tasting. Sommelier Xavier will guide you through a selection of nine refreshing and exciting South African wines in three different acts: colour, age and dryness vs. sweetness.

Act I: Red or white? Recognise the colour of wine, by taste alone.
Act II: Older or younger? Allow your palate to experience and determine maturity.
Act III: Sweet or not so sweet, that is the question! Play with the levels of sweetness and acidity in your mouth.
The French sommelier Xavier Didier has been working in the wine industry for 15 years. He worked at the famous Tantris Restaurant in Munich before moving to Cape Town. He is now a co-founder of the Start-up MyVinos and manages the historic cellar for Reserve Wine Investments.

Audience Responses

Clever choice of wines. Nice process. I'd love more of a theatrical/ learning element to the process. Music, the inclusion of other media or even more interaction with the audience could Improve the experience. I'd also rethink the use of the space, perhaps giving the audience a little more space to move might reduce the risk of broken glassware and potential harm. But it was a lovely experience and I'd happily give it another try :-)

I think this event was fantastic. It is clear that Xavier has extensive knowledge about wine, and I learnt some new things and tasted new flavours, which made it a great experience. I do think, however, that these events (I hope there will be more!) would be better with far fewer people. Because of his wealth of experience and knowledge, it would have been good to hear a bit more detail about the wines. 8 people I think would be ideal, perhaps 10. It was very noisy, which detracted somewhat from the experience - being blindfolded, everything is heightened. I would have got more out of the experience if there had been no talking while tasting, and then a time when any comments/questions could be briefly raised post each round of tasting. Many people were talking over Xavier, which I found irritating and rather frustrating as well as disrespectful (though it could have been connected to increasing tipsiness of the crowd, but still!). I think the instructions could have been explained a wee bit more clearly at the start and it would have been good if the numbers were not called out out loud in each voting round, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself and would certainly go again.

A taste sensation

Brilliant concept, beautifully executed! Thank you for a challenging & entertaining take on what was not the common or garden wine tasting experience!