The Indian Wine Academy is organising three first-of-their-kind wine appreciation evenings at New Delhi's premier cultural and entertainment destination

The Indian Wine Academy will organise the first-ever wine appreciation evenings to be held at Habitat World, New Delhi's premier cultural and entertainment destination. Open to members of the India Habitat Centre, who represent the city's top corporate executives and distinguished individuals from politics, diplomacy, business, NGOs, theatre and sports, and their guests, the programme titled 'Wine One-on-One' will expose wine lovers to gentle doses of information without the jargon and the snobbery.

The wine appreciation evenings will be held at Past Times, the Habitat World's cozy pub, between 5.30 p.m. and 8 p.m. on three successive Saturdays -- February 12, 19 and 26. Those interested in participating have the option of signing up for any one of the three days.

Between 5.30 p.m. and 7 p.m., the Indian Wine Academy's President, Subhash Arora, who's also the Founder-President of the Delhi Wine Club, and Executive Director Sourish Bhattacharyya, a prominent food and wine writer who edited the HT City Eating Out/Night Out Guide 2004, will first prime the participants with the basics -- grape varieties, wine regions and wine labels.

This panoramic view of the Wonderful World of Wine will be followed by an hour of an informal guided tasting (7 to 8 p.m.), where participants will get to sample four Chilean wines, sponsored by Rhine & Raavi Agro Pvt. Ltd., with bread, cheese straws and snacks prepared by Executive Chef Sivanand Kain's talented team.

When the tasting is on, we'll talk about the benefits of wine, wine etiquette (from holding the glass right to pouring the right amounts), storage and serving tips, selecting the right wine glasses for your home, unraveling secrets of food and wine pairing, ordering the right wines at a restaurant, banquet planning, and duty-free shopping tips.

At the end of the evening, each participant will be handed an information handout prepared by the Indian Wine Academy.

Welcoming the idea of having wine appreciation evenings, Habitat World's Corporate Manager-Marketing Communications, Pramuch Goel, said: "We've received requests from our members in the past to organize wine appreciation classes, in addition to the workshops and other activities we keep having at Habitat World. For this reason, we're very pleased that the Indian Wine Academy is bringing this unique programme to our members. We're very enthusiastic about the programme and we hope to make these evenings a regular feature of our programme calendar."

THE WINE LIST: The wines being served are four single varietals from Cremaschi Barriga S.A., a 150-year-old Chilean company established by a family of Italian immigrants at San Javier in the Maule Valley. Described as the "rising star" of Chile, Cremaschi Barriga wines, especially the Tierra Del Fuega and Cremaschi Furlotti labels, have won a procession of medals and are exported to 14 countries.

WHOLESOME BITES: The snacks being offered are: Mattar Potli Samosas; Mezze Platter; Lamb Kibbeh; Fish Fingers (February 12); Vegetable Canapés; Vermicelli Paneer Fritters; Murgh Malai Tikkas; Amritsari Fish (February 19); Vegetable Croquettes; Asparagus & Corn Quiche; Mutton Seekh Kebabs; Tandoori Fish (February 26).

REASONABLE CHARGES: For the entire experience, participants will have to pay Rs 750 per head (singles), Rs 700 per head (couples), and Rs 650 per head (groups of three or more). That's peanuts for an evening of gentle doses of knowledge followed by good wine and food!

To sign up for this first-of-its-kind programme, please send an e-mail to arora@indianwineacademy.com . We look forward to three evenings of learning with fun.