Devour Utah August 2018

Spirit Guide

Wine in

Park City Mines & Wines Tour

COURTESY FOX SCHOOL OF WINE

Zion

Demystifying the grape, one glass at a time

BY DARBY DOYLE

56 Devour Utah • august 2018

Sip and learn

COURTESY FOX SCHOOL OF WINE

E

verybody calm down!” implores sommelier Jim Santangelo when talking about the wine world’s pervasive reputation for overcomplicating vino wisdom. “It’s just pinot noir!”

As someone who’s been working in the food and beverage biz for most of his life, Santangelo strongly believes everyone from consumers to restaurant managers benefits when wine is made more approachable. Whether teaching one of his popular wine classes, certifying new sommeliers or at a restaurant with a wine list he’s personally curated, his goal is the same: “I want people to love being there and want them to be happy. Wine brings people together.”

Francis Fecteau, proprietor of SLC-based Libation, agrees that it’s an exciting time to work in spirits education. Fecteau opines that traditionally the wine industry hasn’t done itself any favors by making selecting and enjoying wine much more complicated than it needs to be. He applauds any and all efforts to “de-fang the vocabulary” of wine terminology, by giving both customers and servers a common language for getting in the glass that people want to drink. “You recognize good wine when it puts a smile on your face,” Fecteau says.

Ready to elevate your wine experience? There’s no shortage of opportunities to up your grape knowhow, from casual community get-togethers to serious sommelier-level certification programs. And if my own experiences with these educators are any indication, you’ll have a helluva good time along the way.

PARK CITY MINES & WINES TOUR During a comprehensive—and incredibly entertaining—three-hour chauffeured tour, sommelier and “Headmistress of Wine” Kirsten Fox leads groups of happy imbibers to six historic locations around Park City. At each stop, Fox School of Wine staff share their expertise on wines from all over the world as well as Park City’s rich mining history, pairing libations to both the historical location and with thoughtfully selected snacks. I was hooked from the first glass of bubbly served at the tour’s starting point at Deer Valley’s Montage: a Gloria Ferrer ’09 Royal Cuvée from Caneros, California sipped while overlooking the historic remains of the No. 1 Daly West Mine.

By the tour’s final stop along what used to be the mining camp’s red light district, the dozen members of our group were wearing feather boas and toasting our new friendship with a Warres 20-year Tawny