Wine Essentials Part 1: The Adventure Begins

Over the past five months as a Culinary Arts student at ICE, I have expanded and fine tuned my palate, tasting the likes of sweetbreads, tripe and foie gras bread pudding, to name just a few.

Beyond having a story to tell my friends at the end of the day, these foods are palate broadeners. With the knowledgeable guidance and encouragement of ICE’s chef-instructors, I have expanded my tasting spectrum and ability to connect flavors. Now, it is time to put these new tasting skills to use.

As a student in ICE’s career programs I have the option to take part in variety of specialty classes that cover an array of topics. With my more developed ability to think for and to detect tastes, I was ready to tackle whatever lay in store. Director of Wine and Beverage Studies Richard Vayda welcomed a mixed crowd of ICE career students and the general public thirsty for wine knowledge.

With an extensive background in all areas of food service, Vayda launched into an incredibly informative and thorough history of wine and explanation of the winemaking process. Once we got around to tasting, Vayda, just like my chef-instructors in class, elevated our thought process for imbibing through a careful tasting of five whites and four reds. The class revolved around discussion and sharing tasting notes. We sampled a few matched cheeses. My adventure in exploring wine’s complexity began. I am thirstily awaiting the tastes and tannins ahead, when next week Vayda’s pours will take us to France’s vineyards.