“
I
’
d like to learn more about wine
because I work in the wine department of Cash
Value and want to be able to help customers choose the right wine.
”
She smiled shyly as she sat down.
Hayley was the last to introduce herself and it was obvious to everyone that she wasn
’
t particularly happy to be there.
She had been texting all the time that the others had been speaking. Now, her phone still in her hand, she told the assembled group that her boss had said she had to do the course. Her look told them that she
’
d rather be anywhere else tonight but here.
The course began.
Sam started by telling them about the different grape varieties and how they were grown. He explained it all so clearly and with such passion that he had his audience hooked. It was fascinating. The hour flew by and with the exception of Hayley who was texting under cover of the table, they all listened intently. Sam felt it was going to be a good group.
“
Right, we
’
ll take a fifteen
-
minute break now while I get the wines ready for tasting. If anyone needs to smoke, they can go outside, but I should warn you that smoking will interfere with your taste buds and therefore affect how you taste the wines.
”
Hayley didn
’
t seem to care and got up to go out, a pack of ciggies in hand.
“
C
’
mon,
”
she said to Karen who smiled apologetically at Sam.
“
We
’
ll just go out for a breath of fresh air,
”
Keith told him.
“
We won
’
t smoke.
”
Sam grinned at him. It was already obvious that Keith was interested in Karen.
The other four sat and chatted as Sam opened bottles of wine.
“
Can I help, Sam?
”
Ronan asked him.
“
Thanks, Ronan. If you could take these boxes of glasses and put one in front of each place – that would be great.
”
Ronan did as he asked.
“
He
’
s fabulous, isn
’
t he?
”
Rachel whispered, nodding towards Sam.
“
He reminds me of Jonathan Rhys Meyers
–
you know
,
the actor guy
?”
“
I thought that the first time I met him,
”
Ellie agreed with her.
“
Sam really knows his stuff. He makes it so interesting
.”
She was leafing through the literature he
’
d given them.
“
I can
’
t believe that there are thousands of grape varieties. I
’
ve only heard of four or five
.”
“
Well, I know a few more but I could count them all on two hands.
”
Zita concurred.
“
He
’
s so passionate about wine, it
’
s catching.
”
Rachel observed.
“
I can
’
t wait to learn more
.”
“
Yeah, I
’
m really glad I decided to come,
”
Ellie said as the
four young ones came back in the room, Keith and Karen chatting animatedly together. Hayley looked as sullen as before.
The second part of the evening was about to begin
.
“
This next hour will probably change the way you look at
wine forever,
”
was how Sam introduced the tasting session. They all looked at him expectantly
,
wondering what he
meant.
“
You will never again be able to drink a wine witho
ut tasting it professionally and then analysing it
.”
He told them to take out their tasting glasses and line them up. When this was done he went around and poured two different white wines for each of them.
“
This is the part I
’
m looking forward to,
”
Rachel told them
. “
I
’
d like to learn to taste professionally, the way I
’
ve seen them doing on TV
.
I
’
ve no idea what to look for.
”
“
Me neither, I haven
’
t a clue,
”
Ellie chimed in.
Sam was familiar with this reaction. Most people, he found, had no confidence in their ability to taste.
“
You
’
ll be surprised,
”
he told them.
“
I want you to taste both wines and then tell me which you
think is the best
.”
They did as he asked.
“
Now, who
thought the first one was the best wine
?”
No hands went up
.
Hayley was about to raise hers but
,
when she saw nobody else doing so she changed her mind.
“
And who thought the second one was the best
?”
Eight hands shot up.
“
You see, you can already tell the difference between a poor quality wine and a good one. Well done, everybody.
”
They grinned at one another, pleased that they
’
d got it right. Ellie gave a little laugh and didn
’
t feel so stupid any more. Rachel sighed with relief, knowing that she hadn
’
t made a complete fool of herself. For all her outward confidence and poise she was insecure underneath it and cared a lot about what others thought of her.
“
Tasting is a technique that I
’
m going to teach you
,”
Sam informed them.
He then demonstrated how to do it, spitting into what looked like an ice-bucket when he had finished.
“
Now it
’
s your turn
,”
he told them.
“
We
’
ll start with the first wine. Take a sip – not too much – suck in air through it, roll it around your mouth and finally spit it out into the spittoon on your table – or swallow it if you prefer.
”
They did as he instructed
,
some of them almost choking at
the effort. Then
,
as they spat
,
it came out in a dribble rather than in the expert way Sam had done it. Everybody laughed.
“
Don
’
t worry! This happens to everyone in the beginning. You
’
ll get the hang of it soon enough.
”
Sam smile
d at them
.
He explained that wine was a very subjective thing and
learning to recognise quality was the key
.
“
There are a lot of bull
-
shitters – excuse the language – out there, who purport to be wine buffs and all they do is turn people off. The important thing is what you
find in the wine
and my aim is to teach you what to look for.
”
After that the mood in the room took on a party atmosphere as they tasted, swirled, mostly swallowed
,
and listened to Sam as he directed them. By the time they
’
d tasted the six wines – three white and three red – they were entering into the spirit of it and offering their opinions
.
“
It tasted like cherries,
”
Ellie said of the last wine.
“
It has a bitter taste at the end,
”
was Zita
’
s contribution.
“
Terrific! You
’
re really getting it
!”
Sam glowed at them.
“
That perfectly describes it. It
’
s quite characteristic of Italian wines.
”
Ellie grinned at Zita who smiled back, both of them extremely pleased with themselves.
By now they were all offering freely of their opinions. Rachel was so extravagant that when she mentioned
“
sweaty saddles
”
Sam suspected she
’
d been reading Oz Clarke.
He tried to hide a smile.
When the tasting was over he thanked them for comin
g, reminding them not to forget their glasses and book packs.
“
By the way, I
’
m looking for some temporary part-time staff for evenings and weekends at three of my shops
,”
he said
,
as he handed out copies of the list with everyone
’
s phone number and email address.
“
If any of you know anyone who might be suitable, then I
’
d like to hear from them. I always prefer to recruit my staff on recommen-dations
.”
“
I don
’
t really know anyone,
”
Rachel murmured, shaki
ng her head.
“
I have a friend who might be interested,
”
Karen said
.
“
Good. Ask her to give me a call and mention your name, Karen,
”
Sam said
,
smiling at the young girl.
“
Let me think about it,
”
Ronan said
,
as Ellie frowned, trying hard to think of anyone she knew who might be interested.
“
Well, I
’
m heading to the Castle for a pint, if anyone would like to join me?
”
Sam
said as he tidied up his desk.
“
Sure,
”
Ronan said.
“
I could murder a pint right now.
”
“
Sorry, I can
’
t,
”
Rachel apologised
. “
I
’
m driving tonigh
t
and I have a baby
-
sitter
,
but next week I
’
ll join you
if you
’
re going and take a taxi.
”
“
How about you girls?
”
Ronan asked Zita and Ellie
.
“
Sorry, I can
’
t either,
”
Ellie replied.
“
But next week, I
’
ll come too.
”
Zita decided that if Rachel wasn
’
t going
,
then she wouldn
’
t bother either
.
“
Sorry, I
’
d better not, I
’
m on my bike.
”
“
Well, we wouldn
’
t want you wobbling home,
”
Sam joked and they all laughed at the image, even Zita herself.
“
I
’
ll stay next week,
”
she told him, and was rewarded with a big smile from Rachel.
Cycling home with just the merest wobble
,
Zita reflected that she
’
d actually had a great time. Much to her surprise she
’
d found the course very interesting although she would not be deflected from her real reason for being there. She still had Rachel in her sights.