Beverage Tastings

[CM Dad]

If you are lucky, you may have a very small group for your beverage seminar. My wife and I did a mixology class last month in Skyline. There was only one other couple in the group, and they had been invited by the bartender the night before, or or would have been just the two of us. Since it was such a small group, he used some higher end products than they normally do, and actually gave us 6 drinks instead of the usual 5.

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

If you are lucky, you may have a very small group for your beverage seminar. My wife and I did a mixology class last month in Skyline. There was only one other couple in the group, and they had been invited by the bartender the night before, or or would have been just the two of us. Since it was such a small group, he used some higher end products than they normally do, and actually gave us 6 drinks instead of the usual 5.

Our mixology class had nine people not show up, so extra drinks were given out.

 

[JayhawkCruiser]

I’ve always really enjoyed the wine tastings. On our last cruise it was called stem to stern (or vise versa) and the sommelier from Palo conducted it. It was fabulous.
The champagne tastings have also been fun but generally I’ve found to just be a promo for Moet, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
The best bang for your buck is the mixology courses. Depending on the ship you may get to go behind the bar and learn a few tricks, but at a minimum you’ll walk away with several new cocktail recipies to make you look like you know what you’re doing in front of your friends. And fair warning I say best bang for your buck because on top of the perks above you’re also walking out of that place sideways - good luck if the ship happens to hit rough waters and you begin listing to any degree of significance lol!

 

[olafLover]

.

 

[princesspeaony]

Might any recent cruisers know??...recent (Fantasy Eastern) Navigators aren't showing any additional Champagne tastings (or any, actually, from what I've seen). Only one was offered on our cruise for pre-booking, and while I know often they add more onboard, I can't tell if that's been the case this month, and if so, how many they have added.
Can anyone help?

 

[NCConch]

If you are lucky, you may have a very small group for your beverage seminar.

I did the Tequila & Margarita tasting on the Dream and was the only person there - besides the bartender. It was really cool having a knowledgeable (and attractive) young lady presenting the drinks. It was very informative.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

I was thinking of doing the wine-tasting but would want me DH to come along with me (he doesn't drink wine). If I sign up for one, will he be allowed to attend and just not partake?

I don't drink, but have attended the wine tasting and the tequila tasting with DW. Never a fuss (both Magic & Fantasy).

Of note, she loved the mix of wines provided by the sommelier on Magic (George, the Transylvanian Irishman) where she fell in love with a particular vintage that is very affordable on the pocketbook.

 

[kiford]

We did the beer tasting a few years so it may be significantly changed by now. We're not big beer drinkers and we do typically tend to drink either local craft beer or English or Irish imported but I still found it interesting, though maybe because I'm not a big beer drinker. I recall a stout (might have been Guinness, I'm not sure at this point) and I know that there was at least one Sam Adams. They showed us how to make a Black and Tan at the end (total fail for me). What I found most interesting was the explanation of the different methods and types. If you know all of that and really like craft beer, it may not be for you.

We've done the wine twice and thought they were well done. It's pretty much different each time because the presenter will change and the wine selection will depend on what's available. Sometimes they do specific region wine tastings such as Old World or New World.

While I haven't done it (yet) I've read good reviews of the Chocolate & Liquor tastings.

Awesome. I hope to do it again.

Has anyone done the Whiskey tastings? I have it booked for my husband but he's not sure what to expect.

We did it a few years ago only because DH is a big Scotch fan. I only did it to please him because I didn't like any kind of whiskey. That was then, this is now. I now love Irish Whiskey and my taste for it is getting more and more expensive as I find new ones in our local shops. Because of this I agreed to do the cognac one a couple of years later. Guess what happened. Both times they were presented in the Cove Cafe (Magic) late in the evening (10-ish). They were both very interesting and I learned a lot. Each one was 5 glasses (not full but not a dribble). I drank all of them but developed a specific liking for some and not for others. So I found them to be a very good value. I would never have tried any of these if I had to buy by the glass and I wouldn't know what to look for in the store later.

 

[Pandafamily]

Agreement with everyone who has done the chocolate and liquor tasting, FANTASTIC! It is worth doing again.