Tasting Seminar: Relativity of Wine

A two-hour tasting seminar, served with light snacks to cleanse the palate. We highly recommend eating a heavy snack or meal before arriving. 

It's a common scene at a restaurant: we pick up the wine list, read unfamiliar grapes that sound intriguing, and ask the staff, "What is this wine like? Is it similar to something I know?" Inspired by this familiar question, Sally Kim, wine director for the Delfina Restaurant Group, originally created this class for staff at Delfina and Locanda.

This class will focus on wines made from different grape varieties from different wine regions and countries that drink similarly. A closer study and tasting of wines side-by side-will give students a better understanding of how often wines share similarities. You will taste three comparative flights (whites, reds, rosés) of three wines each to achieve the goal: to make selecting wines at a retail shop or navigating a wine list in restaurants easier, but also expand your options.

Sally Kim started her wine career interning at The Underground Wine Journal while majoring in French literature at UC Irvine. She later worked at Domaine Carneros winery and several San Francisco restaurants including Marketbar and Restaurant Lulu. Sally then moved into wine sales for Domaine Select Wine Estates, Trilussa and The Sorting Table. She returned to the restaurant side as a sommelier at Terroni Restaurant Group in Los Angeles and then moved to Toronto to be Wine Director for the group’s six restaurants. She started as Beverage Director at Delfina Restaurant Group in June 2014 to manage the Italian-focused wine and beer lists at Delfina, Locanda, four Pizzeria Delfinas and the cocktail programs at both of the Group’s full-service bars (Locanda and Pizzeria Delfina Palo Alto). In August 2017, she took took a step back to work on her own project to make wine. Sally continues to be the wine director for the Delfina Restaurant Group, but also consults for other clients like A16, SPQR, and A16 Rockridge.