APWASI Courses Add A New Dimension To Wine Education

Add culture and cuisine to your wine learning menu.

New Wine Horizons

It’s been five years since I studied, swirled, and sweated to earn my Certified Specialist of Wine designation. My wine education is not over, though. I’ve continued to learn, some through formal training while also absorbing knowledge through less formal means such as tastings and reading.

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Whenever the world opens up again, our next international trip will be to Argentina to explore the country and its famed wine regions. To help prepare, I enrolled in the Asia Pacific Wine and Spirit Institute class to become a Certified Argentinian Wine Specialist.

APWASI has an interesting approach to learning. In addition to the country’s wine history, geography, climate, grapes, and wine, it adds some extra elements. Culture, cuisine, and history are all well covered.

Cultural Interaction

Indeed, part of APWASI’s mission is to expand global awareness, diversity, and inclusivity, through cultural interaction, experience, and adventure. It has an interesting array of classes. For those with general interest in wine there are the following classes: Consumer Wine Course, Wine Essentials I and Wine Essentials II.

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There is also a training course for tasting room staff and courses on luxury and spirits topics like whiskey, cigars, ice wine, and caviar. What attracted me is the deep dive into wines of a particular country. The wine icons like France and Italy have courses, but so do countries like Portugal, South Africa, and Canada. A new course, on the wines of China, was just introduced.

The country-specific course are US$345 except for Italy and France, which are US$545. The spirts and luxury courses are also US$345. The Wine Essentials and tasting room training courses cost less.

My focus was on Argentina. The course is all online and has 10 lessons. Each lesson consists of facts and information plus a number of videos. The videos are not produced by APWASI and aren’t included on the exam, but I found them to be tremendously valuable.

Immersed In Wine And Culture

They enabled me to become immersed in the country, its wine and culture. Some of the early lessons had videos that simply showed drone footage of various regions in Argentina. How wonderful! It really allowed me to get a feel for the land. Later courses had videos with winemakers, tours of Mendoza and Salta, and videos highlighting the food and dance of the country.

After each lesson, there is a brief quiz, which is timed. Most questions are true/false or multiple choice with a few fill-in-the-blanks. You must get 55% right in order to proceed to the next lesson. Even though I could refer to my notes, it’s easy to get tripped up. When I prepared for the final exam, I went back and retook several of the quizzes to test my knowledge. I estimate that the course took about 20 hours to go through the lessons then I spent another five hours reviewing and studying. I did this over a month’s time. For a country like Italy, I image the time would be considerably longer.

The culture and food aspects of the course really brought Argentina to life. Since I’m planning on visiting Argentina, it was extremely valuable to learn, for example, that dinner doesn’t start until 10 PM and that it is insulting to pour with the left hand. There was information on the asado, which is the Argentinian barbecue. Not only was there information, but a great video showing a family cooking up some tremendous dishes.

Trying An Argentinian Specialty

It was through the cuisine section that I learned about Milanesa, a dish that is made from pounded beef or chicken covered in breadcrumbs. As a way of driving home my knowledge, we created a wine dinner with Milanesa Napolitana (there is a tremendous Italian influence in Argentina), basil roasted potatoes, and a nice wine pairing.

Malbec is the signature red grape and we poured the 2011 Nieto Senetiner
"Don Nicanor" Villa Blanca Malbec from  Luján de Cuyo and the Phebus 2020 Torrontés, Mendoza. The Phebus has round flavors with citrus notes. Torrontés is the country’s signature white grape and its flavor can vary depending on the altitude of the vineyard and the soil.

The Don Nicanor is simply one of the best Malbecs we've had. At 10 years since vintage, the tannins are unobtrusive and only show at the finish. The texture is plush and soft with black cherry and raisin.

Fortified by this great meal and wine I was ready for the exam the next day. The exam is 100 questions and it is timed – although time for me wasn’t really an issue. Many of the questions were easy after studying all the course lessons. Others were a bit tricky, like the name of the first Spanish settlement or the date when the first vines were planted.

This is an unproctored exam, so you can glance at your notes if your willpower weakens.A minimum grade of 65% is required to pass the exam. If you do not pass the exam, you can retake it for a $60 fee.

Crossing The Finish Line

As an added bonus Dr. Clinton Lee, who is the APWASI executive director, hosts weekly Zoom wine discussions, which I’ve found to be enjoyable and educational. Dr. Lee is an international wine lecturer, wine writer and critic, who has earned the top WSET designation of Diplomat and well as numerous other wine credentials. He is a visiting professor at the North-West University College of Oenology China, China’s only Oenology institution. He is an International Sherry Educator and Sake professional under the auspices of the Japanese Sake Education Council. Dr. Lee has trained and passed the Whisky Ambassador program in Scotland and is the only recognized Whisky Ambassador to offer Whisky classes in British Columbia.

I was quite proud to successfully complete the APWASI Certified Argentinian Wine Specialist class and celebrated in style with a glass of delicious 2018 Arraigo Benegas Cabernet Franc from Mendoza. Cab Franc is uncommon in Argentina and can be beautiful and expensive. Here’s a bit of knowledge from the course: the Benegas Cab Franc comes from stony soil that is flooded for irrigation, as is traditional in Argentina.

Learning is a lifelong quest – and with the APWASI courses, the journey can be a delicious one.

South American Wines Deliver On Taste And Value

South American wines are delivering robust flavors resulting from the latest winemaking techniques paired with a concern for the environment. We sampled a couple of signature wines from Argentina and Chile.

Less Labor on Labor Day

The Labor Day weekend traditionally marks the end of summer. The long weekend is a time for cooking out and fun before starting the grind through the cooler days of fall.

We had family in from out of town and invited our neighbors over for some food and backyard sporting events. To save the wear and tear on the cooks, the Green Dragon bought some New York Strip Steaks marinated in garlic butter from the House of Meats. We had corn on the cob, beet salad with goat cheese, watermelon, baked potatoes and garlic bread.

For the wine, I selected the Montes Alpha 2013 Carmenère. Montes is a pioneer in quality wine from Chile. Their Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon raised the bar for other winemakers in the country. Their Purple Angel “super” Carmenère is one of our favorite all-time wines.

The Montes Alpha Carmenère is a wine that could age for up to 10 years, or is ready to open now. My New York Strips were sliced to about a half-inch thick, meaning they would cook in no time on my charcoal grill. I was in no mood to wait for a wine to age!

Dry Farming Techniques

This wine comes from the Colchagua Valley vineyards and is grown with dry farming techniques. No irrigation is used unless it is determined that Mother Nature doesn’t provide the minimum rain the vines need. This decreases the water use by 65%, which is nice for the environment and it also produces riper fruit.

Carmenère is considered the signature red grape of Chile. The Montes Alpha certainly shows why. Deep garnet in the glass, this has an explosion of concentrated flavors. It is jammed with red and black fruit flavors. Ripe cherries and spices blend with toasted oak flavor notes.

Enjoyment flows easily from this bottle and it married well with my steak from the grill. It is recommended that this wine be decanted for 30 minutes to allow the aromatics to open up.

The Montes Alpha has 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 55% of the wine was aged for 12 months in French oak. This is enough to provide structure, but not dominate.

Terroir of Argentina

Our next signature grape was from Kaiken Premium Wines of Argentina. Kaiken has been expanding its experimental biodynamic program and expects to be fully biodynamic by 2020. Biodynamics combines elements of organic, sustainable farming with some almost mystical components.

Kaiken was founded by Aurelio Montes, the founder of Viña Montes. During a recent blind tasting party, we popped open a bottle of the Kaiken Terroir Series 2015 Torrontés.

Torrontés Rocks

While Malbec gets the headlines for red Argentine wine, Torrontés is rockin’ the white wine sphere. These grapes are handpicked from vineyards 5,200 feet above sea level. The altitude keeps the climate cool and allows the grapes to retain their acidity.

I tasted this blind with three other whites. I zeroed in on this wine like a hawk. A beautiful green-gold in the glass, it is fresh with juicy citrus and grapefruit flavors. The acidity was refreshing without having a sharp bite.

The Kaiken Torrontés comes from Argentina’s Salta region. Salta is one of the top wine regions in Argentina and that country’s northernmost wine producing area. This would pair very well with lobster or perhaps crab cakes. We had an assortment of appetizers, and there wasn’t a bad match in the lot.

One of the most tasty features of these wines is the price. The Montes Alpha Carmenère is $25 SRP and the Kaiken Torrontés retails for only $17. Those prices are highly sustainable for the wallet.

Full Disclosure: These wines were received as marketing samples.

Rutini Trumpets Quality Malbec From Argentina

Malbec continues to overdeliver on taste and value. Here are three Argentine Malbec picks plus a refreshing white.

Roots in Italy, Vines In Argentina

Rutini Wines was founded in 1885 by Italian-born Felipe Rutini, one of the first to realize the potential of winemaking in Argentina. His motto was “Work and Perseverance.” On the outskirts of Mendoza, the Rutini family built a legacy for hospitality and quality.

Rutini farms more than 900 acres in Gualtallary, Altamira and La Consulta, Rivadeavia and Maipu. In some sites, the Malbec clones date back more than 100 years. All grapes are 100% hand harvested and the winery team is constantly experimenting with new techniques, such as conical fermentation tanks.

Winemaker Mariano Di Paola was recently named one of Decanter’s top 30 winemakers in the world. We recently had the opportunity to taste a quartet of Rutini wines.

Argentina Has Whites Too

With all the focus on Malbec and red wine in Argentina, it might be easy to overlook white wine. That would be a mistake. Torrontés is a white grape that can produce beautifully aromatic wines.
The Trumpeter brand is a best selling label for Rutini, experiencing great success in the US and internationally. The wines are accessible and are economically priced. the 2015 Rutini Trumpeter Torrontés retails for $10.99.

It offers floral aromas and notes of peach. It’s refreshing with a medium acidity.

A Trio of Malbec

The Trumpeter range also includes the 2014  Rutini Trumpeter Malbec, with grapes from Tunpungato and Mendoza. It’s a good value pick at $11.99. This has all the hallmarks of Malbec, with a deep, dark color, medium body  and a load of jammy flavors.
I’m a fan of Malbec and my current advice is now that you know what Malbec is, spend a few extra dollars and step up to a higher qualify. In addition to the entry-level Trumpeter, we tasted two higher-priced Malbec.

The 2012 Rutini Malbec is aged in new oak (80% French, 20% American) for 12 months. As a result, this wine has more tannins than you might be used to in a Malbec. This wine has aged for four years and could age for several more.
This is their premium Malbec and lists for $35. It is a complex wine with berry flavors and tobacco and vanilla as well. It undergoes malolactic fermentation which provides a rich, full body. We suggest decanting this wine.

Our pick of the quartet was the 2013 Encuentro Malbec. Encuentro means encounter or meeting and the wine reflects a meeting between the winemaking styles of Bordeaux and the New World.
Aging is also for a year, but it is with 50% new and second use French oak and 50% America oak. When barrels are reused, it cuts down the oak intensity. This dials back the tannins nicely for a very smooth wine which doesn’t lack in the complexity department. Aromas of violets and red fruit give way to jam and dark chocolate. At $18.99 SRP, the price is also tasty.

Rutini has solid roots in the past as well as an eye on the future of winemaking. Take your pick of these four wines to introduce yourself to the signature grapes of Argentina.

Full disclosure: We received these wines as marketing samples.

Alta Vista 2013 Premium Torrontes, Salta

Most of the focus in Argentina is on red wine, specifically Malbec. Torrontes is a white wine that is under the radar, but worthy of attention.

Bridging The Wine Gap

The hot months of summer are ideal for chilled white wines and the frosty days of winter call out for robust reds or perhaps a glass of Port.
What about the months in between? We suggest that this is the perfect time to try something different. In our case, it was a bottle of Torrontes.
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Torrontes Is Expressive And Flavorful

I uncorked this bottle not knowing quite what to expect. Expecting a run of the mill white with timid flavors, I was surprised when I whiffed the bouquet of (nearly) explosive aroma. It was like walking down the aisle of the floral department.
I poured a glass for Green Dragon who was distracted with some household activity. She took a sip of it and declared, “It tastes like flowers.”
The Alta Vista Torrontes does indeed have a smell and taste of roses and reminded us of Gewürztraminer. The taste was vibrant and refreshing. For Green Dragon, it was a bit too much, and so she grabbed some cheese and crackers to moderate the zesty flavor.

High Elevation Grapes

Grapes for the Premium Torrontes come from the high elevation Cafayate vineyards in Argentina’s Salta region. The vineyards, which are at 5,400 feet, are among the best in Salta, which is known for the best Torrontes.
The wine is aged in steel tanks and maintains a clean and crisp flavor. We think this would go well with fish and seafood dishes, or perhaps spicy Thai.
At $18.99 SRP, this is an affordable excursion into cool. Argentina is known for some of the best wine values and apparently that it true of the white wines as well as the red.
Embrace the “flower power” with this premium Torrontes from Alta Vista.
Full Disclosure: This wine was received as a marketing sample.

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