'Tis the Season. For Grand Tastings.

365 Days

Posted 11/10/2008 at 10:06 PM by Cathy

'Tis the season.

For Grand Tastings, that is.

Retailers all around the greater Boston area, knowing full well that more wine is sold during Oct-Nov-Dec than any other time of the year, are rearranging their floor space right now to accommodate tasting tables full of the latest wines to hit their shelves.

Why?

Because they want you to taste. And taste some more. And, hopefully, you'll find that new special bottle (or two or three or four) that you just cannot make it through the holidays without.

Here's your chance -- here are many chances -- to expand your palate. The tastings are often free, and retailers usually offer a same-day discount off purchases.

So go. Taste. Taste a lot.

(Just do it responsibly. There's no time like the present to perfect the art of spitting the wine once you've tasted it. It will keep you level-headed, and better able to discern the finest Pinot Gris in the lot, which is what we're after anyway, right?)

Check in with your local wine shop about any tastings they've got on tap. Here are a few, in the meantime, to get the ball rolling.

WHAT: Burgundy Tasting
WHERE: The Spirited Gourmet in Belmont
WHEN: Friday, November 14, 5 to 8 p.m.
ALSO: Grand Holiday Tasting on Saturday from 3 to 8 p.m.

WHAT: Annual Holiday Tasting
WHERE: Port Wine & Spirits, Newburyport
WHEN: Friday, November 14, 5 to 8 p.m.

WHAT: International Wine Tasting Gala Event
WHERE: Liquor World
WHEN: Saturday, November 15, 1 to 5 p.m.

WHAT: Fall/Winter Grand Tasting
WHERE: Andover Liquors
WHEN: Saturday, November 15, 2 to 6 p.m.

WHAT: A Taste of the Holidays
WHERE: Beverly Wine & Beer Co.
WHEN: Saturday, November 15, 3 to 7 p.m.

WHAT: Super Sunday Tasting
WHERE: Shawsheen Village Liquors, Andover
WHEN: Sunday, November 16, 4 to 7 p.m.

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About the Author

Cathy Huyghe

Cathy Huyghe writes about drinking wine every day in the Boston area. She finds the quirky characters, the after-hours events, and the surprising stories that make up Boston's vibrant local wine scene. But no matter where she is, what she's doing, or who she's with, she mostly just wants to drink the stuff.

Her first restaurant gig was at Chez Panisse, when she knocked on the kitchen's back door and asked if she could work there. She's also worked for Jean-Pierre Vigato in Paris and Thomas Keller in Las Vegas. She went to graduate school at Harvard (twice), and her writing has run in Boston magazine, the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, Edible Boston, and on Nevada Public Radio and Grist.org.