Wine tastings in London

I go to a lot of wine tastings in London, mostly to try new wines, but its also fun to find out what different venues offer. Here's my pick:

The free one
Majestic. What a fabulous idea - free wine tastings to encourage you to buy their wine. It certainly got me in store. They run these maybe once a month, if you sign up to your local shop's emails, they'll let you know when. Or, if you want to simply pop in, they always have some bottles open for you to try.
http://www.majestic.co.uk/

The fun one
DVine Cellars in Clapham. £15-25, weekly. In the basement of the shop, there is a tasting table where Greg and Ollie hold tastings. They both know their stuff, and will tailor the tasting to the level of the audience. Interesting facts, informal, so you can ask questions freely, and friendly punters to share your stories with. Opportunity to buy a bottle to drink at the end of the tasting, chill out with your new friends.
http://www.dvinecellars.com/content/9-tastings

The quick one
Sampler Islington or South Kensington £20, Sundays. At the back of the shop, Ben gives a whistlestop tour of a specific region or grape varietal. Chance to try something new that has already been picked out for you. and good for finding out what it is you like about a certain grape or region. You get 10% off any bottles that you have tasted if you want to buy after.
http://www.thesampler.co.uk/store/content/44/Tasting-Events/

The formal one
Dorchester hotel £39, monthly. You are welcomed with an aperitif and canapes. Ronan gives a lesson on history, geography and geology. Then we get taken through a journey of around 10 wines with Masters of Wine. Good for learning as well as tasting, and they're not stingy on portions. And they really know what they're talking about and give good sommelier tips.
http://www.thedorchester.com/wine-events

The luxury one
28-50 either in Marylebone or Fetter Lane, £40, monthly. Hosted by Xavier who has a CV that will make you cry (Head Sommelier at Le Manoir and founder of Texture). He set up this restaurant with Agnar Sverrisson to focus on wine. The tasting is very in-depth, and you get to taste some very expensive wines. I was in awe at this tasting and felt privileged to be there!
http://www.2850.co.uk/fetter/events

The indulgent one
Dvine Cellars wine tasting dinner. Price varies depending on menu - the one I went to was £75. Oh my. The menu was designed to match the wine rather than the other way around. Four courses of food (ceviche, ox cheek... fancy!), each with two wines. Then, as the producers were there (what an honour), they brought out the big guns at the end, expensive wines that hadn't even been bottled yet. These don't happen very often and are a jolly good night out. If you're keen, let Greg know and he'll get in touch for the next one.
http://www.dvinecellars.com/

The classic one
Antique Wine Company £95, or £65 through Stylist magazine/ Emerald Street. Nine wines, an hour and a half, served with a mouthful of matching food. You're greeted with a glass of champagne. Richard Hemming hosted the rose evening, and was a good teacher. It was a shame that Richard left early, and we weren't left to finish the open bottles. Even though I emailed my seafood allergy when I booked, but all dishes contained seafood and they hadn't thought to provide an alternative.
http://antique-wine.com/blog/

Others:

• Planet of the Grapes http://www.planetofthegrapes.co.uk/shop.php?cPath=34_43
• Vinopolis http://vinopolis.co.uk/
• Four 0 Nine http://www.fouronine.co.uk/foodies-wine-night
• Bacchanalia http://www.bacchanaliatws.co.uk/club-bacchanalia.aspx

Dorchester Burgundy Wine Evening

With Ronan Sayburn and Gearoid Devaney

I love going to wine tastings, I love to see how different people/places pitch themselves, and at what level. So should you bother going to the Dorchester wine evenings? I think if you know quite a bit about wine, and want some more technical info, if you want to learn about the region and varieties, while being served high quality wines, and lots of them, for £39 then this is a great call! It is quite a formal atmosphere, which you'd expect from the Dorchester.

At the Burgundy evening we tasted 11 wines, and canapes were served (although rather high end - smoked salmon and foie gras isn't to my taste, so I stuck to crackers). Maps, geology and history lessons pursued, which were very interesting, but did mean the tastings were a little rushed. It was wonderful tasting wines side by side, but it became difficult to keep track of which were which (perhaps a tasting mat would have helped). I think also being in a spacious suite meant people started their own conversations and lost the thread of the tasting. Above all, however, I was very impressed by the quality of the wines that were presented, and that the presentation was delivered by two highly renowned Master Sommeliers, who clearly knew their stuff. Plus there was no hard sell, the purpose of the evening for them is for us to taste and learn, and create a more positive association of The Dorchester with good quality wines.

This one is very good value for money, so I recommend you go soon before they increase the price, which they no doubt will once this tasting evening becomes established. Maybe I'll see you at the Californian session.
http://www.thedorchester.com/wine-events