Wine and Dine with the WAC

An excited group packed the room at Alston and Bird on June 26th to attend the Women’s Advancement Compact’s first educational wine event! 36 women were ready to participate in a unique wine tasting adventure.

Making new friends, drinking wine, and laughing. What could be better?

Most people in attendance were probably unaware that the event had more goals than just DRINK LOTS OF WINE! In reality, the event had three goals: to demystify restaurant wine ritual, to put into perspective how important aroma is in assessing wine, and to demonstrate how food and wine can pair together beautifully.

The event started with our fabulous sommelier Claire Paparazzo, giving a quick introduction about how to order wine at a restaurant and which key elements to look for when assessing the soundness of the wine.

Claire’s advice was then put to the test during the aroma aspect of the event. The attendees were spilt up into six different groups and rotated amongst six tables each featuring a different wine. The challenge was to smell the wine and try to pinpoint each aroma that was in the wine. The groups turned this into an interactive effort and worked together to figure out each scent. Conversation was heard throughout the room, along with continuous laughter.

What is that smell?

After the aroma portion of the night, a wine and food pairing followed and mingling among guests continued until the very end of the event.  

Overall, the event was a smashing success and many people came away saying they learned something new about wine and what scents to look for.