- Wine Writer and Weekly Wine Columnist - Certified Specialist in Wine by Society of Wine Educators; Certified in Wine by Wine & Spirits Education Trust - MBA in Marketing; Accomplished Sales & Marketing Professional
Wine columnist Len Napolitano has traveled to wine regions in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Central and Southern France, and Italy and tours California wine country everyday in an effort to increase his wine knowledge. Besides studying wine and earning wine knowledge certification by the industry, his years working for an international wine barrel manufacturer has helped him build close relationships with many winemakers and winery owners, keeping him on an inside track with wine industry news and trends. At his speaking engagements and wine tasting classes, Len’s opening remark is always the same: “I am a wine consumer who happens to write a wine column.” It sums up his approach to wine education—straightforward, unpretentious and from a regular wine buyer’s point of view. He understands the questions from the novice wine drinker and has a knack for explaining in simple terms what needs to be known.
Since 2001, Len Napolitano has served as the regular wine columnist for the Ventura County Star (Southern California), a Scripps-Howard daily newspaper, and since 2002, he appears weekly in Wine Country This Week magazine, the leading tourism publication throughout Northern California. Len is also Wine Editor for Wine & Jazz Magazine, a news and lifestyle publication for wine and jazz lovers.
Because Len believes that a person’s wine experience becomes more pleasurable with wine knowledge, his column, “Wineology: Intelligence For The Wine Consumer,” is written specifically for the person who simply enjoys wine and is curious to learn more about it. Wineology is consumer-centric, easy to read, and educational. His goal is to break down the mystique about wines and make it more accessible to the average person.
Len has also contributed wine articles in Santa Barbara Magazine, California Coastal Wines Magazine, 805 Living Magazine, the San Luis Obispo Tribune, Wine Adventure magazine and WomenWine.com He can also been seen in “bumpers” on Fine Living Television network giving essential wine advice on common wine subjects like storage, decanting, and serving temperatures. Len also conducts wine appreciation and tasting classes and has judged at international wine competitions.
Beginning his wine studies at the Chicago Wine School, Len later earned wine-knowledge Certification from both the Society of Wine Educators and the London-based Wine and Spirits Education Trust. Writing projects began for Len back in the 1980s, when he was a Marketing Communications Manager, writing and producing technical literature, news releases and print advertising for a world-leading manufacturing firm on Long Island, New York.
Since moving to California in 1995, his marketing and writing skills have also been applied to scripts for a variety of direct response television commercials, corporate news releases, and websites. Len has an MBA in Marketing and a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering. He resides in the Paso Robles wine appellation, the center of California’s vast Central Coast wine country.
“I learn something each week from your writings.”-Roger Strange
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“Thank you for your style of writing your column. You answer questions in a thoughtful and concise way without leaving your audience behind.” -Cheryl Aldrich
-------------------- “Thanks again for the very informative article.”-Bill Callegari --------------------
“Thanks so much for your Wednesday column. It’s always pleasant and informative…just wish the column took up a whole page!”-Howard Emary --------------------- “…I enjoy your column in the Ventura County Star very much.”-Bob Taylor
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“Thank you for your column. I do enjoy!”-Don Berger
Len conducts wine education classes and addresses private groups about
wine appreciation. Specializing in introducing beginners to wine, Len's
classes are relaxed and informative.
Tasting and evaluating wine
is an essential component of the basic wine education classes, along
with an explanation of the wine appellation system, wine labels and
pairing wines with food.
Contact Len if you would like him to speak about wine at your event. Write to: wineologist@earthlink.net
The Winery Music Awards
Founded and produced by Kathy Kelly Productions, Inc., the Winery Music Awards competition brings the best of independent music to wine country. Not a competition for winery music, but a competition for a variety of music genres held in a wine country atmosphere. Attendees enjoy fine wine, gourmet food and quality original music surrounded by acres of vineyards and world-class wineries. The Winery Music Awards competition is a Paso Robles, CA-based showcase open to original music artists from the US and Canada, independent and unsigned with major record labels. Its monthly semi-final concert competitions run from June to September, with a final competition in October.
There are people who attend wine classes with an agenda other than to learn about wine, and there's nothing wrong with that. A wine class is a great way to meet other people, in particular, people who also enjoy wine. It can be a fun night out for a small group of friends, and sometimes, towards the end of the class, when enough wine has been consumed to raise the volume of chatter louder than the instructor's voice, it can more resemble a Friday night happy hour than a serious classroom. But that's also part of its appeal.
If your objective is to learn, attending a class on any subject can be a little intimidating, especially if the subject is one that you always have struggled with to understand. Whether it's the first day of first grade or the start of an adult education class to learn a foreign language, the adrenalin flows just a little faster in anticipation of it. And the composition of the students in a wine education class is just like any other--some will appear to be more knowledgeable than you while most others will not be so wine-informed.
But simply sounding wine-savvy is easy to do. People in my classes do it often, probably without realizing it. During the lesson on the proper steps to taste a wine like a professional, someone will throw out terms or expressions that I know they don't really understand, but have obviously heard uttered from others. Take the word "earthy," for example. Wine critics use it often as a descriptor for some very fine wines made in Burgundy, France, indicating an aroma of truffles, or mushrooms, or when a wine is reminiscent of the air on a cool morning in the woods. It has happened that someone would use this word to describe the wine we're sipping in class and, invariably, everyone would look at him or her in complete amazement, as if that student is a ringer--someone who actually knows a ton about wine and is in the class only to show off their expertise.
It's not that "earthy" is a bad word to use to describe wine--it's just that it is not one that a typical beginner would think of using. They must have heard it or read it somewhere and remembered it. Fact is, when it comes to tasting and smelling wine, you can really say almost anything when it comes to what you detect. And who's to say that some people don't smell earth when they stick their noses in the glass? It does sound good, and it does impress others in a beginner's wine class. The point is not to be intimidated if someone uses an "expert" word like earthy, instead of how a more humble wine drinker once described a wine when asked what comes to mind after a good sniff: "It smells like dirt," which is also perfectly acceptable.
With a beginning wine class, keep in mind that anyone in the class who sounds like they know more about wine than you has chosen to attend the same beginner's class. It's like a situation that sometimes happens when I play golf. I am just an average golfer, who plays only several times a year, usually at friendly golf tournaments for charities, organized by a local wine association. But when I just go out and golf with my wife it is inevitable that someone playing behind us is significantly better than either one of us. When we see him waiting impatiently as we hack away needing five, six, (yes, sometimes more) strokes to finish the hole, the natural reaction is to think we're not good enough and that we are slowing down his game. But we choose to play at the easiest, most basic courses in our area. I would never even attempt to play at a professional course where I really would feel bad about holding up better players behind me. But on an elementary, easy-rated course, it's the impatient guy behind me who chose the wrong course for his level of ability, not us.
The same holds for basic wine classes. If this is your first class and you choose one that is designed for beginners in wine education, then you should never feel uncomfortable asking questions or admitting that there is something you don't understand. My old instructor at the Chicago Wine School used to say that there are no stupid questions at his wine school. Then he would add, "Well, there has only been only one stupid question in all the years of the Chicago Wine School that is still asked every now and then." Inevitably, someone would have the courage to ask what the stupid question was. Patrick Fegan, the Director, would wryly respond, "The only stupid question comes from people who call the school and ask me if we teach wine classes here."
Maybe you just don't smell or taste the same aromas or flavors that most other students are experiencing. Maybe you detect licorice while others get black cherry. You're both right. That's perfectly OK. Take your time. Be a beginner and enjoy it. Some of the best questions and comments in the classes I've taught have come from the people with the least amount of wine knowledge or experience. Just as playing golf should not be rushed, neither should the process of learning and savoring wine.
Relax. Here's What To Expect:
Every wine class that I've ever attended or am aware of involves tasting wine. Classes for beginners will always include tasting wines because their purpose is to teach the essence of wine--the complete process of tasting, from observing color to describing what you taste, to thinking about whether or not it pleases you.
In my classes, I sometimes start out by asking a very simple question: "By a show of hands, how many people here drink wine?" It's an odd question to ask a wine tasting class. Obviously, the response one expects is a raised hand from nearly everyone. And that is precisely what happens. But then I pose the follow-up question: "Now, by a show of hands, how many people here taste wine?" Here is when everyone looks at the others around them and looks back at me like maybe I've lost my mind. "Did he just ask the same question in a different way?," people are wondering. But these two questions presented back to back serve as good shock therapy for wine drinkers.
Students instinctively react as if I asked the same question twice until they take a moment to think about it. My point is this: anyone can drink wine, but trained wine drinkers taste wine. Drinking wine is simply the process of consuming it, and nothing more than that. Tasting wine involves a thought process, and, if the wine is remarkable, the added bonus of savoring it.
A good class for the wine novice will focus on tasting wine, not drinking wine. It will help you understand the reasons for observing a wine's color, swirling the wine in the glass, smelling the wine. Most important, perhaps, it will assist you in finding the words to describe what you smell and taste. When you start thinking about wine as you drink it, not only do you begin to enjoy wine at a new level, you automatically start building a "virtual wine database" in your mind. From this wine memory bank, you will withdraw some of that saved information upon future wine tasting experiences. You will start comparing wines that you've tasted in the past with the wine in front of you at the moment. And you will learn to compare wine fairly and consistently, which leads to more cost-effective wine buying, better enjoyment of food, and more meaningful conversations with other wine drinkers.
I admit that sometimes I will just drink wine and not think about it. The reason is usually because the wine is not compelling enough to think about. But the vast majority of the wine I consume is tasted--seen, swirled, sniffed, sipped, swallowed and savored: also known in some classes as the six "S's" of wine tasting. I've applied these basic steps of wine tasting ever since I learned them in my very first class on basic wine tasting in 1994.
And with practice, you will get better at it until it becomes automatic. Sometimes I catch myself swirling and sniffing my orange juice or sparkling water, which can be embarrassing. But when you take your first wine tasting class, be sure to learn these steps. It is the foundation of every wine experience.
What Not To Do
So much of what you taste in a wine depends upon what you smell. To be able to clearly identify the many aromas in wine your nose must not be distracted by non-wine fragrances, such as perfume or cologne. If fragrances are applied heavily, you will not learn much about the wine when you stick your nose in the glass and smell nothing but Calvin Klein Obsession. If you feel that you cannot go out of the house without a body fragrance, keep it to a minimum. And if you don't wear perfume or cologne, be sure to avoid sitting near someone in class who does. Now, picture yourself walking up to each person in a classroom and taking a good whiff of him or her. Just tell them that you're deciding where to sit.
Next in importance after utilizing your sense of smell when participating in a wine class is applying your sense of taste. When you sip wine samples, your entire palate will be coated with wine and your tongue's ability to sense flavors and textures will be greatly diminished if there is residue of other flavors. I strongly urge people to avoid the following items within a couple of hours of taking a wine tasting class: gum, mints, toothpaste, beer, soda, hard alcohol, coffee and very salty or spicy foods. Even ice-cold water can temporarily numb your palate for a few minutes and make a fair wine evaluation impossible.
Avoiding these items in advance of class gives the wine a clean chance of receiving your approval. People unfairly reject so many wines without realizing that it's not the wine's fault. They may have just eaten something that created a huge clash in flavor with the wine, and just because the wine was the last thing to enter their mouth, the wine is blamed.
If you ever had an experience when you tasted a wine once and absolutely loved it, then tried the exact same wine again at a later date and absolutely hated it, I am confident the reason is related to a tainted palate at the time of the second tasting. So, be fair to yourself and the wine, even if you have breath and body aroma that aren't exactly April fresh. In the end, you'll get more from the class than those who do.
The Wine Classroom
A wine class can be conducted almost anywhere. All that is needed is a fairly quiet environment to aid concentration, good lighting, to observe a wine's color, and enough space for each setting to have up to six glasses. Usually the glasses will be arranged in a row across a white place mat. Wine samples are poured in each glass, 1-2 ounces apiece, starting on the left with the lighter wines, then progressing to heavier wines on the right.
Because the objective in the class is to evaluate, compare, and then discuss conclusions with the instructor, everyone needs to be on the same page when it comes to tasting the wines. You can't be on wine number two while everyone else is sampling wine number three. Be sure to keep wines in the order in which they were poured, and if you think you moved a glass out of order, be sure to let the instructor know. Otherwise, you'll be even more confused about wine when you leave class than when you arrived.
Taking notes is encouraged when learning to taste wines, and I don't mean just notes on what the instructor says. It's a good idea to start writing down your thoughts on what you taste. At the very least, for classroom experiences and any other times you drink wine, write down the name of the producer of the wine and the region where the wine comes from. Get into this habit. This information alone is helpful in building your mind's "wine database." Even if you don't jot down detailed tasting notes on the wine, you will subconsciously associate the wine with either pleasure or disappointment. Being able to go back and identify that wine, its region and producer, is invaluable in your wine education process.
I'm a strong believer in looking at the labels of the wines I taste. It makes a good visual impression that stays with me. If you are at a restaurant and happen to like the house wine being poured, ask the server to bring the bottle out so that you can read the label. Do the same when enjoying a wine at a friend's house. Keep building your database. Look at labels, take names.
In class, you'll likely be asked to describe what you taste and smell because that is the essence of the process of learning to taste, rather than simply drinking wine. But writing down what you taste and smell makes a better "imprint" in your mind and helps to trigger other descriptive words. Even better, save your class notes on each wine that you taste and refer to them the next time you taste a wine of the same type. Over time, and after jotting down thoughts on wines as you taste, you'll see for yourself how chardonnay, for example, will exhibit certain characteristics consistently, every time you taste chardonnay and regardless of where it came from. Other characteristics will come not so consistently.
You then decide which traits you prefer over the others. Your virtual wine database will begin to alert you to what stands out as a pleasant trait or unpleasant. After time, refer to your previous notes to see which regions are producing the chardonnays that regularly possess the preferred traits and I guarantee you'll never drink a restaurant's house white wine again without asking first what type of wine it is and where it comes from. With a little practice and minimal wine knowledge, you'll be able to smile with a polite request, "Do you happen to have a lightly oaked chardonnay from the Sonoma side of Carneros?"
Who Teaches About Wine?
Wine classes are like people. They come in all different shapes and sizes and personalities. And just like it's nice to have met a variety of people in your life, the same holds true for wine classes.
There are classes that focus on specific countries of origin, like Italy, for example, which has hundreds upon hundreds of grape varieties that are unique to Italy. There are classes that focus on a single grape variety, such as cabernet sauvignon, arguably one of the world's finest. A class like this could compare cabernet sauvignon from a variety of countries or a variety of regions in California. There are classes that explore differences in vintage years within a single region, using a single grape. The possibilities for different wine class subjects is endless. Trying as many as possible is not only fun, but a valuable education as well.
Class instructors can have credentials ranging from college professor to sommelier to wine distributor sales manager. And although the basics of the wine tasting process can be taught by any one of them, their perspectives are different. In the examples above, the professor tends to be more analytic from a scientific standpoint and able to answer questions about chemical compounds in the wine and the flavors that they produce. The sommelier has probably tasted thousands of wines and is current on what is popular among wine drinkers today. Someone who sells or distributes wine will have thorough knowledge of his or her brands and how they compare to one another and competing wines.
Every one of these possibilities for wine instruction is valuable for basic wine education. In fact, I encourage you to take basic classes from as many of these various wine experts as you can. You can learn a lot by simply listening to the words they use to describe wines, and you can start building that other virtual database in your head that collects descriptive words about wine. Then, above the clamor of chatty wine lovers at the end of class, you'll sound like the ringer when you describe the wine as " having an earthy elegance." And you'll mean it.
Wineology and Intelligence For The Wine Consumer
are Trademarks of Len Napolitano
