Wine tasting experience at Veeno, Reading

Sunday 22 October 2017 Reading, UK

Wine Tasting Experience at Veeno, Reading
Until now, my experience with wine has been shameful - think £5 Sainsbury's house wine for pre-drinks, 1 euro Don Simon in Spain and cheap Rosé. I mean, I dont know any wine experts my age so I'm not the only one! I enjoy a glass of wine but I know almost nothing about wine tasting, in other words, understanding the difference between wines and tasting them properly.

So when the team from Veeno* got in touch inviting me to an Italian wine tasting experience at their new Reading branch, I was excited to get involved and learn something about wine! Lucky Jack got to join me too although he's not usually a wine fan at all. I'm hoping after the wonderful experience it will encourage him to drink it with me a little more!

We were welcomed by the manager and Maks, our resident wine tasting expert for the evening on a quiet Sunday (I know, not the best evening to taste six different wines...). The interior was very cosy and relaxed, with lots of warm lighting and fairy lights in the window! We felt instantly at home.

We started off the evening with an Apérol spritz (me) and an espresso martini (Jack), and being honest I was so jealous of his drink - it actually tasted more of coffee instead of sugary! We then got stuck in with the wine and the fantastic spuntini board, as part of the Selezione wine tasting experience.

Wine tasting experience at Veeno, Reading

We couldn't believe how much food there was on this board. It was a collection of the nicest Italian food you could imagine - tasty and authentic cured meats and cheeses, sundried tomato and all of the bread. Each specially-selected piece is designed to complement one of the six different wines we tried, and we devoured the lot! The buffalo mozzarella and bresaola, an air-drief cured beef were my personal favourites.

Wine Tasting Experience at Veeno, Reading

From the Selezione menu, we were able to try two white wines, one rosé, two reds and a dessert wine from the more premium end. I was keen to learn how to wine taste properly, so we wanted to go the whole hog. You know when you see those wine experts twirling their glasses, sniffing and slurping? Whilst it does look a bit pretentious (definitely felt a bit like a dick the first few times doing it), it actually does make a difference to how the wine tastes!

I wasn't a huge fan of the first white wine, since it was quite sharp and I prefer sweeter options. Therefore the second was easily one of my favourites! Maks told us this was known as the "The Wine of Love" with notes of grapefruit and apricot (I guessed both from the scent which I felt incredibly smug about). 

I'm a massive fan of rosé as a drink with meals, as it doesn't feel as heavy to drink. Maks was disgusted as I told him that I've loved a Zinfandel for a long time, and I felt like quite a rosé numpty, but this was because the quality of Zinfandel, made in California is worse than other rosés. I mean, I'm still gonna drink it because I like it, but I'll just feel a little guilty when I do!

The rosé we tasted was perfectly refreshing and light, as well as slightly fruity so it was my favourite of the bunch  - pun completely intended! Both red wines incredibly smoky tasting and a bit too rich for me, certainly pleasant but I wouldn't choose them on a regular basis. By this point I may add I was also a little tipsy, so really we should have taken a break in between the wines so we could taste these better (oops).

The final dessert wine was brought along with a massive surprise tiramisù to share! I was absolutely ecstatic as everyone who knows me I love a good dessert, more so when I had no idea it was unexpected. The wine was sweet and rich, with an amaretto hint to it. Surprisingly, I found this less heavy than the red wines, it was so enjoyable. The tiramisù was moussey, a bit boozy and perfectly chooclatey, which rounded off the experience suitably!

We had a fantastic experience at Veeno, and for wine and Italian snack fans this place is a must! The service was so relaxed and friendly, and Maks was the perfect host. They have 15 branches across the UK so you're bound to find one near you!

Thanks for reading! Do you like wine? Have you tried wine tasting before? Chat to me!

*This is a sponsored post. I was invited to the Selezione wine tasting experience in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. For more information, see my disclaimer.

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Wine Tasting Experience at Veeno, Reading
 
  
 

2 comments

  1. Looks amazing I really need to try this place!

    Matt // www.theguyontrend.co.uk

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  2. This looks great! So happy to see there's one in my city! Think I'm going to give it a try!
    Molly | http://gracetoglowandgo.com

    ReplyDelete

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