Our new Wine School - Navigating Wine the South Downs Cellars’ Way
There is a certain magic that happens when you swirl a glass of wine under the soft light of a Sussex afternoon and allow the aromas and flavours to evoke thoughts beyond the liquid itself. There is always a story in every glass, a pleasure to behold, memories to conceive.
However, with the busy lives we all lead, it can be easy for ‘that glass of wine’ to become routine and merely consumed with little consideration beyond a familiar behaviour. When such disconnection occurs with our choice of wine, mindless consumerism can ensue, and personal taste or actual quality become secondary to fads, price-tags, and marketing. With the overwhelming choice of wines available today, it is small wonder that many folks stick to the same familiar wines.
But never fear, this is where South Downs Cellars (SDC) wine school comes in.
Over the past 23 years since SDC was established, we have been rewarded with a wonderful community of customers who’ve enjoyed discovering those stories through their curated bottles. During this time, we have always aimed to provide expert advice and guidance in store and at the numerous tasting events. But now we want to take our customers on a much deeper journey with the aim of increasing enjoyment through a more structured approach.
Whether you are a total wine novice looking to broaden your horizons or an enthusiastic afficionado looking to refine your palate, South Downs Cellars Wine School will provide courses and tasting sessions reflecting our team’s broad wealth of wine industry experience and product knowledge.
What to Expect?
The ethos of our school mirrors much of the same approach already in our shops: passionate, unpretentious, and deeply rooted in strong relationships with our producers and suppliers. We hope our students will become even more enthusiastic and bold when choosing wine, unafraid to try something new.
Here is an outline of our initial courses:
Introductory Sessions – One-Evening
Held in our Hurstpierpoint & Lindfield stores, throughout the year. Think ‘Wine 101’, with a focus on guided blind-tasting designed to build your confidence and harness your palate.
Navigating Wine — Three-Evening Course – starting 18th June, and further courses in 2027
Held at Court Garden Farm, Ditchling. Six white grapes, six reds, and an evening of food & wine pairing. The natural next step from our introductory course. See website for upcoming dates.
Exploring Wine — Six-Evening Course – courses in early 2027
Held at Court Garden Farm, Ditchling. Our Exploring Wine course delves deeper still into understanding wine with our expert guidance. With sessions focussing on wines from key regions and countries at greater depth, this course will also examine sparkling wine production.
Why Learn with South Downs Cellars?
You can read a textbook about tannins, but it tastes much better when poured by a friendly expert. The team at South Downs Cellars has spent years sourcing exceptional wines. They have direct relationships with importers and local growers, meaning the wines you taste in class are likely to be the exact bottles you will want to enjoy afterward.
Interested to Join our Classes?
If you have been looking for a sign to finally ‘get into wine’, this is it. Our school is now open for bookings with further course dates to be announced.
For the courses currently available, dates and ticket prices, head over to our events page or drop in to one of our shops to find out more. Let’s raise a glass to lifelong learning – cheers!