Photo by Kamp Fender.
Cassles Krebs is the instructor of a wine blending class by Kessler Connections at the Grand Bohemian Hotel in Mountain Brook.
Wine. Depending on your tastes, you may like it dry or sweet, white or red. It can even make a holiday gift. Whatever your tastes, you can make your own blend of wine at the Grand Bohemian Hotel.
Founded in 2015 when the hotel opened, the Grand Bohemian offers a specialty wine blending class to those over the age of 21. Typically, people are told not to mix wines, but third-year instructor Cassles Krebs said, “Most red wine actually is blended.”
“Small grapes are used to complement each other and make a more complex [red] wine,” he said. White wine is usually a one-grape format. “But red wine, it has so much more complexity that you can work in and make more magic. … The best wine made in the world is actually blended.”
The class he teaches at the Grand Bohemian is typically an hour and a half to two hours in length, depending on the number of people. Krebs said he talks about the different grapes used in wine making and how to combine them to make different blends.
“The class format is you are tasting unblended wines so you can make blends,” he said, with the goal of making a blend that satisfies your tastebuds.
The hotel is outfitted with a blending machine and a corking device, and people can create custom labels for their specialty wine. Krebs said the labels will typically feature wedding pictures or pictures of pets or kids. At the end of class, everybody gets their own bottle of wine.
In addition to some general education about grapes, wine and wine blending, Krebs said he talks about food pairing, how to purchase large amounts of wine for big events and what to choose for “sparkling options.” He said the class is designed to be “all things wine.” You don’t have to be a wine expert — or novice, for that matter — to take the class, either.
Krebs said the class is enjoyable for those who might not know much — “It’s actually kind of fun if people don’t have a whole ton of knowledge,” he said — but it also serves as a good way for those who know a lot about wine to expand on their experiences.
Photo by Kamp Fender.
Cassles Krebs pours for student Michael Odom during a wine blending class.
He said many older individuals who have gone to wine tastings abroad or at home “find it invigorating because [the class provides] useful information to help look back at memories.”
“We kind of find it fun for just about anyone to take. … Even somebody that’s been buying fine wine for years … doesn’t completely understand why fine wine is the way it is,” Krebs said.
While anyone can take the class, Krebs said he sees many bachelorette parties, birthday parties and people on date nights wanting to try their hand at wine blending. Some people will also bring in private corporate and business parties. It’s an amenity that has been “pretty popular from the get-go,” he said, and the Grand Bohemian works to update the class and keep it exciting for both new and returning wine-blenders.
But at the end of the class, the goal is for people to walk away with a good experience and a good bottle of wine.
For more information or to book a class or gift certificate, go to mountain-brook.classesbykessler.com.
