Events: Michaelmas 2005

Bottles Please click on the list of events below to read further information:

Photos of events

View photos of previous tastings and events on our alumni page.
If you have any photographs of events to submit please email web@oxforduniversitywinesociety.com.

Earlier Termcards

Details

Beginners' Classes

Glass of Red Wine Offered as a set of two evening sessions, each night includes the tasting of at least 7 wines. In a small group we will cover tasting skills, 'good' vs. 'poor' wines, popular white & red grape varieties and classic wine styles. It also offers a great opportunity for experienced wine drinkers to improve their tasting skills and improve their knowledge of the classic grape varieties.

Cost: £28 members, £42 non-members.

The dates for the classes are as follows:

Saturday 15th October (end of 1st week): Class one
Saturday 22nd October (end of 2nd week): Class two

To book a place please pigeon post a cheque (payable to Mark McDonald) to Mark McDonald at Merton College. These classes are always oversubscribed, so please book as soon as possible to secure a place. For further information please contact: info@oxfordwinesociety.org.

Oxford Great Value Tasting

Glass of Red Wine Wednesday 2nd Week (19 October)
6.45 for 7pm
Magrath Room, Queens College

Tonight members will have the opportunity to 'try before you buy' a range of wines readily available in stores around Oxford. As a service to members the Committee has selected 10 wines, ranging from £5 to £20, to test against the palates of value craving members!

Use this opportunity to help guide you towards good quality and value for money! The entire £5 glass charge will go towards covering the (unsponsored) cost of the wines.

Mosel Wine Tasting

Mosel Thursday 3rd Week (27 October)
7.25 for 7.30pm
Memorial Room, Queens College

Wine trade experts and journalists regard the Riesling wines of Germany as amongst the very finest expression of grape and vineyard in the world. Since the introduction of viticulture by the Romans, these wines enjoyed a huge popularity until recent decades. Now enjoying a renaissance, particularly as the perfect aperitif or accompaniment to modern Asian and oriental cooking, we will tonight sample a range of the country's finest producers.

Tonight we welcome Luke Webster from Cambridge Wine Merchants who will be guiding us through a range of wines from the famous Mosel region of Germany.

38 places. Please book online. £3 on the glass.

New Zealand Wine Tasting

Red Wine Glass Thursday 3 November
7.25 for 7.30pm
The Buttery, Wolfson College

New Zealand is gaining international recognition as a producer of world class wines. The temperate climate leads to a long, slow ripening period for the grapes which, at its best, gives elegant wines with vibrant varietal characters. New Zealand has received international acclaim for its Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, but produces excellent examples of other wines as well.

Tonight we welcome David Taine from Lenz Wines who will guide us through a comparison of the different styles of wine grown in New Zealand

45 places. Please book online. £5 on the glass.

Champagne Louis Roederer

Cristal Label Wednesday 16 November
Memorial Room, Queens College
6.45 for 7pm

http://www.champagne-roederer.com/

Louis Roederer is a family-owned Champagne house with an illustrious history. The prestige Cuvee, Cristal, (which, before you ask, we will be tasting!) was originally produced under commission from Tsar Alexander II. The extensive vineyard holdings for which the company is famous enable the production of a wide range of styles of champagne, many of which we will be enjoying tonight.

Places are expected to sell out fast for this heavily subsidized tasting. Please book early to avoid disappointment.

45 places. Please book online. £5 on the glass.

Grand Cru IV - Dessert Wines

YQuem Saturday 7th week (26th November)
6.45 for 7pm
Magrath Room, Queens College

Following on from the previous sell-out success of our 'Grand Cru' tasting series, what better way to start the year than with a focus class looking at the worlds finest sweet wines. The purpose of these 'Grand Cru' evenings is simply a themed opportunity to taste the greatest examples of wine available today. These classes celebrate the very best wines in production and offer the unique opportunity to taste as a group wines so expensive and rare that they are often unavailable to individuals. Tonight we will experience Aszu to d'Yquem, tasting from the German Pfalz to South Africa and with vintages from the past 20 years. Dr Edward Fitzgerald will present a carefully chosen selection of the most famous bottles in this tutored tasting. This is a unique opportunity to taste the some of the world's greatest wines and a truly memorable night to talk about for years to come.

Cost: £28 members (Limited places for non-members at £40).

Please book a place by sending a cheque (payable to "Bacchus Wine Society") to Chris Dix, St. Peter's College. Please book early to ensure a place.

French Wine Tasting

Red Wine Glass Tuesday 8th week (29th November)
6.45 for 7pm
Magrath Room, Queens College

Andrew Gordon, the Chairman of the French Wine Committee, will present a vertical tasting of red wines from his Grand Mayne vineyard, demonstrating how the Climate and viticultural practises can influence the resulting wine. Domaine du Grand Mayne is one of the top vineyards in the Côtes de Duras, producing a quarter of a million bottles of wine each year, from the prescribed noble grape varieties for the appellation Côtes de Duras: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

38 places. Please book online. £5 payable on the glass.

Torbreck Vintners (Australia)

Torbreck Thursday 8th week (1st December)
6.45 for 7pm
Magrath Room, Queens College

http://www.torbreck.com

Established in the mid 1990s, Torbreck quickly became one of the most talked about Australian wineries and is one of the few which can produce genuinely outstanding wines to match up to the hype. These high quality wines are produced in small quantities from low-yielding vines, making the wines highly collectable (and highly expensive!). Tonight we welcome Rupert Dean from Torbreck who will be guiding us through a range of the wines produced by the estate.

35 places. Please book online. £3 on the glass.

Christie's Fine Wine Auction

Christie's Logo Monday 10th week (12th December)
Christie's Auctioneers, South Kensington, London

http://www.christies.com/

These days, rightly or wrongly, many fine and rare wines are traded as commodities like blue-chip stocks. Proudly at the centre of this international trade is Christie's of London, an auction house known to many for their fine art sales rather than fine wine. However, with their first wine sale taking place in 1766 and a team of nine highly respected experts on hand to advise clients, this is the one place to buy and sell the world's most famous wines. From everyday claret to a bottle of Château Lafite-Rothschild 1784 (which sold for £24,200 in November 2000) Christies is rightly proud of its historic tradition.

This afternoon, by a special annual arrangement, Christie's have again agreed to host a small number of OUWS members for the pre-auction tasting. This sale promises to be one of the largest of the year, with over 700 lots. David Elswood (Head of European Wine Sales) and Carolyn Holmes (Senior Specialist) will be there to greet us and take our group through the line up of wines and auction itself. Complimentary auction catalogues are kindly being provided.

12 places are available. To book please send a cheque for £5 (payable to "Bacchus Wine Society") together with your contact details to Chris Dix, St. Peter's College. Please book by Friday 2nd December 2005. Members are responsible for their own transport arrangements to and from Christie's.

[an error occurred while processing this directive]